The shock of the family door slamming shut behind her hadn't even finished echoing within her when Marina felt the first shivers of panic run down her spine. She walked with a brisk, almost staggering pace, blinded by tears and fury, her only desire to put as much distance as possible between herself and that domestic tribunal. The air she breathed, which she thought was the air of freedom, tasted of ashes and betrayal.
She turned into a quieter alley, a shortcut she'd known since childhood, seeking the anonymity of brick walls and the shadow of overhangs. It was there that the click of high heels on the cobblestones, a rapid, determined sound, froze her blood. A noise she recognized among thousands.
"Marina."
The voice was a whip crack, sharp and final.
She froze in place, her body te
