Scarlett

“Mother, careful!”

The warning tore from my throat an instant too late. My body moved forward, muscles straining, but the gap between us seemed endless.

Time froze in a perfect, dreadful moment; Father’s hand rising, a cloud of white powder swirling in the air, Mother’s expression changing from triumph to confusion.

The events unfolded rapidly. In one moment, Mother was triumphant, and in the next, she was gasping for breath, with powder clinging to her skin like a death ...