CIARA
The fire in the hearth burned slow and low. The big wooden door to the nursery was closed tight to block out the noise from the Hall downstairs.
My body felt weak and bruised after the birth, but my mind was wide awake. My wolf was on high alert, watching every shadow in the room.
Our boy was sleeping flat on his stomach. His sister lay right next to him, her small hand curled tight around the edge of his blanket.
Elder Maeve came into the room holding a copper bowl of warm water and a stack of white cloths. She was an old woman with sharp eyes, one of the senior females who ran the servants in the upper keep. She set the heavy bowl down on the small table near the door with a loud bang.
"I brought fresh cloths for the infants, Luna," Maeve said, her voice loud and sharp in th
