The first thing Kiara felt was the cold floor against her cheek.
Her head felt like someone had hit it with a stone. There was a bitter, chemical taste in her mouth that made her want to vomit. She tried to open her eyes, but the light in the room was too bright, stinging like needles.
When her vision finally cleared, she realized she wasn't in the abandoned shop anymore.
She was in a large, square room. It smelled like sweat, And she wasn't alone.
Everywhere she looked, there were girls. Some were small children, their ribs sticking out through their thin shirts. Others were older, sitting with their backs against the wall, staring at nothing with eyes that looked dead. Some were crying quietly, the sound like a wounded animal in the dark.
Panic hit Kiara like a physical blow. Her heart started to hammer against her ribs
"Mara?" she whispered. Her voice was dry and shaky.
She scrambled to her knees. Her legs felt like jelly, but she didn't care. She crawled across the cold tiles, looking at one face, then another. She saw a girl with matted hair. She saw a girl whose eyes were swollen from crying. But she didn't see her mara.
"Mara!" she cried out louder, her voice breaking.
Then, she saw a familiar heap of torn clothes in the corner. A head of dark hair.
Kiara lunged forward, her knees hitting the hard floor. She grabbed Mara's shoulders and shook her hard. Mara's head moved side to side, her eyes closed tight. She was still under the spell of whatever was on that cloth.
"Mara, please! Wake up! It's me! Wake up!" Kiara was sobbing now, her tears dripping onto Mara's face.
Slowly, Mara's eyes fluttered open. They were blurry and confused at first. She looked at the white ceiling, then at the walls, and then—finally—at Kiara.
In a second, the confusion died. The fire came back into Mara's eyes.
Mara surged upward, grabbing Kiara so hard it knocked the wind out of both of them. They crashed into each other, their arms wrapping around one another like they were trying to become one person
Mara buried her face in Kiara's neck, her fingers digging into Kiara's back. She held her so tight it hurt, but Kiara didn't want her to let go. In this room full of crying strangers and cold walls, they were each other's only world.
"I've got you," Mara choked out, her voice a rough promise. "I'm here. I'm never letting go. I swear."