Page 97 of The Sins of Silas

“I am.” She smiled. “I have much to teach you, and considering we're in a crunch for time, this is the best way.” She clasped my shoulder and released a sigh. “I'm going to talk with the Prince.” Then, she turned to Leroy, hesitating for a moment before she charged forward, wrapped her arms around him, and squeezed tightly.

“I'll return soon, brother,” she whispered.

He sniffed but kept his expression strong, aside from the glimmer in his eyes. He hugged her back. “I know you will. Be safe. I love you.”

“I love you too.” Dani wiped her eyes as she pulled away, and the two placed their three fingers on their chest before she exited the room.

Leroy's gaze shifted to mine.

“I’m so sorry for your loss,” I said quietly.

Leroy nodded, giving me his best attempt at a smile. He then focused his attention on his bookcase, where his fingers trailed various spines. “I need to give you this before you go.”

He withdrew an ancient-looking book, fingers skimming through it as he strode over to me. “You asked me about a phoenix on the night of The Freak Show. Last night, I was going through the book I was telling you about.”

I stepped forward, Leroy fumbling with the pages until he said, “There.” He pointed at the page, and I looked down.

Various animals were listed, with detailed drawings next to each. All had their meanings listed, and I imagined that with how many pages this book possessed, every animal that had ever lived was recorded here.

I read off the ones that had significance. Those of the La'Rune family crest.

Owl:Death

Pelican: Sacrifice

Phoenix: Rebirth

Raven: Prophecy

“Fuck,” I muttered. “I remember the La'Rune family crest depicting a pelican guarding a phoenix and a raven from an owl.”

“Which would make sense,” Leroy continued, “considering the pelican represents sacrifice.”

The wheels in my head began spinning. “So, the pelican wished to protect prophecy and rebirth…”

“From death.” Leroy flipped through the pages for a moment. "I wonder, though, if the crest is really depicting this." He pointed to a bird just a couple of pages forward. To a white raven. “The crest's raven is an outline. Have you ever noticed that? I wonder if that's because it's a white raven instead of a regular one.”

White Raven: Purification

I scratched my head. “I suppose it could be either, but that would make sense.” I thought more about the birds. “Igon’s compass…a pelican is etched into its backside.” My eyes sprang open. “Holy fuck.”

“What?”

“Igon knew he was going to die…sacrifice…”

Leroy scrubbed at his jaw. “But how does that connect to the Otacian crest?”

I groaned, dragging my hands down my face. “It’s like the more I learn, the more confused I am.”

Leroy laughed softly through his nose. “Nothing can ever be simple, can it?” Closing the book, he handed it over. “Take it with you. Perhaps you'll learn more, and it can help in some way.”

“Thank you,” I replied, accepting the Warlock text. “Really…thank you for everything. You and your people were nothing but wonderful and accepting.”

“And you and yours were nothing but supportive of ours.” He hesitated for a moment. “Dani doesn't know about you and Silas—that you're Soul-Ties. Only the council and I knew that information.” He tucked his hands into his pockets. “That man…that man is deeply in love with you.”

My eyes flared, and I loosened a breath. “What?”

He gave me a half-smile, as much as he could muster with his broken heart. “He came to speak with me after the battle last night, giving me advice after I'd lost Emma. He spoke of you as if you were dead…told me he did you a disservice by becoming the man that he did.”

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