Evangeline POV:
My body moved, but my mind was half-offline. Every muscle ached as if my bones had been shattered and reassembled incorrectly.
I didn’t protest when the older woman yanked me by the arm, dragging me into what looked like a tiled bathroom.
My feet were burning. I didn’t understand how they were even working when all I felt was a strange burning numbness.
The tiles were pale beige and hauntingly sterile, the kind you’d find in a hospital.
Without a word, she twisted the shower knob. Cold water burst from the head like a slap and drenched me instantly. I gasped. My body curled in on itself instinctively, the icy assault shocking me from my numb stupor. I pressed into the far corner of the stall, trying to disappear. But that didn’t stop her. She didn’t care.
"Scrub," t
