The café was bustling with travelers, each absorbed in their own world of boarding passes and luggage. Margaret scanned the room until her eyes landed on Janet, a robust woman with a warm smile and fiery determination to match her reputation. Janet had been a godsend, offering not just legal insight, but encouragement and support that Margaret desperately needed.

“You made it,” Janet said, rising from her seat to embrace Margaret. “I did,” Margaret replied, a slight quiver in her voice but her resolve unshaken. They sat down and Margaret recounted her situation, the subtle erosion of her autonomy, and the way her voice had been gradually silenced.