Page 57 of The Fifth Heir

Every lamp in the aisle went out.

I stepped back.

A protective rune appeared across the cover.

SEALED BY AUTHORITY OF THE TRIALS.

Not the academy.

The Trials.

I reached for the book again.

“Is that necessary?”

Talia stood at the end of the aisle.

She had changed into the dark gray training uniform from her Fifth Wing wardrobe. Clear thread along the cuffs caught the archive light. Her hair was braided loosely over one shoulder, exposing the smooth line of her throat and the nearly invisible torc around it.

A folded medical wrap showed beneath the collar on her right side.

I had noticed that before I noticed anything else.

That was the practical order.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

“I work here.”

“This is the academy archive.”

“Master Orin sent me for the original tower inventory. The headmaster wants to compare it with the rooms we found.”

“Did the infirmary release you?”

“They confirmed that I’m not burned.”

“That wasn’t the only injury.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Torren talks too much.”

“He didn’t tell me.”

“Then how do you know?”

“You avoid lifting your right arm.”

She glanced toward the sealed book. “What did you find?”

She had not answered my implied question.

I let her.

“The First Trial record was altered.”

Her attention sharpened immediately. She approached the table and read the protective rune without touching the cover.

“Are you certain?”