The bargainer Bonus Scene

The tiny hand curls around Des’s index finger. He hasn’t stopped looking at her since she was born.
Larissa. Named after the grandmother she’ll never meet.
Her little ears are pointed at their tips, her rosebud mouth is closed in sleep. Des has been whispering things to her; I’m pretty sure the two are plotting against me.
The darkness clings to her, shrouding her protectively.
The Night King comes back over to me and hands her over. I stare and stare, not sure what to make of everything I feel when I look at her face. The Def Leppard onesie she wears is nearly too much for me.
“My girls,” Des breathes, nuzzling my throat. I can feel his magic thrumming. His whole body is practically singing with it.
I trail a finger down my daughter’s cheek.
“We’re totally going to screw her up,” I whisper. It’s supposed to be a joke, but there’s fear behind the words.
I didn’t have a good childhood, and I’m terrified that my own ghosts will haunt her too.
“We’re not,” Des says, getting serious. “We’re going to give her everything we didn’t have. We’re going to be amazing—you’re going to be amazing.”