I grab a deep black cloak to put over my thin, light purple night dress, braid my hair in one neat braid that sits over my shoulder, then, finally, snatch up my bag and a fire orb for the dark halls. It’s very late. The castle should be asleep.
The dark corridor that leads to the library seems more ominous tonight. Like it’s leading me down a path in this quest that I can’t come back from. Or maybe that’s the delirious state I’ve been in and out of for the past two days.
I pull my brass key from my pocket and unlock the library door, yanking the heavy slab toward me. It’s so quiet I can hear even my soft slippers padding against the hard floor with every step down the dark, central aisle. The orbs are still lit, but they’re very dim. It’s eerier than usual in here. Or, again, perhaps that’s just the result of me being more on edge since all the events of these past few days.
I make it to the back where all the oldest books are shelved carefully, set my bag on my favorite table, then get to work browsing. I’m not sure what I’m looking for tonight, but anything is better than lying in bed tossing around with my thoughts plaguing me.
A throat clearing from my left makes my heart leap, makes me jump in the air as I spin around, wide-eyed.
Sitting at a table not far away is Daegan, looking completely at ease as he leans back in his chair, a few messy waves hanging over his forehead. There are a few books sitting askew in front of him on the table. It appears he had the same idea as me, but…
“How did you get in here?” I ask in a high-pitched voice as I rub my chest.
His gaze flicks to my hand for a moment, then travels back up to meet my eyes. Both corners of his mouth twitch.
Is he… laughing at me? Internally? Is that what he does? Keeps all of his emotions inside while he masks them really, really well on the outside?
“A key.”
I raise my eyebrows, waiting for him to continue. He doesn’t. He simply watches me.
“And where, might I ask, did you come by this key? And why was it locked when I opened it?”
“The librarian. Locked it behind me.”
I scowl. I’m supposed to be the only one with an extra key to my sanctuary. “And how did you manage that? Sadia doesn’t hand them out to just anybody.”
“I charmed her.” My stomach does a turn at the tug of his lip that’s officially a half smile. I stare at his mouth, forgetting all previous thoughts.
“I—” I shake my head, forcing myself to look away, taking a breath. Then I return my gaze to his. He’s still watching me with intense interest. It makes my stomach take a turn again. “Youcharmed her? I find that very hard to believe.”
He shrugs. “I can be very charming.” His voice comes out as smooth as my silky night dress as he looks at me even more intensely, as if he’s trying to rattle me or something. Then, as if he’s grown bored of the charade already, he returns his gaze to the book in front of him and pulls a flask out of the pocket of his black shirt and takes a sip.
Ah.
“So is that the secret? You’ll almost crack a smile with a little bit of a drink? Something a little stronger than ale?”
He lifts his gaze again, focusing on me with an unreadable expression. He doesn’t answer the question. “Couldn’t sleep either?” he asks instead, eyeing my bag, my cloak, my braid on my shoulder, and finally, the area where my cloak fastens, exposing a small part of my thin, silken night gown. His eyes don’t linger long, but they do linger. And I catch it.
My cheeks feel warm. “No,” I respond curtly, turning to hide my face as I resume searching the shelf in front of me.
He doesn’t offer a retort as I continue to stare at the books, trying to even out my breathing. I’m looking at them, but unable to read the words on them. His presence here has me frazzled.
Finally, I grab one at random and take a seat at my table, a very safe distance away from him. I didn’t know what I was looking for anyway, so I might as well start with this one.
Coming down here may have worked after all, since my mind can’t seem to focus on a single thing now. All my troubles from earlier have been temporarily wiped clean.
But I know they’ll return.
After a very long stretch of silence, with only the sound of turning pages filling it, I risk a quick glance up. He’s locked in on whatever is in front of him. I return my eyes to my own book before he can catch me looking.
I skim page after page, and once I’ve gone through the whole thing, I return it to the shelf and grab another at random.
As I sit, I glance up and our eyes lock again. I find it interesting how much depth there is in his eyes. I can see that there are a thousand thoughts going on behind them, but I just don’t know what. His face betrays none of it. It’s there though. At first, I thought he had lifeless, unfeeling, dead eyes, but perhaps I wasn’t looking closely. Or maybe that’s only what he chose to reveal then, when he didn’t know me at all. I’m not really sure anymore.
“Looking for anything in particular?” he asks after a moment of silence.
I want to be careful what I say, even if it’s seemingly just us locked in here in the middle of the night. You never know. “I’m looking through our oldest section because I’m trying to find… a lost treasure. One that belonged to the elves.”
