Lola took her time to breathe after the incidental walk-in. She knew now that someone was guarding the door and that it wouldn’t be repeated, but she hated that she was constantly on high alert.

The fear she’d felt when that door opened was as though her body prepared for a fight. Not a single mistake could happen without Lola immediately thinking it was life-threatening. It felt like an internal war shadowed her reality.

Lola took a breath and then another before walking to ...