SOPHIA
I wake to sunlight cutting across my face like a blade.
For a moment I don't move. Don't open my eyes. Don't acknowledge that I'm awake and have to face another day in this house.
My back throbs with every heartbeat. The welts are still there—I can feel them, tight and raised, some of them cracked open from last night. From when he—
I push the thought away.
The bed beside me is empty. Cold. He's been gone for hours.
I force myself to sit up slowly. Every muscle protests. The sheet peels away from my back and I feel the sting of fabric pulling at dried blood.
The mirror across the room shows me exactly what I've become. Hair tangled. Eyes hollow. Skin pale except for the shadows under my eyes.
I look away.
The bathroom is cold. I turn on the shower as hot as it will go and s
