“The amulet?”
Rune nods. “Belinda had in her possession a necklace, passed down from the many generations of women before her. She used it for the spell, believing that as long as she wore it, she would be safe from the villagers. In essence, she was correct.”
“Okay, so it’s powerful, but I still don’t see how it’s evil.”
Rune raises an eyebrow. “After seeing the state Belinda was in, you don’t believe it’s evil?”
“Well, I mean, that’s what it did to her. Can it hurt other people?”
“Sweet summer child.” He clicks his tongue at me. “Imagine for a moment the most power-hungry person in the world.”
I nod. “Okay.”
“Now imagine they find out this amulet exists. Powerful people never want to die.”
A shudder moves down my back. “I see.”
“Or how about this scenario? Powerful person uses the amulet to control others.”
“I get it.”
“I’ve been chasing this amulet for years, hunting down everyone who even got close to it. Do you know they’ve all died? Every single one of them. Just from touching it.”
“How do they die when it’s meant to keep you alive?”
“You have to know the magic behind it to protect yourself.” He smiles proudly. “And, hopefully, no one but me does. So even if I wanted to give it to you—which, for the record, I don’t—I wouldn’t. You would die, and while I am a lot of things, I am not a heartless murderer.”
“You murdered your family.”
“Yes, but not heartlessly.”
My thoughts immediately go back to Auri and his intentions for the amulet. Does he want to control people with it? Would he need an amulet to do that? He’s a demon, for fuck’s sake. Couldn’t he just possess someone if he wanted to?
“Essentially, I saved your life,” Rune continues. “Even if you don’t see it.”
“What will you do with it now?”
“Nothing. I’ll keep it locked up and far away from anyone who could do harm with it.”
“Is it here?”
He laughs softly. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”
Yeah, I really would.
Rune’s face goes blank again and he sways slightly. “Ah. Your mate has arrived.”
My dragon immediately perks up from the depressive slumber he’s been in for days now, and relief floods the bond in my chest. Drax is close.
Rune snaps his fingers and the large steel door blocking the entrance creaks open. I sit up straight, ready to see Drax, but it’s Atlas who appears first.
Rune gets to his feet, making no attempt to step forward, his eyes trained on the handsome gargoyle. Atlas seems equallystupefied, but then I see Drax, my mate, stepping out from behind the large man.
He rushes over to me, but smacks into an invisible shield, snapping Rune out of whatever was going on with him.
“Ah. Not so fast. I believe there’s a deal to be made.”
Drax glares at Rune but nods. “Yes, I believe I have something you’d like in exchange for my mate.”
