Page 85 of When Ashes Fall

I couldn’t help but smile as I ran my fingers over it. The woman’s insolence drove me nuts, but I admired her strength, determination, and courage. No one else would have dared to bite me. She was feisty, and I enjoyed it as much as I hated it.

The dragon lay beside me and rested his head against my thigh. More birds flew overhead while I rubbed the shadow dragon’s muzzle.

CHAPTER FIFTY-THREE

Briar

Once my fury at Knox ebbed, reality returned. And with that reality came the reminder Knox suspected I was keeping something from him. While he couldn’t quite figure it out, if he decided to go into the library and start researching powers, he might also stumble across the page on necromancers.

He’d sensed something off in the cemetery; it wouldn’t take him long to put two and two together. He was most definitely the hairiest part of a dick, but he wasn’t stupid.

I had to retrieve that page and destroy it. And then I had to hope there wasn’t more in any of the other thousands of books.

None of this was stressful at all.

When I returned to the castle, I took another shower and donned a pair of too-long black pants and a mustard yellow shirt. I hated the shirt color, but I could button it all the way up to under my chin. It was as comfortable as it was pretty, but it hid all my bruises.

Gizzi came with me as I slipped out of my room and descended to the library. I kept an eye out for the shifters as I went, but my senses were nowhere near as honed as theirs.

They could probably smell me from the kitchen, but I wouldn’t detect their aroma until they were only a few feet away. One could be watching me now. I tried to appear casual while I strolled the halls, even if a trapped bird fluttered around my rib cage and clawed at my insides while it sought to break free.

I somehow made it to the library without incident, encountering only a few sprites who called out cheery greetings before zipping away. Gizzi clambered down and dashed into the tree of knowledge. He squeaked excitedly as he hopped from one branch to another.

“Let me know if someone’s coming,” I told Gizzi.

“I’ll keep an eye out.”

I wasn’t so sure about that as he leapt ten feet through the air toward a higher branch. He released a shrill cry when his claws wrapped around the branch and he spun around it to land on his feet.

Nowhere near as enthusiastic as Gizzi, I trudged up the stairs and passed the countless rows of books calling my name. The tree’s branches twined over my head; I had to duck to go under one before continuing.

Like the tree of unity, the tree of knowledge was doing much better now that it had my potion. Its multicolored leaves had taken on a brighter hue, and small flower buds decorated its limbs.

Normally, I’d stop to touch and relish its growing strength, but I was on a mission and didn’t have time for that. I scanned the library for any sign someone else was here; aside from Gizzi’s joyous jumping, the room was silent. Someone could be in one of the reading alcoves, but I didn’t have time to search all of them.

I’d hoped never to see the page on necromancers again, but fate had other plans for me. Apparently, fate had decided I was its new favorite chew toy as it kept trying to grind me up and spit me out.

I grabbed a ladder and pulled it over to the book’s shelf. With dread creating a lead ball in my belly, I rapidly ascended the ladder to where the book sat nestled on the shelf.

I didn’t bother to climb down after I pulled it free. Hooking my arm through a rung, I balanced myself as I flipped through the pages to where I’d tucked the paper securely back in place.

Glancing around, I made sure I remained alone while Gizzi let out a noise that sounded a lot like “whee.”

If I weren’t so nervous, I would have rolled my eyes and told him that he was about as good at keeping watch as a dresser, but I kept my snarky remarks to myself. He was having too much fun, even if he might get me caught.

Removing the page from the book, I folded it in half, then shoved it into my pocket and returned the book to the shelf. I quickly descended the ladder and browsed some shelves as I strolled back to the stairs.

It took everything I had not to rush out of here to destroy the evidence, but it would look strange if someone saw me emerging from here without any books. I pulled down a few tomes without bothering to read the titles before returning to the first floor.

I read the titles as I strode toward the doorway; behind me, Gizzi’s claws scraped the tree bark as he followed me. When Gizzi continued making happy sounds, I looked back to discover him with his ass in the air. His back legs danced back and forth as he hopped to and fro.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“Practicing my battle stance. Do I look scary?”

He looked more cute than scary as he hopped back and forth with his tail over his head. I couldn’t break his heart by telling him that.

“You’re terrifying,” I assured him.