DESDEMONA

I could not stop thinking about the old servant's words.

She's beginning to awaken.

The words followed me even after Alaric had taken me back to my room. I sat on the edge of my bed with one hand pressed against my neck, staring at the crescent mark beneath my fingers. The burning had reduced, but the mark still felt warm, as though something beneath my skin was slowly coming alive.

Alaric had stayed until he was certain I was no longer in pain. He had barely spoken, but I had noticed the way his eyes kept returning to my mark. There had been something in his expression that...