Darius's POV
Inside the tent, silence slowly settled again, almost painfully. The smell of blood and smoke still hung between the trees outside, but in here everything had gone quiet. Seraphine’s sobbing, which had torn out of her with wild force, faded bit by bit, like a storm drifting away and leaving only a soft, lingering rain. The trembling in her shoulders eased, her breathing became more even, and at last, her tears stopped.
I felt her grow heavier in my arms. Her heartbeat was still rapid, restless, but it slowly began to fall into a calmer rhythm. Gently, carefully, I shifted my hold so she could rest more comfortably, and when I felt her completely give in to sleep, I laid her down on the blanket beneath us.
It was a small movement, but every nerve in me was tight, afraid of w
