Page 24 of Horn of Winter

The only thing that had changed was the presence now standing in front of me. Although standing was something of a misnomer given she didn’t actually have any legs.

Liadon, the keeper of the records, was a goddamn Nagi.

Chapter

Four

“Welcome to my world, Bethany Aodhán,”she said, drawing my gaze up her long, snake-like lower body, past her naked human torso and full, round breasts, to her face.

A face that was both angelic and demonic all at the same time, and surrounded by a cobra-like hood.

Nagi, according to Lugh, were semi-divine—though in their case, “spirit” replaced “human” in the “more than a human but not quite a god” definition. He’d apparently come across one in a hunt that had taken him to an old underground palace deep within a South Asian rainforest. He hadn’t stolen anything from her but had instead engaged in a conversation and gotten the location of the relic he was actually looking for. From what he’d said, they were capable of attaining either full snake or spirit form, and their venom could kill in an instant, though under the gods’ decree, they could not attack without reason, or risk losing their divinity and be cast out into the fold of neverness forever.

Neverness, apparently, was the spirit world version of hell.

Stealing treasure from them was the surest way of getting dead, though, so if Liadon considered these records her “treasure,” then I sure as hell needed to ask for permissionbefore I tried undertaking any search for information about Mom.

“I see very little fear in your eyes, young Aodhán.”

“I must be hiding it extremely well, then.”

She laughed, a soft and surprisingly warm sound. “I have known your line before. Fear might rise, but it is often overridden by stubbornness or even incaution.”

“I’d love to say I have none of those traits, but that would be a lie.”

She smiled, her golden gaze sweeping my length, only to still when she saw the knives. “Ethine’s Claws. I take it you also have the Eye and the codex?”

“Yes.” I hesitated. “Did you know her when she lived?”

“Indeed, I did. Can you use her gift to its full capacity?”

“I’m still learning but basically, yes.”

“Then why have you asked for access to my records?” Her gaze hardened just a little. “The codex can give you far more than all the words I protect ever could.”

I hesitated. The truth wasn’t something I wanted to reveal this early, but it wasn’t like I had a choice. Nagi abhorred dishonesty almost as much as they did theft.

“There are several reasons, the first and main one being the fact the codex holds no records of the modern world or indeed, human interaction.”

“And your other reason?”

“Has nothing to do with the codex, but rather the fact that the council has been infiltrated by the Ninkilim, which is how we believe the hoard was stolen.”

“We?”

“Beira has asked me to help stop their rise.”

“Knowing Beira, she would have demanded rather than asked. Anything else?”

I drew in a deeper breath and released it slowly. “The people behind the theft killed my mother. I believe there might be information within the council records that could lead me to find them.”

“Theft and murder? Now there is a quest I can get behind.”

“Then you’ll help me?”

She didn’t immediately answer, instead sliding around me, her body coiling and uncoiling almost languidly as she moved, her black scales possessing a vibrant green and gold sheen under the pale light still hovering above my head. “I can see no lies in you, but caution is nevertheless warranted on my part, given the records I protect hold an importance beyond the ken of many.”

I frowned. “Don’t take offense, but why would council records?—”

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