Chapter 54. The Beginning and End

Lotus’s POV

The Winter Palace is alive with noise when I wake. Not the muted murmurs of warriors plotting, but a clamor of footsteps and voices, high-pitched and raw with panic. The triplets have already disappeared from our bed, and my throat fills with worry. I throw on the first robe I can find and slip into the corridor.

I rush down the stairs, looking for someone who can tell me what is going on. The move around me, shouting orders. My bare feet slap against the floor as I race through the hallways.

A soldier nearly barrels into me. “Luna,” he stammers. “I have been looking for you. The infirmary. Now. A baby is on the way.”

My stomach clenches. Fear consumes me. I know what this means. “Who?”

“One of the rebels,” he blurts, then lowers his voice as if naming the act might make it fail. “She’s been in labor for several hours with no signs of stopping. They fear they might lose them both.”

The words slam into me. Most of the babies born