Isa’s already-pounding heart flew into her mouth. “Stop him!” she yelled, worried for the delicate scrolls. “We don’t allow animals in the library!” Realizing what she had just said, she snapped her mouth shut.
The beast’s behavior had definitely been very manlike, from the elegant speech to the way he openly stared at her when he thought she wasn’t looking. Her conscience had been pricked when she’d unintentionally grouped him with the animal species instead of the humans. But if he wasn’t going to offer apologies, neither would she.
“Warrior. Here,” the beast commanded his dog, appearing not to have noticed Isa’s harsh words.
The dog also appeared not to have noticed the beast’s loud command.
He dashed back in the room to chase the pup.
Isa ran to the other wall, hoping to corner the dog.
But Warrior scampered in the other direction, weaving through the bookcases as though he knew where he was going.
Sliding around a corner, he bumped against one of the lower shelves, knocking a scroll off it.
“Stop him!” Isa yelled again.
“Grrrr-rough!” The beast let out a short but intense growl.
Warrior instantly stopped, his ears shooting straight up in high alert. Afraid of the growl, he turned and ran directly back toward Isa. But seeing her, the dog skidded to a stop and barked in disapproval.
Isa crossed her arms. She did not care whether or not the dog liked her; she just wanted it out of her library.
“Warrior. Here. Now.” The beast had stepped to the other end of the aisle, blocking Warrior between them.
Warrior’s ears dropped, and he plopped down on the floor. He let out a little puppy whine, as though he knew he had done wrong and was asking for sympathy.
“Bad dog,” the beast said, stepping forward and scooping him up off the ground. “I’m so terribly sorry,” he said to Isa.
Not caring about the belated apology, Isa pointed toward the door. “Get him out of my library.”
Chapter 14
Aden set Warrior down outside the library. “Bad dog,” he muttered, trying to keep his tone neutral despite wanting to take out his frustration on the poor animal. “Not that it’s your fault, of course, since I haven’t given you any proper training. You’re just a pup.” He pointed his finger toward the library door, raising his voice in case she was listening. “But some fully grown humans don’t have that excuse for their rudeness.”
Shewas the one who had invited him back to her home, if one could even call this partially abandoned mansion a home. She was the one making cutting remarks and enforcing useless rules. Aden hadn’t asked to be in this situation. She had invited him.
Warrior plopped down on the floor at Aden’s feet, a blur of white against the dark stone background. He could hear the dog’s tail thumping rhythmically.
This body—this curse—was an injustice he could do nothing about. However, he could fight back against some of the other injustices in his life while he still had the chance.
“Stay,” he told Warrior.
Taking a deep breath to steel his resolve, he reopened the door to the library and confidently stepped back inside.
“Alright, Miss Isa,” he started.
“That’s Lady Bielsa to you.” She was crouched on the floor near the shelf where Warrior had knocked something down.
“Bielsa?” Aden momentarily forgot his fight for justice. “As in Carlo Bielsa, the renowned scholar and innovator?”
“My father.” Her reply was terse.
Aden smiled at the unexpected connection. Much to his own disappointment, Lord Bielsa had always been too busy reading, writing, or developing scholarly preservation methods to take on pupils. But he had been kind enough to speak with Aden a handful of times and answer questions about his work. “I met him while studying in Chendas.”
“So did everyone else who got to study in Chendas,” Isa replied, her biting tone instantly destroying his pleasant memories. “And since he’s not here to verify your statement, that means nothing to me.”
“I wasn’t trying to prove anything to you!” Aden roared back at her callous response. “This has nothing to do with you.Hemeant something to me. I was particularly impressed by his lofty goals of binding scrolls for their preservation. He is an incredibly wise and resourceful man, and he has my deepest respect.”
