"Someone...please save me…"
Seraphine's voice broke into a whisper, trembling as she hugged herself tighter on the cold ground. Her tears refused to stop, spilling endlessly, as though each one carried the weight of the betrayal she'd uncovered.
Her mind flooded with memories, images of her past flashing before her eyes like fragments of a broken mirror. She saw her father, his strong, confident figure standing tall even as the guards dragged him away in chains. His face was etched with pain, not for himself but for the family he was leaving behind. She remembered the fear that clutched her chest as she watched him turn one last time to look at her.
"Stay strong, Seraphine," he'd said, his voice steady but his eyes filled with sorrow.
But how could she stay strong when the world around her crumbled into chaos?