WillowWhen Ivy told me she was going to be in Cerise Port, I agreed to come and see her. Kane and Emory were going for their planned visit. I haven’t had the chance to visit the seaside kingdom, and I thought the change of scenery might be good for my daughter. Ever since Rainer left to go rescue L
LydiaMy body has mostly healed despite the meagre food and rest I’m surviving on. Shifter healing could do wonders especially in the direst of circumstances. With my head clear, I’m able to be alert and pay attention to our surroundings during travel. We journey through the night and set camp durin
LydiaThe vampire’s red eyes glare at me. Jesse struggles to escape from his grip, and he pulls at one of her paws. There’s a sickening crunch as bone breaks, and Jesse lets out a pained yelp. She goes limp from the pain, and the vampire holds her up with his superior strength. I’m antsy on my feet,
LexMagic has a pleasant natural smell. It’s a mix of the forest with the woody scent of trees and the sweetness of berries. The smell lingers around the castle and grounds as the High Priestess sets up the wards around the area. I watch as a canopy of light is built in the sky only visible during t
I lean down, moving to capture her mouth with mine.“You used to feed on a young witch once. Don’t you remember?”That makes me stop.Her expression is shrewd. Her words cut into me like a sharp blade.This isn’t curiosity. She knows something.She’s judging my reaction, waiting for me to explain.I
WillowBryony’s nightmares prevent her from getting a lot of restful sleep at night, so I encourage her to nap when she can. When she’s awake, she often draws disturbing images. If my daughter is a seer, then she’s seeing troubling visions of the future. It’s a lot for a three-year-old girl to have
LydiaThe vampire with the shaved head brings Jesse and I back to camp dressed in some ill-fitting clothes he had with him in a backpack. The vampire I attacked lies on the ground, blood soaking the front of his shirt. The earth beneath him is a dark red, almost black. I’m shocked that he’s still al
LydiaJesse’s death has left me numb with shock. I can barely sleep and eat. The memory of her being decapitated replays in my mind nonstop. The scent of her blood lingers, refusing to leave me alone. I don’t know what the Blood Takers did to her body, but my best guess is that they dumped it somewh
Fractured memories of the night I nearly drank myself to death careen to the forefront of my mind. There was a woman. I don’t remember her face or her name. I was so far gone with drink and self-loathing that I gave in to whatever kind of attention and stimulations she had to offer. It was consensua
ColeThe letter came in the dead of night, rain-soaked and smeared, but I’d know her handwriting anywhere, in any condition. She’d written that she needed to see me, urgently, that it couldn’t wait, and she couldn’t explain why, not in a letter, not at the risk of what she needed to tell me going pu
EmeldaIt’s a quiet night. A long, silent walk from the castle. I needed this quiet, this stillness in the late summer air. Ravenfell comes into view beyond the trees, twinkling in the darkness. I smile, shaking my head as I look down at my shoes. I can still feel the weight of the twins in my arms
MichaelI haven’t been to Scarlet Thunder in… years. I didn’t realize how long it’s been until I pulled up to the back of the castle, somewhat startled by how small it looks compared to my memories from my childhood. Not that it's a small castle, but I'm much bigger now. I step out of my car, my fac
Faye“Oh, Faye, this is beautiful,” Emory says as she walks around the wide room on the second floor of the newly constructed manor. She runs her fingers over the pale blue and pink floral wallpaper and white trim, her jade eyes sparkling as she takes in the lace curtains and soft cream carpet. “I l
EmeldaIn the week since the twins were born, I’ve been busy with the final touches on my cottage. I spent days this past spring digging in the front garden, planting herbs and vegetables, and fixing the front path. I hired a group of shifters to replace the roof and update the inside, installing ne
Emelda“Thank you,” I say, hurrying at a near run as a maid takes my cloak. The castle is buzzing with nervous energy but remains quiet with even the maids tiptoeing around, trying not to make a sound. I’d remained in Ravenfell for the birth. I spent all night and most of this morning at Alma’s hou
FayeSomething’s wrong. Something has to be wrong. “You’re doing great. Keep pushing, Faye. You’ve got this,” Alma says, her face glistening with sweat and determination while I roar in pain. Michael clutches my hand, his other hand bracing my inner thigh as I bear down with all the strength I hav
Michael“It could be hours–or a day,” Alma says quietly as she arranges her tonics on a table just outside the bedroom where Faye’s finally getting some rest. “It’s been hours already,” I tell her, motioning toward the window in my suite in the castle where moonlight drifts through the panes, casti