“Welcome back, darlings,” Corrine smiled as she pulled Alice into a hug.
“Good to see you again, Corrine,” Caleb smiled as Corrine moved to hug him.
Alice looked around; Corrine smiled.
“Axel went south a few hours ago. He had to settle a small dispute with Frostbite. He should be back in an hour or two.”
“Good, then I get to torture him about not being here to greet me,” Alice grinned.
“But in the meantime,” Corrine gave a gentle smile. “The representatives of Burning Ember arrived this morning.”
Corrine stepped aside to reveal a woman standing a few feet behind her.
Alice looked up, and there before her, no longer a child, stood the girl from the brothel. The one she had met over and over across the years. The one she had held and comforted. The one in whose hands she had placed a knife and told to make a choice.
Alice swallowed.
She saw the look in the woman’s eyes. She was nervous and concerned.
Alice smiled.
“Hello, Sofia.”
