"Please tell me what is bothering you," I urged.
Ada closed her eyes and buried her face against my chest. She did not want to talk about it. She didn't want to revisit the horrors of her upbringing, the guilt and dread that still tormented her.
I hugged her tight, my arms providing a reassuring shelter against the outside world. I could feel her distress, her body shivering against mine. I realized something was very wrong, but I respected her quiet. I would wait patiently and allow her to open up in her own time. But, while I held her, a niggling uncertainty persisted in my thoughts.