Chapter 12: The Confession
When the power finally returned the next morning, the center let out a collective cheer. Maya found Victoria slumped in a chair in the back office, exhausted. Maya handed her a bottle of water.
"Why didn't you destroy me?" Victoria asked, her voice cracking. It was the first time they had spoken directly about the past. "I was a monster to you."
"Because you were already destroyed," Maya said softly. "You were just living in a very expensive prison. My mother taught me that you can't cure a disease by making the patient suffer more. You just have to show them a better way to live."
