“Ivana.”

I heard Kyl calling my name, but I didn’t answer. I just stared out the window again, watching the wind flirt with the trees just beyond the wrought iron gates. A bird darted past, wings slicing through the late afternoon light, vanishing into the open. I followed it with my eyes until it disappeared.

Freedom, that bird flies freely, but I am not free.

I felt his presence in the room long before I even heard his footsteps. He didn’t need to say anything.

...