29
Friday and Saturday passed in a blur of research. I ended up in the Atlantean library, desperate to find out something about the gods. But either the information wasn’t there or I was looking in the wrong place, because there was nothing useful at all. Mab, who I was starting to consider a real friend, helped me, bringing books long into the night, but … everything was about life on Atlantis before the fall. Which was fascinating—and if I wasn’t racing against the clock I’d be all over that information—but as it was, I ended up skimming most things.
“Come on, girl,” Larissa said, her voice tired. “We need to get some sleep.”
I slammed the large tome closed and sighed. “Yeah, I know. It’s just so frustrating.”
Mab fluttered down. “I think the main issue is that you’re not exactly sure what you’re looking for.”
That was indeed the main issue. Something that would help me defeat a god? Something that would break the spell on Asher? I had no freaking clue what I was looking for, but those two were a good start.
“What if there isn’t a spell on Asher?” Ilia said, finally voicing the thought I know we’d all been having. I’d seen Asher a few more times at meals, and while our eyes would occasionally connect, he never made any move to approach me.
It was slowly killing me.
I cleared my throat. “Then I guess he’s not the guy I thought he was and I need to figure out how to cut this awful bond between us.” Because I could not live like this for the rest of my life. My very long, possibly infinite life.
Mab shot up in the air, hovering a few feet above our heads. “Someone approaches,” she said quickly. “They made it through the barrier and are now in the section outside. It’s not any of the Atlanteans that have been in here before.”
Asher!I was up then, moving to cut him off. This room was off-limits to him now; I wouldn’t arm the bastard with any more information or skills to take back to Galindra. I really didn’t know which god to trust, but on principle, I was pissed at the one who turned Asher against me. Who … broke him.
Stepping through the false wall, Larissa, Ilia, and Mab right behind me, I rushed along the dark rows of books until the large supe came into sight.
I ground to a halt. “Connor,” I said, and he kept striding forward, his expression hidden in shadows.
“You’ve been avoiding me,” he said when he stopped before me. “We’re supposed to be a team. Family.”
I snorted, and when his face fell some guilt hit me. “I barely know you,” I reminded him. “And the few interactions we’ve had have included you kidnapping me and then getting me killed. So … sorry if it’s going to take me a hot minute to start thinking of you as anything more than the enemy.”
He ran a hand across his face, looking tired and defeated. “Yeah, I guess that’s fair.”
“How did you even know we were in here?” Ilia asked, leaning past me. “Our energies are cloaked when we’re back here.”
He lifted his head. “I followed you inside, and when you disappeared, I waited in the main room for you to emerge. Eventually, I started to search for you.”
“You’re not allowed back here,” I told him bluntly. “Please don’t come back here again. Promise me?”
Until proven otherwise, Connor was not to be trusted. This library held a lot of priceless information that, in the wrong hands, could prove dangerous for the Atlanteans. There were entire books on their powers, their weaknesses, their strengths, their fears. The religion they followed. Nothing that would help me right now, but some of it I still recognized was valuable.
“Okay, sure,” Connor said.
“Promise,” Mab said in her twinkling voice. “A promise that cannot be broken.”
Connor eyed her closely, like he was trying to figure out exactly who orwhathe was dealing with. “I promise. I will not venture back here again without the permission of Maddison.”
“And Mab,” she added.
Connor’s eyes widened and I could see his shock. Mab’s reputation was outstanding. “Or Mab.”
A twinkle of dust from her, the surge of energy that accompanied Mab when she used magic, and I felt the promise seal. Connor was locked in. I felt a lot better about that in general. Silent and tired, we all left the library. I’d spent so much of the last two days keeping busy, and even though I was exhausted, the thought of crawling into my bed and trying to sleep sent darkness through my mind.
I couldn’t sleep yet, but if I told my friends that, they’d stick with me. And both of them were dead on their feet. We all wandered toward our rooms, Connor disappearing first—I had no idea where he was sleeping—then Ilia and then Larissa.
I took two steps into the magic users’ dorm, waited a few minutes, and then walked right back out. At first I wandered a little aimlessly, my stomach growling because I’d forgotten to eat. Again. The Atlanteans always managed to get food at any time of the day and night, but I didn’t know how, and I felt bad trying to order from the commons menu at this time.
Eventually I found myself outside the water world. It wasn’t a surprise; it had been days since I got to swim properly; my body was craving the release. After last year of having regular access to the pool and magical ocean, I was now a mess without it.
Yeah, I was kinda a mess anyway, but it made the mess even messier.
