Selene's POV

The ancient text trembled in my hands.

I had read the passage three times, but the words still refused to make sense.

A forbidden ritual.

A sacrifice.

A soul divided.

And a warning written beneath it in faded ink.

What is freed may not remain free.

I stared at the sentence.

"What does that mean?"

Rowan stood across the library table, his mismatched eyes fixed on the page.

"It means the ritual has a price."

"What kind?"

He was silent.

That silence frightened me more than any answer could have.

"Rowan."

He finally looked at me.

"A piece of your soul."

My fingers tightened around the book.

"And...