SofiaI woke up in my room. I saw the ceiling first, then the lamp. Then the light, late afternoon, the angle of it through the window, and then Kara's face, close and careful, watching me with the expression she had worn exactly once before in my life, in a slave house, when something had happened that she did not know how to fix."Sofia," she said."I'm alright," I said. Automatic."You fainted," she said."I'm alright," I said again.I sat up.The room steadied.Kara had her hand on my arm, the specific light contact of someone who was ready to catch me again if required."Rocco said he's alive," I said."Yes," Kara said."Being treated," I said."Yes.""Coming tomorrow when he's well enough to travel," I said."Yes," Kara said. Her voice was doing the careful thing. The managed thing.I looked at her."Kara," I said."You need to eat something," she said. "And drink water. You haven't eaten since —""Kara," I said.She held my gaze.Her expression was the managed one and underneat
Last Updated : 2026-04-24 Read more