Jojo's P.O.V.
The hallway outside Lucy’s bedroom smelled like lavender and warm laundry, like comfort. I padded softly on the wooden floor, a storybook tucked underneath my arm that I had grabbed from her playroom, careful not to wake the whole house with a squeaky board or a misplaced step. Raven had said Lucy liked the story about the mouse who thought it was a lion, so that’s the one I picked for tonight.
Lucy’s bedroom was dim, lit only by the glow of a little nightlight shaped like a jellyfish. It pulsed softly in the corner like a heartbeat. Lucy was already tucked in, all limbs and wild hair, her favorite stuffed bunny pressed to her cheek like a sleepy hostage.
“You took forever,” she announced the second I stepped in.
I grinned.
“Forever? I was gone for five minutes.”
“Wel
