The sun rose slowly over the horizon, gilding the island in molten gold. The waves rolled lazily onto the shore, whispering secrets to the sand as gulls cried softly above. It should have been peaceful—was peaceful—but for Amara, peace had become something both foreign and fragile, like a dream that threatened to dissolve the moment she reached for it.

She sat near the edge of the wooden deck outside their small beach hut, legs pulled to her chest, chin resting on her knees. Her gaze was on the water, but her mind wandered far beyond it—to the city they’d left behind, the chaos that still awaited them, the man sleeping...