Moments and emotions

AVELINE'S POV Six months later. I didn't know how it happened. I could barely recall the specifics of it because, if anyone had asked me how the time had passed, I wouldn't have been able to effectively explain it. Somehow, time had moved in a blur of contrasting moments and emotions. I couldn't, even if I tried, count the number of times I'd felt my chest caving in as my heart hurt to the point where I considered reaching past my ribs and pulling the organ out. The number of times I'd had to remind myself that I'd gone through something impossible and somehow survived it. I couldn't count the number of nights I'd spent awake, wondering about Nereth. Nor could I count the number of mornings I'd woken up with Damon curled against me, his tiny fingers wrapped around one of mine, and felt a kind of happiness so overwhelming that it frightened me almost as much as the things I'd lost. There had been days when I'd missed the life I'd once imagined for myself so badly that brea

I'm here now

AVELINE'S POVBy the time I arrived at the pack house, the halls were already filled with hurried footsteps.Voices came from behind closed doors. Healers moved quickly between rooms, carrying bowls, towels, herbs and whatever else they needed. The air itself seemed charged with urgency.Jenna was about to have the baby.The thought still felt strange.Only six months ago, I had been the one lying somewhere similar, struggling to understand what was happening to my body while everyone around me tried desperately to help.Now it was my sister.I had left Damon with Serene before coming. I hadn't even considered bringing him with me. There were already too many questions surrounding my disappearance, too many eyes that might linger on me for longer than I could afford.Serene had helped with Damon a lot over the months, and I trusted her completely.He was safe.That was all that mattered.“Where is she?”One of the healers pointed toward the room at the end of the hall.I didn't need t

What does that mean?

AVELINE'S POV For a while, everything went exactly as it was supposed to. Jenna laboured. The healers encouraged her. I held her hand and tried to offer whatever comfort I could, even though there was very little anyone could say that would make what she was going through easier. She screamed. She cursed. She cried. At one point, she even threatened to bite the healer nearest to her. That earned a weak laugh from me. “Don't laugh at me,” she gasped. “I wasn't.” “You were.” “I swear I wasn't.” “You're a terrible liar, Ave.” I smiled despite myself. “Maybe.” Another contraction came before she could say anything else, and the smile disappeared from my face as her fingers crushed mine again. “You're doing well,” the healer told her. “Just a little longer.” Jenna nodded, tears slipping down her temples and disappearing into her damp hair. I brushed them away. “You're almost there.” Her eyes opened. They found mine. For a second, beneath all the pain and exhaustion,

Quaking walls

AVELINE'S POV Sirus stood at the doorway breathing heavily. He looked as though he'd run the entire way. His clothes were dishevelled, his chest rose and fell with every breath, and there was still dirt clinging to his boots. His eyes immediately found Jenna. Then the baby. Then the healers surrounding the bed. “What happened?” No one answered. His face changed. “What's wrong with my mate?” I stepped aside. “Sirus…” Jenna began, her voice almost a whisper. He crossed the room in seconds. “Jenna.” Her eyes found him and immediately relief flooded her expression. “Sirus,” she said again, this time her voice was more audible. “What is wrong?" he asked, brushing away the strands of sweat drenched hair that were matted against her forehead. I took a few subtle steps back to give them some space. The healers seemed to do the same as Jenna seemed to have stabilized at the sight of Sirus. Jenna smiled faintly. “Our daughter.” His gaze moved to the tiny bundle in her arm

I suppose we'll Figure it out

AVELINE'S POV For several minutes, I couldn't understand what had happened. The room was still moving around me, but none of it seemed real. The healers were speaking. Someone was crying. Sirus was saying Jenna's name over and over again, as though repeating it enough times might somehow bring her back. But I couldn't make sense of any of it. Jenna had been here. She had been holding her daughter. She had been smiling. She had been talking to me. And now she was gone. I stood frozen near the foot of the bed, the baby still cradled against my chest. She was warm. So impossibly warm. Her tiny body shifted against me, making a small sound before settling again. I looked down at her. For a moment, I couldn't understand how something so small could still be here when everything else had changed. She had lost her mother before she'd even had the chance to know what a mother was. My throat tightened. "Jenna..." The name escaped me without thought. T

Dormant

AVELINE'S POV "I suppose we'll figure it out." The words had barely left my mouth when the baby stirred again. Her tiny fingers loosened around mine. I watched them for a moment before slowly withdrawing my hand. I should have left. I had Damon waiting for me. Serene was probably wondering when I would return, and I had already stayed away longer than I'd intended. But I couldn't make myself move. Not yet. I looked down at the little girl again. Tiny. The word came to me without much thought. She was so small. So impossibly small that I could have held her against one arm and forgotten there was a whole world beyond the room. "Tiny," I whispered. Her nose wrinkled slightly in her sleep. I smiled despite myself. "Tiny." The name felt strange. Too casual for everything that had happened. But perhaps that was exactly why I liked it. She didn't need another solemn name whispered over her because her mother was dead. She didn't need to become a symbol of tragedy befo