Chapter 10

Liam

She was small. Clever, but small.

When I had seen her the first time, when her mother was at the Infirmary, I saw her strengthen her eyes, but now that she was pushing me away, I found myself watching from a distance.

Never did I think that I would have a child, especially not with Alaria. The two of us were distant for quite a while. I did not think that she would be carrying my child, that one drunken night would be enough for her to become pregnant.

But there she was. The little girl that I never thought could exist.

Curled up on the edge of the couch, one arm wrapped around a fraying stuffed wolf, the other clenched tightly in her mother’s shawl as if the fabric itself could protect her.

My daughter.

Mine.

And she was terrified of me.

“Hi,” I said, my voice softer than I’d ever heard it. “Anastasia, right?”

She didn’t answer. Her eyes flicked to me, wide, wary, blue-green like the edge of winter, and