Alice’s POV
“Miss Nura,” Mrs. Grace said calmly as I stepped into her office and gently closed the door behind me. Her eyes were already on me.
She sat behind her large desk, which held a sleek laptop and a neatly arranged stack of files. The space around her looked pristine—too pristine, like a place where emotions weren’t welcome.
Her office, tucked away on the top floor of the administrative building, had felt suffocating even before I got there. I had spent the entire elevator ride nervously fidgeting with the hem of my floral dress, twisting and untwisting it like it was the source of my anxiety.
“Good day, Mrs. Grace,” I said softly.
“Good day, dear,” she replied. Then she stood and walked toward the seating area in front of the large window.
“Come, have a seat,” she said, gest
