Irene's POV
I found myself in the kitchen, hands shaking so badly I had to grip the counter to steady myself.
Juniper was there, as she always seemed to be, preparing vegetables for tomorrow's meals. She looked up as I entered, almost dropping the knife and her expression immediately shifted to concern.
"Lady Irene? Are you quite alright? You look as if you've seen a ghost." She looked at the door for my pursuer but the hallway was empty.
The irony of the statement would have made me laugh if I weren't so terrified.
Instead, I moved closer to her, drawn to the simple normalcy of another human presence.
That's when I noticed the marks on her face.
Angry red scratches ran down her left cheek, fresh enough that they still looked raw.
"Juniper, what happened to your face?" I reached out instinctively but stopped short of touching her.
