Meanwhile back in the Vault was quiet.
Too quiet.
Lilith stared.
So did Elowen. And the others.
Not a word was spoken. Not even a breath.
Because the woman in front of them—this elegant, impossible being—had just dropped to one knee and said something none of them could've imagined.
"Master."
The word echoed, not in sound, but in weight.
It wasn't dramatic. It wasn't shouted.
But it felt like a sword cutting clean through the air.
Ethan blinked.
He didn't move. He didn't speak.
He was still trying to understand what had just happened.
The book was still floating around him, happy as ever. It spun once, then twice, and zipped toward his shoulder like a puppy seeing its owner for the first time in years.
It nuzzled his cheek.
Ethan twitched.
"What the hell is going on?" he muttered under his breath.
He then thought about the only other person who could help him understand all of this, and someone who should have answers for this.
