MALAKAI’S POV

The silence in the room hit like a physical blow.

Garen’s words hung in the still air, Clarabel’s hand stayed frozen over Kaedryn’s chest, her skin so pale she looked almost as bloodless as the boy lying beneath the wool blankets.

"Three days," Garen whispered, breaking the stillness with a grim shake of his head. "The dark magic moves slowly through child-blood, but it does not stop. If he does not drink the blood of his father within three days... his heart will simply forget how to beat."

A choked, ragged sound tore out of Clarabel’s throat.

She turned slowly, her eyes wide, glassy, and completely shattered. She...