Softening the Silence

Sadie had been in the kitchen since noon. Not because anyone asked her to, but because she wanted to.

The house had been too quiet lately. Not the peaceful kind of quiet. The heavy kind. The kind that sat in your chest and made breathing feel like work. She had noticed it. The way Sylvie moved slower. The way Evander spoke less. Even the staff kept their voices low, like something fragile might br