Page 21 of Kingdom of Chaos
Are they talking about the gem pendant?
I can still see the way Talon’s gaze flared when he noticed it. He looked almost spooked, and I’m sure he was about to ask me about it before Imogen and the others interrupted us.
“I’d be willing to bet a great deal that it is,” he says. “It’s too much of a coincidence to not be. She’s a human. If anyone is going to have a lunacite gemstone, it would be her.”
“Okay, fine. Let’s say itislunacite, even though it probably isn’t, because that gem isn’t supposed to exist in our world. But let’s set that aside and pretend for a second that she really is carrying around some mythical stone from another world capable of opening gates. It’s completely insane to eventhinkabout using it.”
I have to put a hand over my mouth to stifle my gasp. Luckily, Imogen’s heated words are loud enough to cover the small intake of breath.
Mythical stone from another world capable of opening gates.
I remember what my parents said about the gemstone, how even the jeweler couldn’t identify it.
Could that be because it’s not from our creature world, but from the human one? The same world Becks is trapped in, the one Kerrim plans to conquer?
What if it’s not just from the human world, buttheitem we need to get there, now that we don’t have Shadow Striker to open a portal?
It’s possible. Someone did leave the pendant for me on purpose. And like Talon said, I’m human. If anyone’s going to be carrying something from the human world, it would make sense that it’s me.
“Thanks for your opinion,” Talon says coldly, “but I’m not asking for your advice, let alone your permission.”
Imogen’s mouth flattens into a hard line. Even from this distance I can see her nostrils flare.
She’s pissed.
It’s clear Talon’s cousin isn’t any more of a pushover than he is, and even though she’s trying to talk him out of helping us, I can’t help but find some humor in that and respect for her.
“This isn’t a joke,” she snaps. “Those gates were closed for a reason. We were never meant to mingle with those creatures. Thosehumans.”
She says “humans” like it leaves a bad taste in her mouth, and the teaspoon of fondness I had for her evaporates like mist.
“Locklyn is a human,” Talon says, his voice just shy of a growl.
“My point exactly,” she shoots back. “Look at how you’ve already lost your head over her. You sacrificed the dagger because of her?—”
“That’s not what?—”
“Don’t even try to tell me you wouldn’t have gotten it back if it wasn’t for her,” she says, pointing an accusatory finger at his face. “You’re a lot of things, Talon. Ruthless, driven, and not just goal-oriented but goal-obsessed top the list. You fought the hardest out of all of us to win the blade, and every single member of the family or Society will admit it was well fought for and deserved. Having it stolen by that hawk shifter was a fluke. We’d gotten complacent over the years, believing we’d snuffed out all traces of its existence, so we didn’t need to be vigilant. We were wrong. But from the moment we learned it was missing, I never doubted you would bring it back. So no, I don’t believe for a minute that you wouldn’t have recovered Shadow Striker if you hadn’t been distracted by her.”
My stomach drops to my gut, because she’s probably right. If it wasn’t for me, Talon may have been able to get the dagger from Kerrim. I didn’t put myself at the center of this drama, but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t there.
“You don’t know anything,” he says darkly.
Imogen crosses her arms over her chest, a smug look on her face. “I know more than you’d like me to. Even if I only suspected that was the reason before, I saw the way you looked at her this morning. You can stand here and lie to me all you want, but there’s only so long you can lie to yourself.”
A muscle jumps in Talon’s jaw, making me think he’s clenching his teeth.
“This conversation is over.” He slams the book shut, and the thud echoes throughout the cavernous room. He stares at his cousin like he’s daring her to defy him.
It’s silent for a moment as they glare at each other. My heart beats wildly, feeling the tension between them as if it’s a living thing, ready to open its mouth and consume them both.
Talon picks up the tome, presumably to return it, but when his back is turned, Imogen says, “You open a gate and travel to the other world with her, you might not survive.”
What does that mean?
He freezes. His back tenses.
“One way or another, she’s going to get you killed,” she adds when Talon doesn’t respond.
