I encountered no one in the corridors, apart from the two Drathen guards stationed outside of Sorsha’s chambers. The pair eyed me warily as I slipped into the winding staircase that led down to the Repository, but neither of them tried to stop me.
My heart beat faster as I walked down the long stone tunnel and pulled open the heavy double doors. Unlike the rest of the fortress, the Repository was just as lively as it had been when we’d visited at normal hours. Monks wandered between the tall stacks, putting away books and scrolls orelse adding to their own piles laid out on the polished oak tables.
A feeling of quiet awe overtook me as I approached the shelves, marveling at the astounding array of volumes bound in leather and silk. Many were written in languages I didn’t recognize, with odd symbols crawling up the spines in faded gold lettering.
Faelights flitted into my path as I ascended the narrow stone staircase leading to the second level, illuminating the carved wooden signs denoting each section of shelves (Creatures: magical, amphibious;creatures: magical, avian).
My head swam as I contemplated where to begin my search, lungs filling with the musty scent of old parchment and binding glue.
“Can I be of service?” came a clear, quiet voice from behind me.
My heart leapt as I whirled, hand automatically drifting to one of the daggers sheathed at my thigh, before I remembered that I was in a library and unlikely to be attacked so long as I wasn’t dog-earing pages or sloshing liquids around the ancient tomes.
Looking down, I found myself facing a diminutive monk with a shaved head and kind, dark eyes. He wore loose-fitting linen robes secured with a silk belt embroidered with the same odd symbols carved into the doors of the Repository.
“Um, I’m looking for a book,” I said, feeling a little foolish.
The monk smiled. “Then you are in the right place.”
I hesitated. I was unaccustomed to asking strangers for help, and I hardly dared give voice to the information I sought. Part of me was afraid of being overheard by thewrong person; the other part was terrified of what I might find.
If I’d hinged my plan on an incorrect assumption . . . Well, better to know now than later.
“If your search is of a sensitive nature,” the monk pressed, correctly interpreting my silence, “you could write it down.”
Reaching into his pocket, he produced a scrap of parchment and a stick of charcoal, which he pressed into my hands.
I chewed my bottom lip. Sorsha had said the monks cared only for the pursuit of knowledge, but that didn’t mean they would guard my secret if they were tortured by Semphrys’s demons.
On the other hand, the Repository was massive, and I had very little time. Without the monk’s help, it would likely take hours to find the information I needed, and I didn’t have hours.
So, I scribbled my inquiry on the piece of parchment and handed it back to the monk. His eyebrows lifted, but he said nothing — just turned and wandered into the stacks.
I was halfwayup the winding staircase when I felt a soft tug on the mating bond. Opening a pathway in my mental hedge, I allowed that brilliant golden thread to wind its way through the thorny branches until I could feel Kaden fully.
Where have you gone, little huntress?he purred into my mind.
I had something to take care of.
So secretive. I was hoping I might take care ofyouthis morning.
We’re about to fly into battle, and that’s all you can think about?
Youare all I think about.
I smiled to myself, then remembered I was angry with Kaden for concealing what he knew about the sire bond. My swirl of relief and gratitude from the night before had faded, and in the cold light of day as we prepared for battle, his omission cut deep.
What’s wrong?he asked, concern lacing his tone as he felt whatever tangle of emotions I’d sent pulsing down our shared pathway.
I considered having it out with him right then and there, but at that moment I rounded another bend in the stairwell and nearly smacked into Adriel.
I put a hand to my chest as my heart skittered erratically and gently closed the opening I’d made for the bond. “You scared me,” I mumbled, frowning up at the royal guard. “What are you doing down here?”
“I could ask you the same question,” he said, an edge of accusation in his tone.
“Research,” I said, moving to go past him on my way up the stairs.
But Adriel’s hand flew out, capturing my wrist, and a bolt of unease shot down my spine. “What are you up to, Lyra?” he growled, his tone low and menacing.
