Shattered Echoes

CASSIA

I flinched the instant the violent crash ripped through the quiet outside, the sound tearing through the air like glass shattering inside my skull. My body reacted before my mind could catch up, trembling so hard my muscles seized as if bracing for impact. My breath hitched, sharp and painful in my chest, and then the gunshots followed.

My heart leapt straight into my throat, pounding so vi