A Contract With My Demon
It had a symbol: a snake eating its own tail, but with a human hand holding the throat.
Elara inserted the silver key. Click.
The drawer slid open.
Inside was a single, leather bound volume. It looked like a diary, but the cover was warm to the touch, vibrating with a low, rhythmic pulse.
"The End of the Story," Mia whispered, reaching out.
"Don't," Vane warned. "If you read the end before you live the middle, you'll become a fixed point. You'll lose your free will."
Elara picked up the book. She didn't open it. Instead, she felt a note tucked into the back cover. She pulled it out.