Page 72 of Trapped to Tame
Eve stifled a snort. She'd have wagered good coin that both Drax and Priest would have fought each other to the death before giving the leadership up to anyone else but it looked as if they had both stepped back.
‘I don't understand,’ she said quietly.
Next to her, Drax turned his head towards her. ‘What is there to understand?’
‘None of you even like me,’ she muttered. ‘Why remake the bond after destroying it? What do you get out of it? Is there something else you need me to do for you?’
Drax didn’t answer her, his expression remaining blank.
They arrived in front of an imposing building with wide, shallow steps leading up into a great edifice of white stone columns and intricate carvings.
They ascended, walking past guards who let them into the building without question.
The door banged closed with an echo that reverberated through the entire structure, announcing their presence before any servant could.
Eve’s mouth dropped open at the sight before her. Books; mountains of them, stacks and stacks, columns and rows. In the middle of the enormous hall was a great island rising up from the floor, an elaborate stone mezzanine where she could see four figures dressed in black.
Fie didn't hesitate, walking forward through the books as if he knew exactly where he was going. He took them directly to a small set of steps and led them up.
Eve followed, her eyes wide.
At the top of the mezzanine, a woman and three large men sat around a large, round table, all focused on the table in front of them that was covered in documents and books. One of the men stood as they entered.
‘You received my message.’
The woman looked up as well. Her gaze wandered over them, assessing them. Eve wondered what she was thinking and was surprised when the woman gave her a genuine smile. She stood then, coming forward.
‘You must be Eve,’ she said.
Taken aback, Eve gave a nod. ‘How do you know me?’
‘I had a bird from the Camp; from the Commander’s Fourth, Lily. I believe you know her.’
Eve nodded, remembering the kind woman from the Camp when she'd been so afraid.
‘I'm Vie,’ she said. ‘I spent some time in the Camp myself.’ Shadows appeared in her eyes. ‘Though it was not a pleasant experience.’
The imposing man who'd risen from the desk was immediately by her side, his arm around her waist as he whispered into her ear. He drew back as she relaxed, their eyes locking together for a moment and Eve could practically feel the connection between them. A part of her yearned for the same with her Brothers, but she shook off the feeling.
‘Why are we here?’ Priest asked from behind them, sounding bored. ‘Do you have news, or not?’
Vie nodded. ‘I was going through Nixus’s papers, and I came across a payment.’
‘How does that help us?’ Fie asked.
‘Because it has nothing to do with Kitore or the Library. It was to a temple high in the mountains. Nixus rarely gave Library funds to god houses unless he was paying for something, and it was a sizeable amount.’
‘He could have put the children there for safe keeping,’ Fie said and she nodded.
‘We know that he killed all the adult females,’ she flinched as she said it, ‘but there is no record of the children at all, and no one can remember anything. He must have had them taken somewhere and this could well be the place. It’s deep in the mountains and high up; practically a defensible keep.’
‘It will be a dangerous journey so far into that part of the realm with the portal wards gone,’ one of the other men murmured.
‘For us, but not so much for our fae Brothers,’ another chuckled and Eve shot him a look of surprise.
She hadn't realized this unit knew they were fae.
Vie grinned at her. ‘In case you haven't realized, you have full reign of the city now. The wards won’t stop you from going anywhere you will, and you can come and go as you please through any of the gates and the port. You will never again be trapped here.’
