Naomi's POV
I woke to smoke and a heavy heart in my chest.
The smoke I was referring to wasn't literal smoke, no. It was the thick kind that meant fire. Not yet. Just a faint, sharp tang in the air, like the world had lit a match and hadn’t blown it out. My throat itched with nerves and maybe, just maybe if i would like to admit it—fear. My heart already knew what my mind hadn’t caught up to.
Something had shifted in the air. You know that kind of shift that makes you think you don't know what you're going to do because you are confused? Yes. That kind.
I sat up, rubbing at my eyes. The cot creaked beneath me. Sunlight hadn’t quite broken through the clouds, but it was morning. Just barely. I could hear voices outside. Not shouting voice or shouts of panic, no. Just low conversation. I
