Scarlett's psychic "No" wasn't just a word. In the world of souls, it was a physical thing. It was a hammer blow of pure, uncut stubbornness that slammed into the half-finished tapestry of Ryan's being.
And it was the most perfect final touch imaginable.
Her act of defiance, her choice to believe in a messy, difficult future over a perfect, easy lie, became the final thread. It was a thread of burning gold, and as it wove itself into the loom of his soul, it locked everything else into place. It defined the very center of who he was about to become: a man who believed, above all else, in free will and the wild, chaotic love that made it worth fighting for.
The weaving was complete. The storm was over.
Now came the scary part. The Soul Weaver, the machine Zara had built, was designed to use up Scarlett's mind like gasoline in an engine. Her consciousness was the fuel, and it was supposed to be completely burned away in the process.
