Chapter 691: Old Friend

I wanted to go to my room and climb under the covers. To hide from the pain I felt, the slow and unrelenting crushing of my heart. To push aside the promise I'd made to sit down and talk to Shenka when I was done with Gram. But as I paused at the bottom of the stairs, I felt someone cross the wards before hearing the sound of knocking on the kitchen door.

Retreat still sounded like the best plan. Shenka was there to pick up the slack and even if it was Tallah all over again, I knew my second had it handled despite my fears the night before. But I needed the distraction, longed for something to break the heavy weight of grief I carried. And so, despite myself and my desire to escape into solitude, I found my feet carrying me down the hall and into the sunlit kitchen.

Shenka turned to meet my eyes, hers hooded in dislike just as I shifted my gaze from her to the open door. And the young woman standing on the other side.

Mia Dumont's wavering smile almost did me in. That, paired with h