Rina leaned back against the hospital wall, arms crossed. "Back then, people believed baby girls were a waste. Just mouths to feed, nothing more."
Briggs was still staring at her like she'd grown a second head. "And your mom?"
Rina let out a slow breath. "She didn't care what they thought. She wanted me, and she wanted me safe. But the world didn't care about that either."
Briggs swallowed. "What happened?"
Her gaze flickered, memories flooding back. "They found out about her magic. About what she did to me. And in those days, that meant one thing death."
She could still hear her mother's screams, the crackling fire, the crowd's cheers as they burned her alive.
Briggs' voice was softer now. "And you?"
Rina's jaw clenched. "I lost control."