LOGIN~Amelia~
I was barely halfway through catching my breath when I noticed Blake hanging back near the side yard like he had something serious on his chest and did not feel like waiting
~Amelia~I was barely halfway through catching my breath when I noticed Blake hanging back near the side yard like he had something serious on his chest and did not feel like waiting for the whole pack to wander off before saying it.Training had been tough all morning, and the field was still buzzing with the aftershock of sparring feet, shouted counts, and guards laughing too hard while pretending they were not tired. Caleb had taken the younger fighters back to the main line to run drills again, Kaden was over by the east ri
~Amelia~I had barely stepped into the main hall when Clara caught my sleeve and pulled me toward the side corridor with that serious face she got when the future had decided to be a menace.She did not waste time.She gave me a once over view, then said, “I checked the border again.”
~Amelia~By the time Lily finally stopped fighting her own little body and drifted into sleep, the whole nursery had gone from panic mode to that shaky, exhausted quiet that always comes after a scare. Eli had already checked her twice, Clara had gone back to her room after saying the fever had dropped enough to breathe easier, and Blake had finally left the nursery with the last of the calming brew instructions written down on a scrap of paper that I folded and shoved into my pocket like it was a life raft.Kaden stayed throug
~Amelia~I was already running out of patience when Blake walked into the nursery like he had some kind of answer tucked in his pocket, and that alone made me want to thank him.Lily was still warm in Eli’s arms, and every time her tiny chest rose a little too fast, my own chest tightened right along with it. The nursery had gone quiet since everybody was trying to act calm for the sake of a baby who does not care about anyone’s composure, and I hated how heavy the silence felt around us.
~Amelia~Nothing in the world prepares you for the sound of your baby acting like she was being bitten by fire ants. I was half-asleep when Lily started fussing, and then it turned into that cry that ripped straight through my skull and had me sitting up before my brain even finished waking up. I snatched her up from the cradle so fast my blanket fell to the floor, and the second my palm touched her forehead, my stomach dropped hard.
~Amelia~The west edge was still a mess, and the air had that after-battle stink that always clung to wet dirt, hot sweat, and whatever little fear rogues carried around when they thought they could sneak into a territory and leave alive. Two guards were checking the fence dip again, one scout was kneeling by the brush with a lantern, and another warrior was standing over the stolen signal horn we had pulled off the runner, like he wanted to smash it into pieces out of pure spite.







