[Inside the Blackmoon stronghold - inner chambers ]
Autumn and Kieran stopped at a narrow corridor lined with colourful lanterns. Their faint buzz filled the silence between them. Kieran motioned towards a plain wooden door…his hand paused on the handle as if it weighed more than stone.
He glanced at Autumn.
Her shoulders were squared, but her fingers twitched at her side. Their eyes locked…brief, silent…before he pushed the door open.
The hinges groaned only a little.
A warmth spilled out from the nursery…a faint glow of lamps, the soft scent of wool blankets…and a lot of scattered dolls on the rugs.
And then…
Tiny feet pattered. A child's breathless voice broke the stillness.
"Mamma! Mamma… you are back!"
Willa came running, her little arms stretched forward, her hair flying around her face. The air seemed to lurch with the sweetness of her cry.
But…she froze… mid step.
Her eyes widened at the sight before her.
It was not her mother. She was seeing someone else…
