20. Raelyna
RAELYNA
We stood at the back entrance of the Solis Library, cloaked in the shadows of darkness as we waited for Sage to let us in.
“Ready?” the question sounded from a far too familiar feminine voice, and I whirled in the night, finding both of my sisters standing before me.
“What are you doing here?” I demanded, my eyes focused on Kira, before turning to Orela. “And you certainly shouldn’t be breaking any rules tonight, not with Lucanus being the way he’s been.”
Both of my sisters rolled their eyes at my words.
“You’re not in charge of us, Rae. We want to be here with you,” Kira replied.
“And you can’t protect me forever,” Orela added. “It’s just research . . . I want to help in some way.”
My eyes darted between both my sisters, and I could easily read the looks of pure determination written across their features.
“Fine,” I replied eventually. “But it goes on record that I don’t think this is the best idea.”
“Just add it to the ever-growing list of things our older sister doesn’t approve of,” Kira joked as she tugged her dune wrap up higher.
A puff of air slipped from my lips in amusement, right before we heard the back door click open, and Sage was urging us through the entrance to the library.
She motioned for silence as we snuck past the metal door.
The libraries were once public access, and although they were still technically considered public, you now had to make specific appointments to access the records stored within these buildings.
Access was not granted to those with lower affinities in any way.
Which meant that I hadn’t set foot inside these walls in over a century, and neither Orela or Kira had ever been given the opportunity to view the libraries.
Our entire group stopped in the doorway, stunned into silence as we gazed up at the large, dome-shaped ceiling stretching high above.
Large chandeliers floated through the air, shifting to provide light through the various floors of the library.
A large staircase stood before us, splitting in two directions, reaching the wall on either side and then spiraling upward as it climbed the floors.
Between the spiraled staircase, a glass elevator hummed as it moved between the floors, rising high into the space.
“Let’s move,” Sage whispered in a hushed tone, her motions frantic as she ushered us through the space and over toward a side door. Finn stepped forward toward the staircase, and I reached out, yanking his arm as I tugged him along in the direction Sage was frantically gesturing that we move in.
“Where are we going?” I asked as she pushed us into a dusty closet, a layer of sand still coating the files stacked in the cabinets.
“My friend is monitoring the cameras,” she admitted, and my heart lurched in my chest at the mention of yet another individual we were wrapping up in this research.
“What?” I would have shouted the word if we hadn’t been stashed in a far too small closet.
“It’s fine—she won’t tell anyone, I promise.
” Sage brushed off my concern like it was nothing, her fingers already pressing against the back wall of the closet, and I heard the familiar click of a lock springing free.
“She’s ensuring the surveillance cameras stay off where we’re going.
But in order for that to work, we have to go on the specific route she mapped for me.
” She pulled out her phone, then flashed us a map, where specific times were indicated in red on each of the floors
“You’re amazing,” I whispered under my breath as Sage pushed open the door and took us into a dark, chilled hallway deep inside the library.
“You can thank me later,” she replied over her shoulder as she led us further inside. “I’m thinking I get to choose the restaurants for the next month. None of that healthy crap.” She shot a glance toward Finn as the words fell from her lips, and laughter filled the air as Finn protested her words.
The corridors Sage led us through were cloaked in darkness, a faint rustling noise occurring every so often that had me pausing each time, worried we would get caught.
We moved through the shadows, with only a soft glowing fire coming from Sage.
I felt the chill sinking into my skin, but forced myself not to think of how cold it was as we moved at a rushed pace, knowing we had a limited amount of time.
“How is it the cameras don’t reach these corridors?” Finn asked as we moved in a slow, upward slant. “And there are no keypads . . . no keycard needed to access these halls.”
“These pathways were an escape exit for old librarians. I’m pretty sure that most floor plans don’t even include them on the maps,” she replied.
“And when did you find out about them?” I inquired wondering when she had become so adventurous.
With a chuckle, Sage answered, “Three days after I started working here.”
“You’re joking!” Emberly proclaimed. “And you kept it a secret from us for this long?”
Sage didn’t answer as we suddenly came to a halt on the first level. “Okay, the cameras will be facing the opposite direction of the first five rows for the next twenty minutes, then the next five for another twenty.”
“I’ll take this first floor,” Emberly answered.
“I’ll stay with you,” the words fell from Kira’s lips, and I wanted to object, but I knew there was no point in trying.
Sage nodded in confirmation. “You’ve got one hour, tops. Don’t take anything. Just take photos of what you find and wait right here once you’re done.”
“An hour isn’t much time to search the shelves,” Finn voiced cautiously, and I nodded, having found the same concern on my own.
“I know,” Sage replied reluctantly. “But it’s the best I can get us right now.”
“Let’s just get any information we can,” I said. “Anything on old religions, the Marking Day ceremony, or our affinities. We can compile what the six of us find once we’re back at my place tonight.”
Heads bobbed in agreement all around, and then Sage was moving again, leading us further up the spiral slanted corridor in the walls of the library, until we reached the next location, and Finn headed off with Orela.
I continued following Sage as we climbed even higher in the darkness.
“Thank you for this, Sage,” I spoke into the shadows as we moved along in silence.
“There’s nothing to thank me for,” she answered, and I huffed a laugh.
“You’re literally risking your position in the Solis Library to sneak us in,” I stated. “Not to mention the fact that you spent the past day researching which floors and shelves might possibly have the information we’re searching for.”
“Well,” she answered softly as we began to slow our ascent.
“If something’s going on in Solis, we deserve to know.
But at the bare minimum, we all love Orela, Rae.
We’d do anything to ensure she stays free from Lucanus’s control.
And if he is doing something in the temples, with other Solis citizens, we should know—for all our sakes. ”
I smiled into the void as we stopped at the final floor on her map, forever grateful to have found friendships like these over the past century.
“We’ve got the least amount of time to search for information,” she admitted. “The higher floors are monitored more frequently, and my friend could only do so much to ensure the cameras were turned off.”
“That’s fine,” I replied as Sage pushed the door open and we emerged in a familiar side closet, dust hanging thickly in the air as we moved through the small enclosure before pushing open the door to one of the top floors of the Solis Library, and the search began.
“This feels like school all over again,” Finn mumbled from beside me as we both leaned over my kitchen table, scouring the photos we’d collected.
Between the six of us, even with the limited time we had inside the shelves at the Solis Library, we had managed to take close to two hundred photos of pages we thought might be helpful.
“At least you’re not depending on a grade,” I replied, rubbing at my temples, my eyes heavy from the amount of text I’d been reading.
A dry laugh sounded from my side. “No, yeah, this way is so much better . . . Instead of a grade, our lives may depend on this research. So yes, I feel so much more confident now. Thank you, darling.”
A heavy sigh slipped from my lips as I reread the same paragraph for the third time—no, fourth time—no, definitely third time. The words swam before my eyes, and when I couldn’t take it anymore, I stood up, turned off my tablet, and headed to the kitchen.
“If you’re making coffee . . . make enough for all of us.
” Emberly’s voice sounded from somewhere in my living room, and I simply nodded as I walked into my kitchen.
Setting my phone down on the countertop, I stood on my tiptoes, reaching for the coffee grounds before I began making a pot of coffee strong enough to keep the six of us up for the foreseeable future.
Soft fur began brushing up against my legs, and I glanced down, finding Loxl nuzzling against me, and a smile grew on my lips as I squatted down, giving my fox a moment of attention.
He rolled onto his back, stomach exposed as I scratched him, a contented hum radiating from the small creature as little flakes of silver stardust sparked off him.
After a few more scratches, I stood, ignoring the pitiful mewls of protest that came from my fox. My eyes caught on the clock above the stove as I began to brew coffee, and a dry laugh fell from my lips.
10:37 p.m.
It wasn’t even late. Or at least, that late. Soon, the scent of coffee filled the air of my small kitchen, and I began to pour six mugs before heading back out, resigning myself to the task at hand.
“Wait.” Kira’s voice echoed in the living room, causing heads to turn in her direction as she reread a passage on her tablet, head nodding at whatever words were on the page.
When my sister was satisfied with whatever she had read, she furiously tapped against her screen.
Then the text she’d been poring over was displayed on the TV before us as she pointed toward a specific reference that had caught her eye.
“See here?” She gestured toward a particular sentence.
In times of old, when the golden rays of light first touched the darkness, and the Eternal created the first of the cities on wings of the wind, an omen of peace was sung throughout the land.
“What about it?” I questioned as I read, then reread, the sentence, unclear about precisely what had stood out to my sister about this text.
“Okay, now read this passage.” She began to frantically tap on her screen, and a few moments later, a different passage from an entirely new text—based on the coloring of the pages—was displayed before us.
In great anger, the city the Eternal created was split—cast into a great divide—a rift to separate those who followed the chosen light and those who sought corruption and despair . . . shrouded in a darkness no angel should survive unless they turned from ruin.
“I know it’s not much,” she admitted. “But in both of these texts, there are mentions of ‘the Eternal,’” she finished.
“I remember reading something that had the mention of the Eternal,” Finn said then. “I skimmed over it, assuming it was just a poor translation for Cato.”
“But what if it’s not?” Kira pushed. “That would be at least three different mentions of some other being.”
Everyone was silent for a moment, considering Kira’s suggestion.
“It could indicate another religion—another god,” Sage confirmed. “But it isn’t enough. A few mentions of some ‘eternal’ being doesn’t prove anything. And I haven’t seen mentions of an Eternal in most of the texts I work with on the lower levels of the library.”
“It’s also not the same name I heard Callum say the other night. He used the word ‘Aeternus,’ not ‘the Eternal.’”
“Could they be the same?” Emberly questioned as she stared at the texts still displayed on the screen. “We all know that Aeternus is a god that’s been mentioned from our childhood—a forgotten god whose name is still shouted on the streets.”
“Even if they were the same,” I replied, “it’s not much to go on.”
“Let’s keep looking,” Finn said eventually. “But continue to keep an eye out for any texts that may reference the Eternal.”
“Didn’t Callum say that if you were ready for answers, you knew where to start looking?” Emberly asked out of the blue, and our gazes turned to her.
“He did,” I confirmed. “But that is less than helpful because when he said that, he tapped against my markings, implying that I would find the answers there.”
She frowned at my words, studying me for another minute. “Could we not just ask him?”
My pulse increased at the thought of hearing his voice again, wanting to talk with him.
My thoughts flickered back to the other night, when he’d offered to give me a ride home from the tavern, remembering the feel of his body pressed against mine.
The scent of amber and leather that had surrounded me as we’d cut through the Nox District. But I shook my head.
“No. We don’t even know if we can fully trust him,” I answered. “I’m not reaching out to him,” I added. “It’s not worth the risk just yet.”
“But you could reach out to him,” Kira added.
My lips pressed into a tight line as I glared at her, a reluctant “yes” falling from my lips.
“Wait!” Emberly half-screeched. “How do you have his number? What aren’t you telling us?”
My scowl deepened, and I looked toward Kira. “How did you know that I had his number?”
She grinned at me, “I didn’t. Until just now. But Xander mentioned you leaving the tavern last night on a motorbike . . .”
“Raelyna Kingsley,” Finned half scolded. “You’ve been keeping secrets.”
“And I shall continue to keep them,” I replied, giving each of them a death stare. “Got it?”
A collective groan of frustration sounded from my friends, but I thanked the stars as none of them pushed the topic any further. Because if I was being honest with myself, I didn’t know where I stood on the topic of Callum anymore. And I wasn’t quite ready to explore it any further.