"Wait here." the man's voice is firm and sharp enough to stop me cold. His hand had shot out like a barrier as his eyes flick back to make sure I obey. Without another glance, he strides toward Daniel, who leans casually against the matte black SUV, watching us with quiet intensity. I watch the man's broad back recede as he walks away with unyielding confidence. My hands slowly curl into fists at my sides in a silent battle to stay still as a war rage inside me.
Now I'm left standing alone under the scorching sun that is turning the stone courtyard into a giant furnace underneath my very feet. The heat is already rising in shimmering waves blurring the edges of the high perimeter walls, the matte black SUV, and even the slumped guards posted near its flanks.
My eyes dart restlessly around the compound; I haven't been out here since that day. Since Cessa. Now the world feels narrower... more suffocating.
The memory from that day rises unbidden. I had earned a wooden knife, a mock trop
