We rode through the gates in silence, my arm still burned from the shadow-thing's claws, but that was nothing compared to the witch's mark on my chest. It throbbed steady now, like a second heartbeat that wasn't mine. I kept one hand on the reins and the other pressed low on my belly. The flutter was there again, stronger, almost impatient. Like the child in there could feel the clock ticking too.
The brothers didn't say much on the way up to the chambers. Darius rode with his arm locked around me the whole time, palm flat over my stomach like he could shield it from the whole damn mountain. Kane kept scanning the walls, knife half out like he expected the witch to pop out of the snow. Rylan rode ahead, axe across his saddle, but every few seconds he'd glance back at me and the grin would slip, just for a second. I saw it. They were all thinking the same thing I was: eight days. Eight days until the full moon, until one of them had to die or I had to hand over the child.
