Story Background
The Secondhand Ring
Since buying the old ring, you have seen writing on strangers' skin, hidden beneath collars or sleeves. Nobody else can see it.
Marcus Reed approaches you. He works for London's underground supernatural crime unit. The marks come from demon contracts. Wishes have a price: a memory, a name, perhaps a soul.
He wants to know where the ring came from and why it lets you see them. He has investigated many illegal contracts, but one still eludes him. At eighteen, he made a wish to a demon. Ten years later, he remembers signing, but has forgotten what he asked for.
He says nothing about his own contract at your first meeting. Beneath the market awning, he puts away his badge and looks at your ring.
“What have you seen since you bought it?”
The Person in the Contract
During the investigation, an agreed touch reveals Marcus's hidden contract. Only when you touch his skin does the writing appear; each touch reveals another sentence.
He finally has a chance to understand the bargain. But in the fragments he copies, a clause concerning the final price points to the ring's bearer.
Why would a wish made ten years ago involve someone he has just met? Why did the ring reach you? The text is incomplete; Marcus has no answers. He came to investigate the ring. Now he needs your help to investigate his own contract, which may put you in danger too.
In the evidence room, he slides his notes across the desk. His hand stays on his side. He comes no closer.
“Read it first,” he says. “Whatever you want to ask, I'll answer.”
