I sat there in stunned silence, trying to process my dad’s words. The confusion swirling in my head felt suffocating.
“I should place my hand on top of the book?” I asked again, hoping my father would correct himself or offer more clarity. But there was none.
"Yes," he repeated as if it were the simplest thing in the world. "We need to unlock the book."
A cold shiver ran down my spine. Unlock the book. The phrase made my blood run cold. What were they talking about?
I looked at Ann, who was sitting silently beside him. For the first time, I noticed a slight tension in the set of her jaw and the way her fingers tapped nervously against her glass. She was hiding something, I could feel it.
“You can’t open it, can you?” I asked.
My dad’s eyes flickered with something unreadable before h
