Duck jumped onto the bed immediately, sniffed Ísis, circled once, and lay down at the foot of the bed as if he had officially accepted the role of guardian of the night.

Alex blinked a few times, trying to figure out whether he had really heard that or if he was still trapped in that hazy state between sleep and dreams.

Ísis was sitting up, her chest rising and falling quickly, as though she had just run an emotional marathon inside her own mind. Tears still slid silently down her face, tracing