“Domitilla!”

The name tore through the silence like a jagged blade, shouted in a gravel-thick voice that struck deep, heavy with authority and emotion. I knew that voice. It belonged to a man---a man I recognized.

Other sounds followed in its wake distorted gasps, a choked rasp, and a high-pitched, mournful cry that scraped against my eardrums. All of it grated at me when all I truly craved was silence. Sleep. Oblivion. I was too exhausted to move, too wracked by pain to open my eyes. ...