"No…" she whispered, her voice breaking before it rose into a feral growl. "No, no, no!"
Aria's chest heaved as though someone had stolen the air from her lungs. Her lips twisted into something broken and furious, a expression that would have made angels weep.
She grabbed the phone with shaking fingers and slammed it down onto Lirion's desk with such force that it skidded across the polished mahogany surface, nearly toppling off the edge.
"Shit!" The curse tore from her throat like a wounded animal's cry. Her perfectly manicured hands flew to her golden hair, fingers clawing through the silken strands until several came loose, floating to the floor like fallen petals.
"My life is terrible. Everything—everything is falling apart!"
Her voice shook with rage that seemed to consume her from within. She pulled at her hair harder, as if the physical pain could somehow drown out the agony in her chest.
