3
Fern
I woke with a start. The lodge was quiet, filled with the soft sounds of slumber. My friends lay all around. All but Juliet. I frowned. It was not like her to be missing. She even gave up her own bed in order to share one with the little ones
Gathering the cloak, I made my way to the door.
Outside, a full moon shone over the frostbitten ground. We’d had snow that melted in the few days past, but it was still bitterly cold. My breath fogged the air in front of my face.
A low moan made me whirl. I crept along the side of the lodge. There, lying against the wall, lay Juliet, wearing nothing but her shift and a pelt around her shoulders. Her cheeks were flushed in the moonlight.
I knelt and put a hand to her hot brow. Even in the cold, her body burned.
Closing her eyes, Juliet tu
