They started from opposite ends, working along the carved edges.
“Got one,” Thalia said quickly.“Check the inside wall, about a foot from the end.”
He felt where she indicated, running his fingers over the spot a few times until he felt the slight difference.He nodded to let her know he’d found it.
“On three,” Thalia counted, and they triggered the paired latches.
The mantle released with a deep click as the center portion dropped down into a drawer.Thalia pulled it out a few inches.A small glass vial rolled to the front of the compartment, sucking the last remnant of hope from Connor’s heart.
It looked the same as the ones Celina had found at the fortress when she’d escaped from her interrogation and searched the captain’s quarters for useful information.She’d discovered three unused vials of the magic-blocking drug in his belongings and brought them home.
Morgan had asked Celina to keep two of the three vials secret, only turning in one to the military as part of the official debriefing.There was no way this was that third vial, hidden in a private office.It was under the highest scrutiny right now as a breakthrough piece of evidence for the lightning team division that handled foreign rescues—Morgan’s division.
This had to be a fourth vial, given to Alison by someone else.Secretly.Part of him still hoped that she’d collected it as part of an investigation.That it wasn’t for a nefarious reason.But why else would she have it?
The drug was nasty for mages.Celina had described the effects of being under its influence in detail.The excruciating pain of it blocking off her magic, the intensity heightening when she’d tried to use her magic.The threat of dying under a second dose if she were still in a weakened state of health when it was administered.
The information Celina had gathered while at the fortress led them to believe that the drug was still in trial phases, especially for adults.The children who’d been dosed didn’t have the same painful effects as Celina had experienced, but it didn’t mean they were unscathed either.Only time would tell if there were lasting effects from its use.
Connor hadn’t wanted to believe Devryn.But he was holding evidence of Alison’s betrayal in his hand.Squeezing the vial in his fist, he allowed the bitterness and anger that rose to blanket his heartache as the last thread he’d been holding onto snapped.
He picked up a small field notebook that lay in the secret drawer.Opening it was a task of willpower, as he was afraid of what he might find.The sketch of an ancient symbol shone back at him, seeming to blaze in his mind’s eye in the dim light of the room.
Flipping the page revealed another symbol, then another.Eight total.All of them were vaguely familiar, but that last one… he’d been drawing it at Daya’s.Over and over again.The other symbols that plagued his mind weren’t any of the eight in the notebook, just the one.Still… it had to be connected.
He walked over to the desk and offered the open notebook to his partner.“Look at this, Ry.Tell me everything you know about it.”
Ryan’s eyebrows dipped as it looked at it and then back up at Connor.“It’s a symbol in the old language.Water, I think.But I’d have to double check.”
Sharp pain pounded in his head again, and he massaged his temple.“I’ve been drawing this symbol and a few others since I was injured.They’re important.I just can’t remember why.”
“I have a book at home on the old language.I’ll pull it out and you can see if it jogs your memory.”
“A book… yes.”Connor glanced over at the bookcase.“That feels right.”But which book?
He scanned the titles on the wall, discarding them quickly.On the third shelf, his eyes snagged on a large tome.Pulling it out, he flipped through the pages.History and languages, but not the one he wanted.He kept searching until Ryan called his attention.
“Take a look at these,” Ryan said, a gleam of excitement in his eye.
Connor studied the pages Ryan handed him.“Look at what?They’re just letters.”
“Exactly.The rest of that drawer is filled with copies of reports—a number from Team Obsidian, by the way—and other official type documents.All of which I would expect to find in a commander’s desk, home office or not.These stand out.”
“You think they’re coded messages?”
“It’s very possible, in my opinion.But you know her best.You tell me.Does any of this sound like correspondence she’d be receiving?”
Connor frowned as he looked down at the letters and started reading.“How should I know?”
Ryan sighed and put his hand over the pages to break his line of sight.“Come on, Con.Think of your sisters.Even without identifying information, you could tell who the letter was for.Something about herbs or medicine or refugees would make sense to find in Celina’s correspondence.Something about judicial law, cultural studies, or fashion trends would for Cat.I know you don’t want this to stray into the personal realm, but it’s going to.There’s no way around it.”
Swallowing, Connor nodded and read through the letters, trying to feel rather than analyze.He separated two of them out and handed them to Ryan.“These two stand out, the others are legitimate.At least I think they are.”
Ryan squeezed his shoulder and accepted the letters back.
“I think you may be right, Ry.I’ve never seen those before, but I just have this feeling.”
“We’ve gone on less when we’re out in the field.I’m going to copy these down so that we can take them with us to study later.”
