Page 4 of Crowned By the Shadow
“What the—” I gasped, holding the pendant at arm’s length.
The second beam shot in an entirely different direction, pulsing with a blue-white glow that seemed somehow colder than the silver light marking Wyn’s location.
“That’s impossible,” Volker whispered, moving closer to examine the phenomenon. “The Veilshard shouldn’t be able to track two signatures simultaneously.”
Thorn’s brow furrowed as he studied the new beam. “Where is it pointing?”
Van stepped forward, his expression grave as he traced the trajectory with his finger. “The Fae Capital.”
My blood ran cold. “I don’t understand,” I said, my voice barely audible. The only connection I had in the fae realmsoutside of Wyn was Thorn, and he was next to me. “What connection could I possibly have there?”
The pendant grew heavier in my hand, the dual beams intensifying until they cast eerie shadows across our faces. I felt a pull along the second connection, not the desperate tug I associated with Wyn, but something older, something that seemed to call to the very essence of my being.
“Senara,” Volker said slowly, his silver eyes wide with realization. “I think someone else is looking for you.”
As if responding to his words, the pendant jerked violently in my grip, the blue-white beam flaring with sudden intensity. Through it, I caught a fleeting impression—a mask shaped like a beast, eyes that burned with ancient knowledge, and a voice that seemed to whisper directly into my mind.
“I’ve found you at last, daughter.”
Chapter
Two
Senara
The pendant slipped from my fingers, clattering to the ground as I stumbled backward. Thorn caught me before I fell, his powerful arms steadying me.
“Senara? What happened?” His voice seemed distant, drowned by the echo of those words in my mind.
Daughter.
“Someone—” My voice cracked. “Someone just spoke to me through the pendant. Called me... daughter.”
Van and Volker exchanged a look that made my stomach clench.
“What aren’t you telling me?” I demanded, finding my voice again.
Volker knelt to retrieve the pendant, careful not to touch it directly. He used a cloth from his pocket to wrap around it before handing it back to me. “The Veilshard can sometimes act as a conduit between those with powerful magical connections.”
“I don’t have any family,” I said flatly. “I was an orphan in the human realm, remember? No one ever claimed me.”
“And yet someone in the Fae Capital seems to recognize you,” Van said quietly. “Someone powerful enough to reach through magical barriers.”
The image of that silver mask flashed in my mind again. Those burning eyes that somehow felt... familiar. The mask wasn’t the same as Eldric’s it was more animalistic, the expression on it one of permanent rage and torment. Besides, if Eldric had been my father, I was sure he would have said something by now, not given me some cryptic greeting through an ancient artifact. Or stolen my best friend.
“Were all the artifacts related to the Moon Goddess?” I asked quietly, my mind flipping back to that burning gaze that had felt as though it was locked onto me.
“Yes and no,” Van murmured, as though distracted by something. “All the artifacts are celestial in nature, and while the Moon Goddess is probably the primary maker behind them, I have no doubt she would have had help from her consort as well.”
“Meaning the Sun God?”
Van nodded and pulled his lute around to the front and began idly strumming. The notes seemed to pluck at the very magic in the air, making it almost vibrate with power.
I didn’t want to get distracted, though. The answer was close. I could feel it.
I stared at the pendant, its strange dual connection pulling me in two directions. One led to Wyn in the Obsidian Keep, but the other—the one with that voice...
“I need to try something,” I said, clutching the Veilshard tightly.
