Touch of Death (Order of the Elements Book 2) by Emma L. Adams

Author:Emma L. Adams [Adams, Emma L.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-03-30T16:00:00+00:00

12

The hall of souls stretched out in front of us, filled with long shelves lined with amulets. Old-fashioned lanterns hung at intervals on the walls, casting long shadows over the shelves, and I startled when I realised we weren’t alone.

Several liches gathered around the room, pockets of shadow in the shape of people. I backed up to the Death King’s side, only to find his human guise had slipped away in the last few seconds, leaving him as masked and terrifying as ever.

“Do you have anything to report?” he asked the assembled liches.

As the liches moved closer, I retreated another few steps, sensing I wasn’t supposed to eavesdrop. My breath frosted the chill air beside a pillar formed of interlocking bones. I decided not to look closely enough to determine if they were human bones or not.

After a minute of whispered conversation, the liches departed. None of them bothered to open the door before exiting in a sweep of shadows. Now alone, the Death King reached into a pocket of his coat and removed the amulet the vampire had given him.

I cleared my throat. “If you don’t mind telling me… that amulet—whose is it? I mean, whose was it?”

“That’s what I’m here to find out.” He faced the shelves of amulets once again.

I inched closer, rubbing my hands together for warmth. “Are they arranged in any particular order?”

Did he have to pick up and examine every single amulet if he wanted to find the identity of the missing one’s owner? It seemed a hell of an inefficient method, but as far as I knew, until the recent events, nobody had ever stolen anything from here.

“They’re roughly organised by the date the individual turned lich,” he said, “but if one went missing, even its owner might not notice at first.”

Like he hadn’t noticed his own soul amulet had ended up in my hands, at least at first. I looked more closely at the amulet he held, noting the faded lines on the edges. It might be bigger than a typical cantrip, but a spell had bound the soul into place. “How could a spell so complex be undone?”

“Because no spell lasts forever.” He didn’t turn around. “There are always weak spots, if you know where to find them.”

I turned this over in my mind. “You mean the lich traitor undid the binding spell himself? If that’s the case, what’s to stop any of the liches doing the same to anyone who annoys them?”

“Few liches have the capacity for such magic,” he said. “Removing a soul is one thing. Binding it to a vessel is another entirely, as you know well. And undoing such a binding? Rarely heard of.”

A shiver curled down my spine at the memory of cupping his life essence in my hands, and the accompanying shock and surprise that someone so indomitable could seem so vulnerable.

“But you do know a way?” I sucked in a sharp breath when he turned around, his faceless mask blending into the darkness.

He held up the amulet.

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