Page 149 of Fated In Forever
But there was still one more obligation to be paid, and I plunged my hand into my pocket, knowing exactly what I had to do.
74
EVANGELINE
Dust and the lingering stench of corruption hung thick in the chamber, but with Ravok's body growing cold on the stone floor, a weight lifted off my shoulders. Blake heaved himself to his feet with a curse, one hand pressed to his still-bleeding wound, while Riordan checked over a dazed-but-alive Eldric.
Lucky.
We were all so goddamned lucky.
I reached into my jacket pocket, my fingers closing around the two objects I'd brought here despite knowing I might not make it out alive. The book’s cover felt warm against my palm, the key was cool, but both pulsed beneath my fingertips, the moment I touched them.
When I pulled them out, Blake's eyes widened despite his obvious pain. “Evie, what are you planning to do?”
Riordan froze, his gaze fixed on the objects in my hands with something between awe and terror. “Evangeline, that book is?—”
“Insurance,” I said firmly, cutting him off. “I thought I’d need this to kill Ravok, but I didn’t.” I looked down at Ravok's still form, just to be sure he was staying dead, a giddy sense of relief making my heart flutter against my ribs.
“Ididn’t,” I said again, bolder this time. “And I stillhave a wish.”
One wish, spoken while my hand lay on the Wishrender’s open pages.
One wish, where I truly understood the full implications of my desire.
One wish, that would become woven into the fabric of reality itself, unchangeable, even by gods and time.
I knew the price. And I was ready and willing to pay, anything the magic asked.
The key slid into the lock with a click that echoed through the chamber. The moment it turned, The Book’s power awoke fully—a patient, gentle magic, waiting for my instructions.
I opened the cover, lay my hand on the yellowed, blank parchment that glowed faintly with its own inner light. Power hummed beneath my fingertips when I flattened my palm down to the cool pages.
“I wish,” I said softly, my voice carrying, louder than I’d intended. “for Malachi Draven and I to have a life together, where I help him complete his task in the Underworld, and he helps me complete mine, here on earth. I have no wish to undo his oath, all I want is to help him fulfill it.”
For a moment, nothing happened, my heart sinking. Then the pages grew warm, and letters began to appear across the blank parchment—not in ink, but in threads of golden light that wrote themselves into existence. The same glowing script appeared on the ceiling above us, large enough for all of us to read clearly:
Three days in the mortal realm for the High Lord of Night, every turn of the moon, and three days in darkness for the Silverwood heir. King and queen, you shall rule the darkness, and when your task is complete, you may both return to the light.
The words hung there for several heartbeats, burning themselves into my memory, before they dissolved into ashower of sparks. The Wishrender's pages went blank, the cover slammed together, and the lock clicked—without my touching the key.
When I tried to turn it again, that lock wouldn't budge. The relic had taken what it needed from me—and given me what I wanted in return.
“Three days a month,” Blake said quietly, his voice filled with wonder. “That's... actually more generous than I would have expected from a universe that seems set on fucking us over.”
Riordan was still staring at the place where the glowing words had appeared. “What was the price, Evie? What did it take from you?”
I considered the question, peering deep inside myself. “I don’t know.” but when I lifted my hand, those dark veins moved beneath my skin, then disappeared, like ghosts. “I…think it bound part of my life force to the bargain,” I said finally. “I can feel a tether connecting me to both realms now.”
Fine. I never minded the shadows much, anyway.
Eldric stared down at me in confusion when I held out both artifacts. “I’m entrusting these to you. Put these somewhere safe,” I told him. “Somewhere no one else can get their hands on them.”
Eldric cradled them against his chest. “I know exactly where to put these. You can rely on me, Evangeline.”
“I know I can.”
Blake limped over, favoring his left side. “So what now?” he asked. “We've got a dead ancient vampire, a collapsing tunnel system, and a corrupted magical pool that's still leaking toxins into the air.”
