Page 67 of The Awakening of Essensia

Vaelira pulled the disc from her pouch and handed it to Erryn. “You were right. No questions asked.”

Axel gave a low whistle.

“That,” Elijah said, eyeing Erryn, “would grant you access to the palace. It’s not usually passed around.”

“You said she was with us,” Erryn said. “I presumed that means we can trust her.”

“Of course you can trust me.” Vaelira said.

Elijah frowned, but his lips tugged up. “All I meant was, be careful who else you hand it out to.”

Erryn met his gaze unflinching. “Outside this room, there is no one else.”

Willem perked up. “Can I borrow it sometime?”

Axel raised a brow. “What for?”

“Just… things.” Willem muttered, taking a long drink before flopping back against the cushions.

“What is it?” Vaelira asked.

“A Royal token,” Elijah said. “It’s given to families with the King’s favour. It grants access to nearly anywhere in the city.”

Vaelira’s breath caught. For a few hours, she had unknowingly held the key to the Royal Library. Not that she knew where it was, but with that, she would have been able to find out.

Elijah leaned forward, his forearms resting on his knees. “Erryn said you saw veins on the body?”

His gaze was so intense it scattered her thoughts. She looked away. “Yes.”

“Veins?” Axel asked.

“Black veins,” she said. “They appear when someone has been possessed by a demon.”

The room went quiet. She looked at their faces, so grave, and a laugh tickled the edge of her throat. She pressed a palm to her forehead, shaking her head to chase it away. “She was likely killed first,” she added quickly, praying that speaking would help stop the laughter from surfacing.

What was wrong with her?

“How do you know this?” Erryn asked sceptically.

“We saw it happen in Anhaven,” Elijah said quickly.

Vaelira gave him a small smile, grateful to have been spared answering that particular question.

Willem groaned and stood. “I’m getting us all a drink.” He crossed to the small cart in the corner, clinking bottles together and pouring generously.

“I didn’t think possession was still possible,” Erryn said. “There aren’t any dark wielders left to perform that sort of magic.”

“That we know of,” Elijah said. ‘Things are escalating. There’s been multiple summoning’s in the city. A possession in Anhaven. A minor demon risked attacking us on the road,” he shook his head, “which makes no sense. It must have known on some level that it stood no chance against the three of us. Now possessions are happening here? It’s building to something.”

“We need to stop it before it does,” Axel said.

“No point looking beyond New Town,” Willem muttered. “That’s where all the scum are.”

Vaelira glanced at him as he handed out full glasses. Dark circles framed his narrow eyes, and she was struck by how much older he looked than his years. He was young, but had clearly seen, and perhaps done, more unspeakable things than any boy his age. Any man even.

She thought of the alley. Of the small, black-veined body left behind. Someone had loved that person, the same way she had loved Jon. Now their family would never know what happened.

She took the drink Willem handed her. A long gulp warmed her throat and chased the thought away.