The damp air hung heavy in the forest, thick with the scent of upcoming rain and ancient, rotting earth. Above them, the moon—once a bright, silver shield—was slowly being swallowed by a crawl of bruised, dark clouds. The starlight died with it, plunging the clearing into a suffocating shadow.
Odesse stood completely frozen, the raw weight of the truth crushing the breath from her lungs. Her hands shook uncontrollably as she pressed her palms against her five-month pregnant belly, her legs trembling so violently she felt as though the earth itself was crumbling beneath her feet. Sweat beaded across her forehead, cold and slick, matching the frantic, uneven hammering of her heart against her ribs.
Before her stood Eryx's body, but every gesture, every line of his posture, had transformed into something chillingly feminine. He stood with his hands resting lightly on his hips, his spine curved in an elegant, mocking arch as a wide, hollow grin split his features.
