“You should be prepared for a slow process.”

“How slow?”

“Long enough that we need to keep your safety and your recovery separate from whatever comes of it.”

Iris put down her phone and looked at the boxes in Lena’s room.

She realized she’d been measuring her progress by whether Garrett would face consequences.

Celia was asking her to measure something else: whether she could build a safe life even before anyone else was held accountable.

That evening Iris made herself dinner, watched a silly cooking program with Lena, and didn’t check her phone once.