Page 60 of Court of Shadows
I nearly choked on my mouthful of stew. Chijioke patted my back, trying to help me overcome the sudden coughing fit.
“Some water will set you to rights,” he said, hopping up and hurrying to the spigot out in the yard.
I took the opportunity to pass a note to Lee under the table, tapping his leg with it until his eyes opened wide and his hand closed over mine. Our gazes met, and I held his for a moment. He frowned, looking worn, frayed around the edges, his eyes no longer so brightly blue, his hair dull and greasy. It was not that he was no longer handsome, but that the strangeness of the new life I had thrust upon him did not suit him at all. What I was about to do was as much for him as it was for me. Or so I told myself.
Lee took the note and smoothly transferred it to his inner coat pocket. When Chijioke returned, I faked a few more coughs and accepted the water from him, drinking deep.
“Thank you,” I said, putting up my plate and cup before giving Mrs. Haylam a quick curtsy. “May I go? The library needsdusting, and Mr. Breen left a mess of books in there yesterday.”
“See to it, then,” she sighed. “But be washed up and ready for the trial. It will commence at sundown.”
Sundown. Right. That was more than enough time. I glanced back once more at Lee and smiled before I left and crossed the foyer, going swiftly up the stairs and up again to the library, which was actually not as dusty as it could have been and tidied nicely. It didn’t matter; I just needed somewhere private to speak to Lee. I might have asked Chijioke or Poppy to help, but Lee was the least attached to the house and to Mr. Morningside, at least in an emotional sense. He was tied to the book forever, yes, but I hoped to change that, and anyway, he did not seem to have any love for Coldthistle.
What I had to say would make Chijioke panic, and Poppy was too much of a loudmouth.
I waited for only a moment or two, pacing nervously in front of the windows. The sun had come out and harshly, leaching all color from the lawn, which needed rain and had begun turning brown in places. Lee entered the library and gave a soft tap on the wall to let me know he had arrived.
“There you are,” I whispered. “Shut the door!”
“What’s going on, Louisa?” he asked, doing as I said but only after hesitating, squinting suspiciously.
“Listen, there are a hundred things I wish I could tell you right now, but there isn’t time to explain it all.” I rushed to him and took him by his cold hands, leading him through the stacksof books to the back of the library, where once we had spoken of our families, of dashed hopes and sins long past. It had been a lifetime and a half since then, or so it seemed, for he did not look at me with hope or joy any longer, only skepticism. “This is going to sound mad, but you must trust me. My father is not who he says he is; he’s an old god, a terrible one, and he’s very, very dangerous. He didn’t come here for me or for reconciliation; he came to start a war. The shepherd and Mr. Morningside defeated him long ago, and now he wants revenge.”
“An... old god? Is it possible?” Lee raked his eyes over me as if in disbelief that I could be the daughter of such a thing. I couldn’t blame him. “How do you know all of this?”
“The pavilion; it reveals your true self, and I saw what he was when I met him inside,” I explained, tumbling over my words in my haste. “Everything he told me is confirmed by a journal Mr. Morningside has had me translate. He came here to start trouble, and I’m terrified that all of you will get caught up in it and hurt. Which is why I need you to make sure that you, Poppy, and Chijioke do not go to the Court tonight.”
Lee pulled back, still studying me closely. His brow furrowed and he tilted his head to the side as he said, “Why? What do you think will happen?”
“Something bad,” I replied hotly. “Something bad will happen because I am going tomakeit happen. I’m not smart or strong enough to get rid of my father, but Mr. Morningside and the shepherd will know what to do.”
“You’re going to stab your own father in the back?” Lee cried. “Isn’t that awfully cruel?”
“You don’t know him,” I said, closing my eyes tightly. “You don’t know him, Lee; he’s not anyone to pity or admire. I don’t care if he’s a god or a ditch digger, he cannot be trusted. He’s been impersonating Mary.”
His eyes blew wide and he shook his head. “No.... No!”
“He has. Why is she locked in her room all day? Have you ever seen them in the same place? She spurned Chijioke and forgot her own good-luck charm. These are not accidents, Lee,think.”
“Mary is your closest friend here,” he whispered. “You must have told him all kinds of things....”
“Precisely. But I discovered the deception, and as far as I know, he has no idea that I’m wise to it,” I told him quickly. “He wants the book, the Black Elbion, and in exchange I’m to receive a fortune and freedom from the book’s grip.”
His head sank low and he gave almost a yelp of helplessness. I took his hand, squeezing.
“Don’t do that,” I said, desperate. “I won’t give it to him, Lee. I wouldn’t risk it. But I must know what he intended to do, and I must know that betraying him this way is the best path forward. He is downstairs right now, in the west salon, reading. Can you keep him there?”
“What do you intend to do, Louisa?” he asked, pulling his hand away. “You won’t find the book—they moved it....”
“I know that, Lee. I don’t want it. I need to get in his rooms and have a look around, that’s all.”
“The last time you did something like this you nearly died, and Ididdie. Why on earth would I let you try that again?”
I threw my head back in exasperation, spinning and pacing from the window and back to him, chewing my knuckle. “Fine. Don’t distract him; I’ll do it on my own. Just please, promise me that you will keep everyone safe in the house tonight. Promise me, Lee—it’s important. Whatever happens, I want to make sure you’re all protected.”
He rolled his eyes and grabbed me, pulling me in for a tight embrace. I made a softoofsound of surprise, then returned the gesture.
“I won’t let you do this alone. God help me, I believe you. You never lied to me before. I know you tried to save me from Mr. Morningside, even if it... didn’t go as planned.” He leaned back, holding me at arm’s length. “Are you sure this is the right thing to do? I’ll be very cross if you go and get yourself killed, too.”
