“Not yet. They said it takes about a week. We just have to wait, same as everyone else.” Emily sighed, but smiled. “Fine. I’ll be patient. Kind of.” She disappeared into her room, humming a tune that scraped against Clara’s frayed nerves.
Left alone, Clara pressed her forehead to her hands. The lie tasted bitter. She told herself it was just a delay, just a way to soften the blow before the truth arrived. But deep down she knew—she wasn’t protecting Emily. She was protecting herself.