The door shut behind her with a soft click. Marah stood still in the middle of her room, still dressed in the fine dinner robe the maids had prepared for her. Her hands trembled as she drew in air so fast and too hard. She was short of breath. She had not touched most of the food.
She barely remembered the taste of what she ate. All she could hear was Vanessa's voice, dripping with false sweetness, ringing through her head like a bell rang in an empty room.
"Some pasts cannot be forgotten..."
"...especially when they are tied to fire, and secrets, and old blood."
Marah dropped into the nearest chair, her hands flying to her face. Her body shook, but not from cold, it was from the sheer pressure of trying to hold everything in. The secret, the threats, her years of running. And now, th
