TangShi put down her brushes and arched her back to work out the kinks from scooping over for too long. Leaning back to admire her handywork on the canvas in front of her and smiled at the results. Watercolors were her favorite medium, and she loved the way the colors subtly blended into soft hues in the pond scene she had created like a beautiful harmony. Gentle white and orange Koi meandering under a rippling blue surface and bringing peace to her as she worked.

It had been a quiet few days of getting used to the workings of this family and settling into a life she didn’t want. And...