t O

and, as though it still carried the

e study while Michael sat at his father's old desk, staring down at the family chart. Hi

uddenly, stopping mid-pace. "The crest, I mean. The

t. It was on the letter, too. A family

sn't just keeping secrets from the

rgency. Dusty envelopes, faded receipts, a few ink-smudged letters from l

pene

as instantly fami

rief reflections on the garden, thoughts about solitude. Then, a

on Notes

s breath

ound somethi

he journal entries from that section were sh

lines matter, but choices matter more. I didn't understand then. I still don't. But if the ring e

aloud, "

he said I'd found 'it.' Maybe this is w

asked. "A safe? A

turned t

her

nded to. Not Hamilton blood... but connected. I don't unders

tared

alking a

"How could he have written tha

hands. "Michael... what if this whole

his brow.

about what we'

her words fi

at the journal. One

Follow the pull. Trust her. On

outside. The l

en - a

f them

her

to the front door. Emma followed, ev

pene

s fierce and sharp. Around his neck: the same

," the stranger said. "But now that

The Watch

dripping from the brim of his hood. His eyes, sharp and unsettling, locked

el demanded, not mov

ion. "You wore the ring.

ted?" Emma a

ression softened. "The unraveling. The legacy your fat

lenched. "Answer

heekbones and shoulder-length hair slicked to his skin. "My name is

widened. "

ur father was one of the last to choose silence over power. Bu

is head. "This

key - not just to memory, but to access. Power. Hidden history. The ones who c

, then back to Kael. "A

rotect what was hidden. Or,

hall as he stepped inside, uni

has begun," Michael sai

only one watching now. The others - the ones who were once silence

ded at

inched

ouched the ring. Your presence completed something. A pattern. A

and to her chest. "But I'm not from

"That's what they all say. U

s arms. "Why shoul

ped in worn velvet. He unrolled it on the table, reveali

rward. "What h

use the ring's power for himself. He activated it

his uncle's erratic behavior, his isolation before

een something

hide the real one, Michael. He separated it from its twin. One w

rply. "So the on

w it's active. Which means they've a

ing?" Mich

ed. "The Order of

o Michael instinctive

ey believe the ring should belong to them. That the Hamilton line failed its

's hand where the ring stil

destroy it

rned. Or wielded. You have two choices: run, and be hunted for the rest

d in silence as thund

oose wrong?" E

d her dead

itself. And this time,

e: Flames

mma sat on the floor, cross-legged, staring at the ring on her finger like it might sudden

. "They'll send a scout first. The Order never moves all at once

oked up. "

"Then they'll come t

If this ring is so powerful, why me? Why not Michael, who

grave. "Because you carry something that

her eyes. "Wha

red to protect, to lead. But Memory... that's yours. Your family descended from the original Record Keepers - t

w, shocked look. "You a

t was meant to be. Apart, it's dangerous. Corruptible. W

dropped. "The

aid. "But more likely...

sed over he

ser, protective. "T

d it slowly - parchment yellowed with age and symbols inked in crimson and blac

s activated, the Order struck. They believed unification would awaken the Vault - a place se

t just want the ring... th

get it - history won't s

ly, higher than it should've, sen

ed. "What

urned

burned into

st of t

ael whispered.

s hand and pulled her

orth - an old monastery beneath the cliffs of Caer Dagon. T

trying to stay

rain, if we stay

ring shimmered again - this time, fai

d her finger

take this. I won't

mile. "Then it's t

sending a plume of smoke into the air - and in its fadin