Page 144 of House of Embers
“If she was a shadow wielder, then…she would have put it in the nothing.”
Fordham’s face was resigned as he closed his thunderstorm eyes and pulled the shadows to him. A pocket of space appeared in the emptiness of the tomb. One moment, there was simply darkness, and the next, Fordham’s hand closed over something.
He released the shadows, and in their place was the metal crown.
Chapter Fifty-One
The Brother
Kerrigan’s heart stuttered to a stop at the sight of the metal crown. It was even more formidable in person. Black as pitch, as if it were absorbing the light, and yet somehow shiny. The base was larger than Kerrigan had anticipated with jutting spikes coming up at even intervals. It looked as if it had been dipped in metal and been left to hang upside down, dripping until it solidified like stalactites. Power radiated from it—a dull pulse that seemed to reverberate around the crypt.
“Holy gods,” Kerrigan muttered.
Fordham’s eyes darkened at the sight of it. “We should have never found this.”
“No,” she agreed. “No, it’s terrible.”
“You can’t wear this.”
“I know,” she said immediately. How had Irena ever put this on Ferrinix’s head? How had she even held it?
Kerrigan dove down the bond to Tieran. This was as much his decision as hers.“We found the crown. It’s terrifying. If I wear it, I might not come back.”
“You will,”Tieran said automatically.
“This could change everything.”
“I know,”he said.“Everything needs to change.”
She nodded and then looked back to the crown. “I shouldn’t wear it, but I must.”
“Kerrigan…”
“I must,” she said again. Her eyes left the horrifying crown and met her mate’s. “You’ll be here. You’ll be here to ground me. I can do this. I can fix what was done wrong. And then after…after we can destroy it or return it to Irena’s hiding spot. Anything you want. Just let me return balance to our world.”
Fordham wavered. She could see he so clearly did not want her to do this. The last thing either of them wanted was to lose the other. And yet…he held the crown out to her.
“I trust you,” he said. “And I love you.”
A tear spilled down her cheek. “I love you too. So much.”
“I’ll burn the entire world down to get you back,” he promised.
She choked on a smile. “I know you will.”
And then she set the crown on her head and saw darkness.
***
The world was white.
Top to bottom. Side to side. Flat, matte white.
Kerrigan turned in a circle. The space was somehow very closed in and also endless. She was still in her fighting leathers, which looked stark against the white background, her red hair even more so, as if she didn’t belong in this place. Wherever this place was.
“Hello,” a voice said behind her.
She whipped around to find a man standing before her, faintly glowing. He was at least six and a half feet tall with long brown hair past his shoulders and a dark beard. His eyes were dark and depthless. He wore white robes that almost blended into the white space.
