I grabbed my blanket and crept to the window. In the dawn’s first light, the demons, and all trace that they’d been there, had gone. Only the purple lattice remained, though it had faded to lavender. Even the red mist had cleared. Sol and Delane slept, so, taking care not to wake them, I tiptoed to the door, crept past the horses, and slipped outside. The crisp morning sparkled with dew. Pale sunbeams struck the mountains and glistened on the pond beside the paddock. From across the valley, a faint pounding, like a distant drumbeat, could be heard. That was the only sound. Glad to be in the fresh air, I sat on the porch’s bottom step, my blanket beneath me. A feather lay on the grass beside my feet, deep, yet bright blue, and almost a foot long. I picked it up, entranced by the green iridescence that shimmered where sunlight caught the tips of its soft vanes. It was a beautiful thing, vibrant and full of color. But then I thought about the bestiary outside last night and it immediately lost its appeal.
