The Latch Key by Olivia Atwater

Author:Olivia Atwater [Atwater, Olivia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Adult, Fantasy, Historical, Romance
Goodreads: 60731784
Published: 2022-02-28T07:00:00+00:00

Chapter 5

The door to Elias’s study was still locked—but a suspicion had grown within him as he climbed the stairs, and he was now strangely certain of what he would find inside the room.

Elias unlocked the door and headed in. As he did, he heard the scrabble of small feet on the wooden floors. He turned his gaze to the window, where a little girl with blonde hair had started climbing her way out onto the roof.

“Abigail,” Elias said sharply. “Get down from there. I have already seen you, and there is no point.”

The little girl paused with one leg already out the window. She glanced back towards Elias, and he saw her silently calculating whether she ought to risk further trouble by running, or whether she should simply endure her forthcoming punishment.

The sight of that cold, careful fear on her face loosened the tight anger that had gripped at Elias’s chest. He sighed heavily. “Please come down,” he said. “We should speak, perhaps. I’ll call for tea.”

Abigail watched him uncertainly for another second—but eventually, she lowered herself back down from the window and closed it behind her. Slowly, she padded back towards the desk, where an old book still sat open. As Elias watched, she closed the book and took it towards the shelves, nestling it back into its spot there.

Elias rang the bell for the maid. He requested a fresh pot of tea and two cups; when they had arrived, he settled them on the desk and turned his attention towards Abigail and the shelf where she’d been lingering.

“What have you been reading?” Elias asked her quietly.

Abigail swallowed uncertainly. Her eyes were still cast down to the floor. “I don’t know,” she said. “I can’t read the title. It’s all been nonsense, even with Mrs Dun’s lessons.”

Elias headed over to the shelf, reaching out for the book which she’d replaced there. The leather cover was unremarkable—but the title on the first page read: Mystères de fées. An illustrated satyr danced across the page, piping on its flute.

Elias smiled ruefully. “This book is in French,” he advised Abigail. “No lesson from Mrs Dun will ever teach you how to read it. I can barely read it myself.”

Abigail slumped her shoulders, and Elias glanced down at her. “You were looking for books on faeries?” he asked.

Abigail nodded dully—and the last embers of Elias’s angry confusion doused themselves. He pressed a gentle hand to her shoulder and led her back to the desk, where he set the warm cup of tea into her hands. He waited for a time, as she took a few sips to steady herself.

“It is very dangerous in here,” Elias told her finally. “But you know that. I have told you… and you believe me, I am sure.” He searched her downcast face. “Are you… afraid of something worse?”

Abigail looked up at him abruptly. There were tears in her blue eyes, though she tried to hold them back. “I couldn’t do anything when Lord Hollowvale came for us,” she said.

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