Chapter 76 The Prophecy Child

• A cry tore through the silence of the night shrill, agonized, and unrelenting. It rose from the highest tower like a lamentation to the heavens.
• The storm raged in answer, lightning split the sky in jagged flashes, thunder rolled with fury, and rain lashed the narrow windows like a thousand desperate fists.
• Within the birthing chamber, heat clashed with cold. The hearth-fire blazed, yet the ancient stone walls held a chill no flame could banish. Braziers burned with pungent herbs meant to soothe pain and ward off evil, but they could not smother the sharp, metallic scent of blood that hung heavy in the air.