Scars of Abandonment

After reading the last stanza through the heavy wood of Lachlan's door, Chloe closed the small book of children's poetry. Her voice faded into the quiet hallway. She pushed herself off the cold floor, her legs stiff and her sliced, burned palm throbbing beneath its fresh bandages. She descended the grand staircase, her steps echoing in the vast space of the luxurious villa, and went straight to th