From what Pavel had told them before he’d left their hotel, the interior of the building was regularly patrolled by guards. The nightshift schedule changed daily, making it impossible to predict the times they would make their rounds.
They slowed when they entered the main library, Viggo’s breath catching. The interior was vast, its vaulted ceilings disappearing into shadow and its walls lined with countless shelves groaning under the weight of centuries of accumulated wisdom. Moonlight streamed through tall windows, casting pale rectangles across the marble floors.
Evander detected a faint taint of old magic beneath the expected scent of aged parchment and leather bindings, the residue of powerful enchantments laid down long ago. He cast out a pulse of elemental energy and was relieved when it failed to detect dark magic around them.
Viggo shot a longing glance at the books around them as they traversed the central area and headed for the back. They found the door to the basement at the end of a corridor that twisted back on itself twice.
Evander extracted the folding cane strapped to his forearm and engaged the light crystal atop it. It illuminated their path as they headed down into the dark, the pale glow casting their elongated shadows on bare stone walls.
The basement stretched out beneath the entire length and width of the main library, a warren of giant cellars and storage rooms.
“This place feels like a tomb,” Viggo muttered.
“That’s because it probably was one, once,” Fairbridge observed. “The Holy Roman Emperors had a habit of repurposing sacred spaces.”
Evander withdrew Pavel’s map from his coat and unrolled the blank parchment.
“Time to see if this really works,” he murmured.
Heat blossomed in his chest and flowed down his arm into his fingertips as he summoned his fire magic. Sparks erupted into life around his hand. Lines began to appear where they touched the map.
“That’s beautiful,” Shaw whispered, her eyes wide with wonder.
A thrill shot through Evander as corridors and staircases appeared on the paper, all rendered in luminous ink that pulsed like a living thing. The map revealed their current position as a small flame-shaped marker.
Deep beneath the library’s foundations, a chamber marked with a single word in archaic Latin appeared:Secretum.
“Two floors down,” Fairbridge said quietly.
They spent the next few minutes navigating the labyrinthine corridors with the map as their guide. It finally led them to a stone wall.
Viggo frowned. “It’s a dead end.”
Evander looked around, equally puzzled.
A noise behind them had them twisting on their heels. Faint voices echoed in the distance.
“The guards,” Fairbridge warned. “They must be doing their rounds.”
Evander’s heart raced as he stared from the map to the wall before them. The parchment clearly showed they were in the right place.
“Maybe there’s a hidden mechanism,” Rufus suggested tensely.
They began searching for one, their fingers moving hastily over the cool stone.
“Your Grace!” Shaw hissed a moment later.
A distant glow appeared behind them. It grew steadily, along with low chatter.
The guards were literally around the corner.
Frustration tightened Evander’s jaw as he scowled at the map. Shaw joined him, her face a tense mask as she examined the parchment.
“Why don’t you try fire again?” she suggested. She indicated the wall with a jerk of her head.
Evander’s breath locked in his throat as he met her gleaming gaze.
She’s right!
