Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 92612 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 463(@200wpm)___ 370(@250wpm)___ 309(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92612 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 463(@200wpm)___ 370(@250wpm)___ 309(@300wpm)
“Are you certain of that?” He turns and strides away into the stacks.
I lose him in the dark, then sit down and wait for him as I organize another stack of possible contenders in Romanian. From the corner of my eye, I catch movement in the dark, uppermost recesses of the library. Turning, I peer through the shadows, barely making out Valen’s shape as he scales the stacks with ease. He’s half-floating, half-climbing, as if he only needs to contact the shelves to control his direction. I gawk as he disappears into the full gloom.
“What the fuck?” I whoosh out in a breath.
He appears at my elbow, a book in his hand. “Try this one.”
“Ah!” I jerk back. “You were … Were you flying?”
“Have I finally impressed you?” He smirks and proffers the book. “Here.”
“What is it?” I take it.
“A—what did you call it? A cipher.” He taps the cover. “Romanian and English. Not, of course, the ancient tongue, but close enough.”
I gape at him. “Hang on, I think I’m having an aneurysm or something. Are you helping me?”
“All you had to do was ask, little rabbit. Or did your pride stop you from doing so? What with all your acumen at research?” His smirk turns even more snide.
I clutch the book to my chest. Finally, something helpful.
“Leave it. We’re going outside.”
“No way.” I tuck it into the second makeshift tote bag of my design and follow him out of the library. “It’s about five o’clock in the afternoon right now?”
“Yes.”
I expect him to comment on how I’m able to tell time in a place with no clocks, but he doesn’t seem the least bit impressed.
“Sun still up?” I ask.
“Yes. For a short while.” He moves the lever in the elevator, and we rise to the surface.
I all but run out into the daylight, the warmth on my skin at war with the chill in the air. How long has it been since I’ve felt the sun? I don’t know, but the answer will always be ‘too long.’
Valen keeps pace with me easily, and I slow down when I come to Melody’s monument.
“Hi.” I kiss my fingers, then press them to the top of the stone.
Valen stops beside me.
“I asked David if you had this made. He said he didn’t know—a common answer from him. But, I mean, you must have.” I turn to look at him.
He nods, his gaze on the words carved into the marble.
“It’s beautiful.”
“She deserved more,” he says curtly. “More than …” He doesn’t finish the sentence, just lets it fade.
I don’t disagree. We stand for long moments, the air still and cold. I’d like to think Melody was here with us, but that’s selfish. She should be at peace or maybe onto her next life. I don’t know—the same way that no one knows.
“You come here often,” he finally says.
“How did you know?”
“The turf.” He gestures toward the flattened patch of grass.
“Oh.” I shrug. “Yeah.”
“She would’ve liked that.” He clasps his hands behind his back, his gaze far away now as he looks toward the ridge. The setting sun casts a golden glow over the land. And over him, giving him a warmth he would eschew.
“She told me about how you found her. How you—” I tangle my fingers together. “—how you saved her.”
He barks a harsh, ugly laugh. “A whole lot of good I did her.”
“I don’t think—”
“Come. Get your fresh air, little rabbit.” He turns and strides away into the brambles.
I stare after him. For so long I blamed him for not saving her. But the look in his eyes right then—a tortured sort of grief. I recognize it. Like knows like, after all.
I wander away, pausing at the fountain then venturing into the orchard. It looks different in the day, even in the fading light, I see so much more detail. The mystery of nighttime is gone and the starkness of winter on full display. Valen is out of sight, so I take my usual path around the garden, inspecting everything with new eyes thanks to the sunlight.
“She told me about your mother. The statue of her.” I speak at regular volume again, knowing he can hear me even if I can’t see him. “She seemed so … brave. Braver than anyone I’ve ever known. Strong, too. She protected herself, and then she protected you. I think … I think Melody told me about her so that I could see you differently.”
“Did it work?” He appears in the next row of trees, his dark hair shining black as the sun fades away.
“Yes and no.”
“Enlighten me.” He walks alongside me, though one row of trees separates us.
“Nothing deep. Just that you have a human side, one you don’t claim. One I rarely see. But it’s in there.”
“I think she was taking a rather rosy view of me if that’s what you came away with.”