Page 86 of Devour the Dark

She shrugs. “In the Seven Isles, anything can be anything.”

I suppose she isn’t wrong.

There’s an empty spot on the middle shelf for the oldest hat,the first hat, the one used to remove that which is devoured.

It was crafted by our uncle, as was the rest of them.

Some of the hats give the wearer power. Some affect the wearer in different ways, like the devourer hat. Some take, some give, some transform.

There are more top hats, a few fedoras, an eight-piece tweed cap, and two flat caps. All of them were stretched, shaped, and stitched by hand.

I set the devourer hat on its iron stand.

“Have you ever worn the others?” Wendy asks.

“Of course.” I shut the cabinet and reinstall the lock. “But not for a very long time now. Haven’t really had a need.”

Winnie sidles up next to Vane, her hand curled around his bicep. “What other treasures do you have in this warehouse? What other secrets of the Maddred Brothers can we uncover here?”

“No,” my baby brother says, an all-encompassing answer.

We have a great many secrets. Too many. Too many that should remain secrets.

Winnie and Wendy lock arms, giggle to one another, and disappear between two stacks of crates.

“Win,” Vane says with a grumble.

“Oh don’t mind me.” Her voice filters up, swirling around the high warehouse ceiling. “Just having a look.”

“Do not, under any circumstances, touch a hat,” Vane says, chasing after her.

The Captain comes to my side. “Do you just leave magical hats lying around for any unsuspecting person to stumble on?”

“No,” I tell him, but my smile contradicts me.

“You are merciless.”

“And soon I will be insufferable.” I swat his ass. He huffs out with indignation. “As soon as the paperwork is filed and my title reclaimed, the throne mine, I will be your king. Imagine all of the vile things I will demand of you.”

He licks his lips, heat rising up his throat. “Demand what you want. I bow to no man.”

“I am no man, Captain.”

“Nor monsters.”

I laugh. “We’ll see about that.”

“Christ,” I hear Vane say from deep within the stacks.

“Who was she?” I hear Winnie ask.

I know immediately who she’s referring to and what artifact from our past she has uncovered.

Christ is an understatement.

The Captain gives me a suspicious look. His curiosity gets the better of him and he’s soon trailing after the conversation.

“She was no one,” I hear my brother say, which yes, huge understatement number two.

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