Shadows of Blood
The room dropped into silence again, silence so heavy that it could stifle breath, so thick with ghosts of memory clinging to every shadow.
Anna, who had remained silent beside her husband, moved forward at last. Her long silver locks slid across her shoulder like a silken curtain, the strands caressing the even curve of her violet horns. Her own eyes, dark violet and hurting with sympathy, relaxed as she reached out and touched Ben's arm with sensitive fingers. Her voice was low, with comfort and warning both. "Stop, Ben," she said softly. "Don't drown yourself in grief. That time is past. What counts now is that we are here. Alive. Together."
