“But who?” Edith leans back against the bookshelves, using them to support her. “The only seers we know are…” She frowns. “You don’t think it was Irina, do you?”
“It could be,” I say, trying to untangle all my thoughts. “Maybe Emilía found out she was practicing forbidden magic, and Irina killed her to protect her secret.”
Edith chews on one of her nails. “Maybe that’s why she attacked us, too.”
“What about Idris, though?” I ask quietly.
“Well… your dad is a seer too, right? What if it was him?”
“My father wouldn’t do that,” I tell her, my voice steely. “He wants nothing to do with it. Unlike Irina.”
Edith doesn’t seem convinced. “Well, this is something, anyway. Let’s keep looking.”
I flip through the pages, hoping to find more—
The overhead lights begin to blink off. On. Off.
Edith and I exchange an uncertain look.
“Um, does that happen often?” she asks, worrying her lower lip.
“Only during severe storms.”
The floor creaks behind me.
Edith jumps, snapping her book shut. I turn quickly.
Someone stands in the distant, dark end of the aisle.
The overhead lights buzz and hum like a swarm of insects.
“Hello?” I call out, shielding Edith.
The lights flicker back on, but I can’t believe my eyes.
Irinastands there with an armful of books.
“What are you doing here?” I demand. Was she following us?
How much of our conversation did she overhear?
Irina’s eyes widen like those of a mouse that’s been caught in a trap. “Sh-shelving some books before my shift ends.”
“Well, we’d better leave you to it, then.” Edith grabs my arm, pulling me away from Irina and down the stairs.
“What was that?” I ask her once we’re alone again.
“We were wrong about Isaac,” Edith says quietly. “I want to be sure Irina is really guilty before we turn her in, especially if it means I could be expelled alongside her. I… I’m not ready to go home yet.”
We reach the bottom of the stairs. “How are we supposed to prove that she’s guilty?”
“We’ll wait until her shift is over and follow her.”
I fight a smile. “Now you’re thinking like a hunter.”
Edith and I head downstairs, and I grab us a table in the far corner. This will give us a good vantage point. I can see the circulation desk and the exit from here, but we aren’t close enough to be easily noticeable.
While Edith goes back to reading, I scan the library.
