Chapter 15 · A Signature in Black Salt

“Explain this. Now.”

I slammed the ledger onto the damp stone table. *Thud.* A spray of black salt and grime leaped into the air.

Dax didn't flinch. He didn't even look at the book. He just watched me, his eyes tracking the way my hand shook. He stepped closer, boots crunching on the grit of the vault floor. The air between us thickened, turning heavy and electric.

“You’re shaking, Mara,” he murmured. His voice was too smooth for a hellhole like this.

“Don’t,” I hissed, shoving the ledger toward his chest. “Don’t play the concerned protector. Look at the date. Look at the signature. My name is in here, Dax. My fucking name—in a book from ten years before I was even born. How?”

Dax finally looked down. He didn't touch the page. Instead, he leaned in, his chest nearly brushing my shoulder. I could smell him—ozone and cold rain. A warning scent.

His fingers grazed mine for a split second before he gripped the parchment. He went still. I watched the muscle in his jaw jump.

“It’s a forgery,” I lied. My voice sounded thin. Pathetic.

“It’s not.” Dax looked up.