“Ava!” I shouted, pounding on the door. “Ava, sweetheart, answer me!”
At first there was nothing.
Then I heard it.
A faint scratching sound from inside.
My hands started shaking.
I grabbed the rusty shovel leaning against the wall and slammed it against the lock again and again until the metal snapped.
When the door finally burst open, a wave of heat and stale air rushed out.
The shed was dark except for a thin line of sunset light through a crack in the wall.
And in the corner—
my daughter.
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