Mei
The air in the shed had turned to ice, but it was the kind of cold that burned. Mei stood paralyzed, her back pressed against the jagged rear fender of the SUV, her fingers curled tightly around the metal tin in her apron pocket. The silver residue she had just scraped from the brake lines felt like a brand through the fabric, a secret that was already beginning to feel like a curse.
Then, the world outside the shed exploded.
CRASH.
The heavy corrugated doors didn't just open; they were kicked back with such violence that the iron hinges shrieked in protest, one of them snapping entirely and sending a spray of rust across the dirt floor.
Alaric was there.
