The sky above the Heights was grey again. Clouds pressed down on the stone rooftops, dragging their shadows through the streets. Layers of fresh snow had settled on the ground; with time, the weather was becoming colder and colder, and in this weather, Kael and Lavinia walked side by side without saying anything.
The Council meeting had ended. In two hours, it would be time for dinner, and they would need to visit the Elderlies.
For now, however, they were heading back home.
Not because they wanted to rest, but because someone was waiting for them there.
The couple stared at each other as they turned into the narrow lane that led to their house and slowed down.
They both noticed it—a figure stood near the corner of the path, a woman wrapped in a thick brown shawl, her face pale, her hair tangled, her eyes sunken.
She stood still, almost like a statue.
Vandra.
