"Wake up, you foolish whelp of mine." Agnes's command pierced the haze as she offered Liza a calabash of water.
Liza started awake with a gasp, lunging forward to clutch her grandmother in a fierce embrace. "You're alive!" Raw terror threaded through her voice. "I feared I'd lost you in that dreadful place."
She breathed deeply of Agnes's familiar scent - earth and herbs and ancient power - letting it anchor her to this reality. The old woman snorted, managing to convey volumes of fond derision in that single sound. "Lost me? In the Shadowlands?" Milky eyes crinkled with dark humor. "You greatly underestimate this ancient wolf, pup."
Drawing back reluctantly, Liza wiped at the tears marking her cheeks. "What happened to me? It felt more real than reality itself..."
Agnes sighed, favori
