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A soft whimper pulls from my trembling lips.
Rain sluices the windows, insistent and unforgiving.
My breath escapes in sharp pants.
A bolt of lightning rips across the sky.
Book forgotten, I crawl beneath the covers, yanking them over my head.
I’m safe. I’m safe. I’m safe.
It’s just a storm.
The thunder rumbles louder. Closer.
It pounds in my ears, in my heart.
Mama? Where are you?
The rain slams harder against the windows, each drop threatening to crack the glass.
Loud steps thudding on stairs, and I know. I just know.
It’s not Mama.
It will never be Mama again.
I can’t breathe. Frantic, shaky, useless inhales. Not enough air. Is it possible to suffocate this way?
The storm doesn’t sound like a storm anymore.
It sounds like boots. Like shouting.
Like the night my life shattered.
Lightning flashes, illuminating the room even beneath the covers. I’m curled into a ball. An embarrassment. A sniveling excuse for a princess. My hands tremble where they’re locked around my knees.
My wooden reindeer’s antlers bite into my palm as I squeeze myself smaller.
The door flings open. Heavy boots thud through the room.
Me, they’re looking for me.
“Mayah,” they call, rough, foreign voices. “Princess Mayah, come out. We won’t hurt you.”
Lies, lies, lies.
The closet door barrels open. I’m blinded by light. Large hands grip my arms, yanking me out.
The mattress dips, covers pulled back. Calloused hands wrap around my arms. “Mayah, open your eyes.”
“No! No, no, no!” I struggle and writhe, trying to escape their hold. “NO! NO!”
“Mayah,” the voice calls again. Every syllable thrums with panic.
I know this voice.
I know it in my bones.
His breath catches on his next words. “Mayah, it’s me. You’re safe, baby. Open your eyes.”
I stop struggling. I know him. It’s him. I’m safe. I’m safe with him.
I open my eyes.
It’s Zev. And his face looks as broken as I feel.
I launch myself into his arms, losing myself in his familiar scent.
Sobs rack my body, but he holds me tight.
He doesn’t let go.