The first room could be open without making a sound. Aestrith had figured out which doors creaked on the third night after arriving in the citadel. Since then, she had stopped made sure to open them without noise.
Leof was already asleep beneath her blankets. She lay on her side with both arms tucked close to her chest, breathing slowly and evenly.
The blanket had ridden up to her chin. During the day she must have tied her hair back, but the tie had come loose sometime after she drifted off. Hazelnut strands spread across the pillow in a way she had probably never noticed. She'd been unconscious when it happened.
Mab, however, was awake.
The river stone she usually kept beside the bed was being held loosely on top of the blanket, her fingers curled around it out of habit more than purpose.
The warmth inside it had already faded. Aestrith guessed Mab had stopped feeding heat into it within the last hour without realizing she'd done so.
