With Dagger and Song (Curse of the Cyren Queen Book 2) by Helen Scheuerer

Author:Helen Scheuerer [Scheuerer, Helen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Alchemy
Published: 2021-11-12T16:00:00+00:00

Later, when her stomach had settled, Roh asked Odi to accompany her to the library. She was determined to have answers and she felt a deep need to be with her human friend after what she had seen, forever thankful that he had not seen it.

Odi didn’t baulk at the shrinking room. He simply placed his hands on the stones and applied pressure as she instructed. His mood was sombre and Roh knew that one of the others had told him what had happened to the human in the amphitheatre. As the walls groaned to a halt and revealed the library beyond, Roh reached for him.

‘Is there anything I can do?’ she asked.

‘It was just as I said, wasn’t it?’ His voice was hollow, his eyes haunted. ‘The viper struck …’

Roh felt the gut-wrenching pull of guilt inside her. She had dragged him from one nightmare to the next, with no real thought for his fear or safety. Once, she might have tried to make excuses – that the dead human was a traitor, that not all cyrens did those things. No longer. She squeezed his shoulder gently before letting her hand drop.

‘It was exactly as you said,’ she agreed.

Again Roh was amidst the towering shelves, craning her neck to spot the librarian weaving through the stacks. The scent of old parchment and leather was comforting somehow, as was the gentle quiet. It seemed that the library was the one place the drums of Akoris didn’t pierce, as though it were more sacred than the great temple.

‘You’re back!’ the librarian’s voice sounded, her head popping around the corner of a shelf. Her gaze flitted to Odi, curiosity lighting her eyes, though she did not address him.

‘Uh, yes. I am …’ Roh managed, getting the distinct impression that the cyren didn’t often get company. ‘I was wondering if you could tell me where the books are on the Arch Generals? Specifically, those who ruled Akoris after the reign of Uniir the Blessed?’

The librarian’s brow furrowed and she thoughtfully tapped her chin, as though she were mentally skimming through a catalogue of books. ‘Of course, though I should warn you … There are many volumes on such an important subject.’

‘Do you have a recommendation, then?’ Roh asked. ‘One that you think is the most accurate, or the most comprehensive?’

The librarian grinned, and for the first time Roh realised that she didn’t share the same glazed-over look as the other Akorians. Strange, she thought. Perhaps her occupation doesn’t allow for it …

‘This way.’

Roh and Odi wordlessly followed her billowing crimson robes through the shelves, and Roh found herself wishing she could somehow transport all the information the volumes contained into her own head.

Imagine what having all that knowledge could mean …

‘Here,’ the librarian said as she pulled a leather-bound tome from a lower shelf. She glanced again at Odi. ‘We don’t have any books in the common tongue.’

‘That’s alright …’ Roh searched her mind for a name, but realised she’d never been given one.

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