The First Shot

***Marcella***

My eyes opened slowly.

The world came back in fragments: light first, blurry and harsh, followed by the sharp sting of air in my lungs and the numbing ring in my ears that drowned everything else out. I blinked once or twice, trying to bring the world into focus.

Shapes wavered in front of me. Then Kaelen’s face sharpened into view, his mouth moving urgently, fast, desperate. But I