Chapter 5 #2
“I’m pretty sure I said that I would be starting my job in the morning, well, later in the morning that is.” I winked at her for good measure. The wince on her face was payment enough.
“Your job is in the House of Shadows?” What? No one in the actual Court of Shadows wanted to work with you? Were they also confused how you became a member of a court that didn’t seem to want you beyond a few days ago?”
Taking a step toward me, I could see the allure of Iona. She had deep-green eyes, and the red hair was unlike any color I’d seen before. As if the lilies from the garden had been ground to a powder, and dusted all over her hair. However, the allure ceased the moment she started talking.
“You know,” she droned on, “on the first day of placements, Alvar mentioned that seven of us had been invited. And seeing as I am able to perform basic math—a skill I’ve yet to determine you possess—I counted all seven of us there.
And of those seven, five of us became court members.
And then all of a sudden, there was you. ”
A spasm throbbed in my eye. Don’t let her see.
Standing straighter, I rolled back my shoulders.
“There is no accounting for mistakes, especially when a prince is involved.” Flashing a smile, I made my way around her and started walking towards the stairs.
“If you’ll excuse me, I have a hot date waiting for me. ”
“I hope you don’t mean the walls,” she muttered under her breath.
Did she just attempt a joke? Wanting to distance myself as quickly as possible, I made my way down the stairs, hoping I was going the right way.
The night of the ball, I’d gone in the opposite direction.
Being led in the masses of people up the rough-edged stairs to the ballroom that looked like the night sky.
Every star, every constellation that marked our skies had been visible.
I wasn’t sure what sort of magic brought that into existence, but its beauty was lingering.
At the base of the stairs was a line of closed rooms. Each door was made, shockingly, of onyx, and to the right I saw what looked like the library. The palms of my hands practically dripped with sweat as I reached for the handle of the door. With a sigh, I made my way inside.
I had a contentious relationship with books. School, reading, all of it had been arduous.
I loved the ideas of books and stories, but I was never able to read them properly. Letters and numbers would move on the page in ways I could never understand.
I’d attempt to force my brain to slow down, but I missed most of it.
I could manage well enough if I focused and took my time, like I did when I prepped for coming here, but it had always been a thorn in my side.
I’d never even told Brida. I’d been so embarrassed.
Knowing that somehow, Asana, really Alvar, had given me a job in a library, this was my personal nightmare.
The library was…empty. No sounds echoed throughout the cavernous space, no footsteps tapped along the obsidian and volcanic rock that made up the majority of the House of Shadows; it was vacant.
“Hello…” I whispered as I looked around. Stacks of books stood behind the desk as if they themselves were on guard, the sentries of the library. Maybe that’s why I’m here. The librarian needed a guard. That must be it.
There wasn’t a bell to ring, a rope to pull, a way to summon, so I stood aimlessly until I placed my arms on the counter, resting my head on it.
“Get your head off of there, boy, where do you think you are? The House of Reflection?” The voice was soft but stern enough to get me moving instantly.
“Sorry,” I muttered, rubbing my eyes. Vision cleared, I saw a woman who I assumed was Tura.
Her hair was white, it looked like snow when the sun shimmered along it.
Brida hadn’t been kidding, she was striking.
The lines around her eyes and mouth only made her more appealing, as if she held secrets that you desperately wanted to know.
At this point, I would have given her anything to tell me how to get out of this mess, how to find my friends, and how to flee Azmeer without the watchful eyes of the courts.
“This isn’t a bar where you come to rest your head, if you’re tired, go to your own room and rest for Gods’ sake.” She strode over to the counter with ease, shooing me from its top. “Now, how can I help you, Kadian?”
Does everyone know my name here before I speak it? “How do you know my name?”
Scoffing, she looked at me. “Alvar let me know you’d be here soon.
Besides, your friend Brida described you down to the very freckle that sits below your left eye.
” Even though I had forgotten about the freckles I had, it somewhat surprised me that others had noticed, but Bri tended to notice most things.
Closing my eyes, I shook my head. Focus—do your job. Get to Brida, get to Lil.
Straightening my posture, as if that would somehow build up my confidence while speaking to this beautiful but terrifying woman, I pulled at my shirt, “I was told to come see you”—I dropped the octave of my voice to a whisper— “by Asana.”
“You don’t need to whisper, boy. It’s just us and the books.” She waved her hand around in an attempt to brush away my stupidity for speaking low. “I knew you would be here this morning.”
“Nice to be special, I suppose,” I muttered under my breath.
“Ha,” she couldn’t contain the sound that escaped her, “you truly have no idea.” She laughed as she shook her head and made her way back into the stacks.
This is what I’d pictured for Brida. I’d always assumed she would have ended up becoming a librarian, like Addie.
I remember how excited she’d been after she returned from her first trip to visit Addie after Aela had died.
“Kadian, you can’t imagine, there are just floors and floors of books.
Rows of them, like it goes on forever. As if all the stories in the world are gathered in one place.
That is what magic is, being a keeper of stories.
” It had been the most prophetic thing I’d ever heard in my life, and she’d been nine.
Stories had always been important to Brida.
At first, they were how she and Vale had kept Aela’s spirit alive, but when Brida saw how sad it made him, she’d stopped.
Tura opened her mouth, but said nothing. Before I could ask her what was wrong, I shivered as a tingling sensation built from my leg up my body, as a hissing noise filled the air. What the fuck?
“I was wondering where they’d gone to,” Tura said as she shook her head, taking a step away from me.
“What are they?” Lifting my hand, darkness circled around my wrist. Slow, swirling, hissing, speaking?
The noises they made were answered in kind as more shadows appeared as if from nowhere.
It took its time assessing me—trying to understand who or what I was.
These are shadows. They can’t be sentient.
A laugh permeated my mind.
Bringing my hand closer to my face, the shadow that had curved itself around my wrist let out a shriek, causing me to jump backward, even though it had latched onto me like a leech from the lakes in the Eastern Ridge.
“What are these things?” I shook my arm, as if to separate it from me, free myself from its grasp, despite knowing that more continued to gather around me, just waiting at my feet, anticipating what their next move might be.
“They’re waiting for Brida, they no doubt sense her on you.”
Why would they be waiting for Brida…
“What…” I struggled to find the words. Nothing over the past day had made sense. Raising her eyebrow at me, Tura encouraged me to think. “What did she do with them?”
“Do with them? She didn’t do anything with them, boy. They’re just hers. They long for her the way she longs for them. I hope they’ll be reunited soon, they’ve been wreaking havoc in here, well, that was until they finally calmed down after seeing her again.”
“How do they sense her on me… I mean, Brida and I, we, I mean, I’m not with her, you know.” I ran my hand through my hair, Gods it’s getting long, this was getting away from me. “I’m not with Brida, not in that way.”
Tura laughed, not that I could blame her. I had turned into a sputtering mess since arriving in the library. I fanned myself with my non-shadowed hand, “It really is hot in here.”
“The House of Shadows can be overwhelming.” The crinkle of the lines between her eyes was only further enforced as she took a step toward me, resting her elbows on the desk.
“The key is to remember you were asked to be here, you specifically were chosen by a great man. Alvar wanted you and Brida here. This may not be the court you end up in, boy, but for now, use your time here wisely.”
I paused, “What do you mean I may not end up in this court? You do understand that the Courting is over, right? We all made our choice. Or in some cases, our choice was made for us.”
She stared at the new red streaks in my hair. I couldn’t tell if she found them unsuitable or found them dashing like the girl from the third floor whose name I never remembered.
“Is it now?”
“Uh.” I swallowed down the lump in my throat. “Yes?” It was all I could think to say. Whatever it was she knew, she wasn’t going to tell me.
“Well, Kadian, I’m pleased to tell you that today will be quite the first day.”
The shadows hissed almost lovingly at Tura before leaping from my body. With a slow exhale, I lifted my gaze to hers. Her eyes, unlike many in the house of shadows, held no trace of red. They were a molten amber, the most decadent honey.
“What do you mean?” I choked out as I started coughing. “It’s a bit smoky.”
Her eyebrows raised as she reached for a satchel, handing it to me. “There is a Vitality Council today. We are expected.” Her tone was dry as she made her way from behind the desk. She was tall, and despite her age, looked strong.
“We? Vitality Council? You mean the Vitality Council?” The rumored council that ran Eldara, where decisions were made that would affect not only Azmeer but the realm itself. The most coveted place in Azmeer. A position of power.
“The very one.”
“I’m not Fae, you know.” If the rumors were true, a human wouldn't be permitted to attend the meeting.
“I’m aware.”
“And it’s just my first day, I’m brand new, what’s that saying, I think it might be related to a color? I’m still, something… what’s the word, do you know what I’m talking about?”
Tura’s expression grew wearier throughout my rambling. No doubt silently cursing Alvar and Asana for thrusting such an incompetent fool at her feet.
“I talk when I’m uncomfortable,” I finally said in an effort to break the silence that had settled between us.
“So I gathered. If you’re finished, we have a meeting to attend.”
I had questions. I needed to make a plan. Not sit on a council and stick out as the only human in the room.
Tura gestured us forward, and I nodded as I followed behind her.
Fuck me. The planning will have to wait.
The laughter filled my head once more.