Alex rubbed his thumb slowly over the serpent's head, and for a long moment he said nothing at all.
'Are you sure?' he thought at Liza. 'You might be mistaken. Plenty of rings look like this.'
"I'm sure!" Liza's cheek stayed pressed beside his, her eyes never leaving the ruby eyes of the black snake head. "I'd never forget a design like that!"
Turning the ring over and weighing it in his palm, heavier than it looked, then tapped it against his knuckle and heard a dull solid tink.
Holding it up toward the sky and examining it, searching the inside of the band for an engraving, a maker's mark, a date, anything.
The metal was smooth all the way around with intricate details. The rubies were flawless, the fangs fine and sharp enough to prick a finger, and there wasn't a trace of magic anywhere in it, no aura, no powers. 'It feels normal' he thought. 'It's just a ring.'
