Valkyrie
The moon hung heavy in the sky, its silvery glow spilling across the quiet forest outside my window.
I stared at it, my hands pressed protectively against my belly, as if that alone could shield the life growing within me.
Ragnor didn’t want us.
The thought sliced through me like a dagger, its jagged edges reopening wounds I had tried to stitch together with hope.
Ragnor’s rejection wasn’t just a refusal—it was a weight that settled deep in my chest, suffocating and relentless.
I closed my eyes, willing away the sting of tears. Crying wouldn’t change anything. It wouldn’t make Ragnor stay.
“I don’t need him,” I whispered, the words trembling as they left my lips.
But even as I said it, my heart betrayed me.
The truth was, I had always needed him—his strength, his
