There were the quiet moments, too. Like waking up with her in my arms, the light of the rising sun breaking through the open bedroom window back in our suite, her chocolate brown hair mused, but her smile happy. The feeling of contentment that came with having her there, in the quiet of the morning before the children awoke.
I never took those mornings for granted, and I was so fucking glad for that now. Because I basked in those memories when I slept.
And it made me feel so damned guilty.
Adrian barely slept, too consumed with that stupid charm he built. A small part of me blamed him. Which I knew, deep down, was ridiculous. I knew Ivy wouldn’t blame him. But knowing Dante had complete access to his thoughts, his memories, everything and anything to do with IvythroughAdrian made my blood boil. It wasn’t his damned fault. But fuck.
Dante could have gotten to all of us without our knowledge.
I was pretty sure the only one safe was the demon king, though we couldn’t even be sure of that.
Thank fuck they were bringing Blythe Windermere, Orion’s little mind witch friend from the academy, into the fold. That witch apparently had a whole lot of untapped power if the Fae Prince was to be believed—and I had a feeling he needed to be.
She might even be able to find a way to wake him up.
It was a long shot, but we needed her to kill any chance of Dante entering our heads, stop any channels he might have to our brains, and maybe get through to Orion.
A piece of cake.
“Sir Rowan, I fear we have nothing else from the old Shadowclaw Academy,” my scholarly friend said, head bowed.
It was disarming, hearing myself referred to asSirwhen I hadn’t been officially made Ivy’s mate in the eyes of the council. Then again, we had no idea how much of the council even remained. So many were dark, and there were a few who sided with Dante. How many had been taken and were being held with Ivy? How many were dead and unaccounted for?
Nyx’s Domain was on fire, and the only person who could put it out was being kept in chains that only I could find a way to break.
I sighed through my nose, running a hand down my face. “Do we have anything predating Pandora?” I asked, barely looking at the male. “Anything that might touch on the Old Gods and all this…God Magic bullshit.”
Even the oldest of scholars were stumped regardingGod Magic. Zero references in their books.
He shook his bald head sadly. “I’m afraid I cannot find anything.”
I frowned, glancing up at him with furrowed brows. “How is that possible?”
The scholar pressed his lips into a line, eyes flickering away from me to the stacks of books around us. We were alone, the other researchers gone. I didn’t know this one very well; although, I couldn’t really say I knew any of them. They were a blur of faces. Hell, I hadn’t even bothered to learn their names, too focused on finding answers.
Did I feel a little guilty about that? Sure. Ivy would have made a point of knowing their names if she were working intimately with them. And I wanted to be better for her. I wanted her to be proud of me when we finally brought her home.
And that made me feel ten times worse.
The scholar cleared his throat, drawing me out of my thoughts. “I think someone moved the records.”
Frustration burned through me. “Are you sure?”
He gave me a single nod. “Yes. But I couldnot find who. There used to be a small section of scrolls, very delicate. Had to be specially charmed because they were so close to deterioration. I fear someone stole them—perhaps even destroyed them.”
A growl tore free of my lips before I could stop it. Shoving back from the table, I stood, startling the scholar. “Do you suspect who?”
The scholar took a careful step back. “Perhaps.”
He didn’t even need to finish that sentence for me to toss a crumpled piece of paper across the room. “Fucking Dante.”
“I will keep looking.” The male bowed his head, disappearing before I could even respond.
My hands went to my hair, scraping through it with frustration, nails digging into my scalp. “Fuck,” I muttered, searching the space. Not another soul was here, and yet I couldn’t stop the small shiver that rolled down my spine as I thought about that fucking bastard. Goddess above, how had he known to come here and take the scrolls?
How was he even that many steps ahead of us?
It didn’t make any fucking sense. There had to be someone here working for him, otherwise I had no idea how he could have gotten access to the library—to any of this.
