Gemotions

"Impossible," Sarah whispered, her voice barely audible. She traced the words on the screen, the evidence against her favorite author, Evelyn Reed. A small knot had formed in her stomach, twisting with each new revelation. She'd reread all of Reed’s books countless times, the stories comforting anchors in her life.

She picked up the framed picture on her desk, a photograph of her and Reed at a book signing. Reed had smiled at her, signed her book with a personal message. Now, that smile, that inscription, felt like a cruel joke.

She slumped in her chair, the weight of the information pressing down on her. The room felt suddenly too small, the walls closing in. She felt trapped. The coffee she'd just brewed now tasted like ash in her mouth.