“So… This is how you spent four years of your life.”

Deirdre froze as the voice in her ear continued. “What did you do to deserve this, Deirdre? If only I had met you sooner… If only I had known you sooner. I could have protected you!”

Deirdre felt a lump unfurling in her throat. Her body was shaking—pain and self-pity suddenly took the form of a deluge flooding through her veins and breaking into her heart. Her eyes turned red. She thought she had grown accustomed to her fate and was done que