sense there is something different about us.”
“Hmm.”
She didn’t say much after that. Instead she patiently waited for Cyrus to buy her coffee and a bagel and lead her to a quiet bench. Clearly there was something he wanted to discuss. As she settled in next to him, her eye caught the silver ring on the middle finger of his right hand. Noah and his father wore the same ring. It was a masculine silver square with an ankh-shaped onyx stone inset into the centre. Valeria and Emma wore a smaller, more feminine version of the ring. Eden wondered if all Ankh wore one.
She nodded at it. “What is that?”
Cyrus’ mouth quirked up as he followed her gaze. He shifted his hand in the light, the black stone winking in the morning sun. “I sometimes think you read my mind, Eden.”
“Oh?”
Eyes smiling, Cyrus reached into his pocket and pulled out a small ring, exactly like Val and Emma’s. “All Ankh wear the ring. It began with your mother believe it or not.”
At the mention of Merrit, Eden’s heart began to beat faster. Suddenly she wanted to know everything about the warrior she had never met, the warrior that had captured someone like Cyrus’
heart. “My mother?”
He nodded, his eyes growing sad. “She gifted me with it in 1678. We were in Rome at the time, hunting an extremely powerful soul eater. He had taken a piece of soul from one of our kin, a young Ankh, Joseph. Not only did we need to stop this soul eater, we needed to get Joseph’s soul back.”
Eden blinked, shaking her head. “Wait, you can do that?”
Cyrus nodded patiently. “There is so much to tell you, Eden. So much.” He shook his head. “I don’t want to burden you with too much information too soon.”
“No, no,” she argued. “Just hit me with it. I want to know all this stuff. I can take it. I promise.”
She waited as Cyrus took a bite of his bagel and a sip of his coffee, glancing around casually to make sure they were still relatively alone. “Alright. If you kill a soul eater in the vicinity of someone who has lost a piece of soul to the said soul eater then the victim’s soul returns to his or her body.
Joseph’s soul made this particular soul eater incredibly strong, so it was doubly imperative for us to find him. Merrit and I had difficulty taking Joseph with us to hunt the soul eater because he had become a dark creature, almost devoid of humanity. In the end we had to keep incapacitating him. In the struggle to bring the soul eater back to our lodgings in the city, I was distracted when Merrit was knocked unconscious. The soul eater managed to grab the tiniest piece of my soul before Merrit regained consciousness and helped me take down the beast.”
Her heart was hammering just thinking about it. In her head she had built up Cyrus to be this completely indestructible being. But according to him there were soul eaters out there strong enough to get the better of him . Not good. Not good at all.
“We killed the soul eater. I got my soul back, as did Joseph, who is still around and kicking. He is investigating some troubling news in Dublin that suggests there is a group of soul eaters in the city.”
Cyrus shook his head, realising he was getting off track. “But to what I was saying,” he smirked, as his eyes glazed over a little at the memories, “Your mother was never the most romantic woman. She was far too straightforward and gung-ho. But what nearly happened to me frightened her and she got a little sentimental. Part of that reaction was this gift.” He held up his hand, turning it so the silver of the ring glinted at her. “She said the Princeps deserved a little ostentation in his life.” Cyrus closed his eyes briefly, his features tight with pain.
The hollow heartbreak in her guardian’s voice as he spoke about his dead love echoed painfully in Eden’s chest. She blinked back surprising tears, wanting to reach out and grab a hold of him. Instead she bowed her head, not wanting to
“Hmm.”
She didn’t say much after that. Instead she patiently waited for Cyrus to buy her coffee and a bagel and lead her to a quiet bench. Clearly there was something he wanted to discuss. As she settled in next to him, her eye caught the silver ring on the middle finger of his right hand. Noah and his father wore the same ring. It was a masculine silver square with an ankh-shaped onyx stone inset into the centre. Valeria and Emma wore a smaller, more feminine version of the ring. Eden wondered if all Ankh wore one.
She nodded at it. “What is that?”
Cyrus’ mouth quirked up as he followed her gaze. He shifted his hand in the light, the black stone winking in the morning sun. “I sometimes think you read my mind, Eden.”
“Oh?”
Eyes smiling, Cyrus reached into his pocket and pulled out a small ring, exactly like Val and Emma’s. “All Ankh wear the ring. It began with your mother believe it or not.”
At the mention of Merrit, Eden’s heart began to beat faster. Suddenly she wanted to know everything about the warrior she had never met, the warrior that had captured someone like Cyrus’
heart. “My mother?”
He nodded, his eyes growing sad. “She gifted me with it in 1678. We were in Rome at the time, hunting an extremely powerful soul eater. He had taken a piece of soul from one of our kin, a young Ankh, Joseph. Not only did we need to stop this soul eater, we needed to get Joseph’s soul back.”
Eden blinked, shaking her head. “Wait, you can do that?”
Cyrus nodded patiently. “There is so much to tell you, Eden. So much.” He shook his head. “I don’t want to burden you with too much information too soon.”
“No, no,” she argued. “Just hit me with it. I want to know all this stuff. I can take it. I promise.”
She waited as Cyrus took a bite of his bagel and a sip of his coffee, glancing around casually to make sure they were still relatively alone. “Alright. If you kill a soul eater in the vicinity of someone who has lost a piece of soul to the said soul eater then the victim’s soul returns to his or her body.
Joseph’s soul made this particular soul eater incredibly strong, so it was doubly imperative for us to find him. Merrit and I had difficulty taking Joseph with us to hunt the soul eater because he had become a dark creature, almost devoid of humanity. In the end we had to keep incapacitating him. In the struggle to bring the soul eater back to our lodgings in the city, I was distracted when Merrit was knocked unconscious. The soul eater managed to grab the tiniest piece of my soul before Merrit regained consciousness and helped me take down the beast.”
Her heart was hammering just thinking about it. In her head she had built up Cyrus to be this completely indestructible being. But according to him there were soul eaters out there strong enough to get the better of him . Not good. Not good at all.
“We killed the soul eater. I got my soul back, as did Joseph, who is still around and kicking. He is investigating some troubling news in Dublin that suggests there is a group of soul eaters in the city.”
Cyrus shook his head, realising he was getting off track. “But to what I was saying,” he smirked, as his eyes glazed over a little at the memories, “Your mother was never the most romantic woman. She was far too straightforward and gung-ho. But what nearly happened to me frightened her and she got a little sentimental. Part of that reaction was this gift.” He held up his hand, turning it so the silver of the ring glinted at her. “She said the Princeps deserved a little ostentation in his life.” Cyrus closed his eyes briefly, his features tight with pain.
The hollow heartbreak in her guardian’s voice as he spoke about his dead love echoed painfully in Eden’s chest. She blinked back surprising tears, wanting to reach out and grab a hold of him. Instead she bowed her head, not wanting to
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