Maylin's Gate (Book 3) (45 page)

She followed swerving through scattered groups of tourists. Crowds always left her feeling uneasy. This place, with its grand cathedral and sparkling museums, made her twice as jumpy.

Ahead, Jo came to an abrupt halt.

She plowed into Jo's shoulder and bounced backward. Regaining her balance, she jerked her head upward.

"Look." Jo pointed across a crowd of onlookers gawking at a carriage rolling past a dozen feet ahead. "The king's lady."

The driver barked out a short command and snapped the reigns. The carriage veered right on course to the golden-domed building.

"Where's the carriage going?" she said.

"That's the capital building for Meranthia's southern provinces."

Outside the domed building, ornate carriages sat parked. A handful of drivers tended the horses.

"Judging by those carriages, many important lords are waiting on her," Jo said.

Her stomach twisted as she watched the carriage disappear through the crowd. Had Andreas's army reached Prynesse? With no resistance on the coast, why wouldn't they? She'd noticed little in the way of a city defense and even fewer soul knights. "We have to hurry."

Jo shoved past a portly nobleman who shot the girl an annoyed glare.

She followed and the pair wove their way past tourists, vendors, and nobles alike. Jo's path steered wide of the many monks traveling in and out of the churches and government buildings. A few minutes later, the pair stood before the Great Library.

She surveyed the bronze doors leading into the library.

A line of tourists stretched from the entrance and disappeared around the corner.

"They're all waiting for the chance to see Elan's writings," Jo said.

"Why aren't they on display in the cathedral?" she said.

"The cardinal doesn't like the commoners."

"And, the master librarian does?"

"The master librarian doesn't have a choice." Jo tugged on her sleeve. "Come on."

She and Jo followed the line around the corner.

The line continued along the narrow city street. Gray-robed monks surveyed the tourists like a pack of dire wolves stalking prey. Without exception, the monks stood a few feet from the line and made no attempt at conversation.

"They look more like soldiers than men of the cloth," she said.

Jo's lips pursed. "Don't get me started." Jo steered clear of the monks and followed the line until it ended a few hundred yards ahead. Jo leaned in and whispered, "Get in line."

For a quarter hour the pair stood in line. Jo tucked behind her, and managed to avoid eye contact with the monks.

The southern sun rose over the square, and trickles of sweat rolled down her brow. Why had she worn a long-sleeved dress? She leaned forward ready to ask how long she intended to wait when Jo spoke.

"Becca, I don't feel good." Jo spoke loud enough for the crowd around them to overhear.

Becca? "Excuse me." She flagged down a monk standing a few feet away.

The monk glared in her direction but never spoke. "My sister is feeling ill. Might she get a drink of water?"

A short round man wearing a sweat-stained tunic barked out a short hard laugh. "Don't expect him to give you an answer let alone a glass of water." The man pointed to the building beside them. "You're standing in front of an inn. Why don't you get her out of the sun?"

Sweat streaked Jo's face and the girl appeared on the verge of passing out.

"I think that would be best." She nodded to the short man. "Thank you."

"Don't expect to return to your place in line." The man craned his neck toward the gray-robed monk. "The monks have no tolerance for line jumpers."

"I understand. Come on Sally." She led Jo by the elbow inside the inn.

A smattering of tourists sat at random tables around the half-full common room.

The innkeeper, standing behind the bar, peered up as they entered and cast a narrow-eyed gaze on Jo. "The tables are for paying customers."

"I understand," she said.

"Becca, they're all staring," Jo said using a tone loud enough for half the bar to overhear. "Can we get a table near the back?"

The barkeep glared between her and Jo. "If you've got the coin, the girl's right."

She fished in her pocket and produced a copper penny. "Water please."

"That's two pence," the barkeep said.

"For water?" She gaped at the innkeeper. "Is it laced with gold?"

"Don't like it? There's the door." The barkeep pointed to the exit.

She dipped into her pocket and produced a second copper penny.

The barkeep nodded and the coins disappeared behind the bar. "I'll bring the water around when I can."

She shot the barkeep a tight glare, but nodded. "Come on Sally."

She and Jo settled into a well-worn booth near the inn's rear door.

She glanced toward the barkeep, but the leather-faced man had moved on to other customers. "What's going on? You look ill."

A grin split Jo's face and the girl's hand flashed open. A red pepper sat in Jo's palm. "You want to try one?"

She smirked and shook her head. "No thanks."

The barkeep appeared at the table, set down two mugs filled with water, and disappeared without a word.

Jo tucked away the pepper and glanced at the retreating barkeep. "Out the back." Jo pushed away from the table and yanked her hand. "Come on."

Jo pulled her along the narrow hallway and pushed open the inn's rear door.

The door opened onto an alley wide enough to walk along in a single-file formation. Opposite the alley, a stone wall stood between the inn and the government building. Up the alley, the back edge of the Great Library appeared.

"It's the only building on this street with a rear exit," Jo said.

"How did you find it?"

Jo pushed the door closed. "I love to read, but the monks won't let me in the library."

"They know you?" She'd guessed that, but wanted to spare the girl's feelings.

Jo's face turned scarlet. "Yes."

"Why risk your freedom to sneak into a library?"

"I love to read more than anything in the world," Jo said.

"I've seen you reading that book you haul around everywhere."

"Fagan's Trial." Jo's eyes drifted to a distant place. "I know every word by heart. It's about a priest who betrayed Elan's church."

"Oh?"

"The book is banned in Prynesse, but I found a copy in Freehold." Jo glanced toward the inn's closed door. "We better hurry. If the innkeeper becomes suspicious, I don't want to get caught standing here." Jo hurried forward toward the library.

She followed stealing an occasional glance behind.

Halfway down the library's western wall, Jo stopped and knelt beside a window well.

A dozen iron bars sealed the window well.

"It's locked," she said.

Without responding, Jo lifted two iron bars from the window well. The girl glanced up and grinned. "It's a thin opening, but we can manage." Jo slid through the opening and crouched. "Come on. There's room for you too."

She squeezed past the iron bars and crouched before an opaque lead-lined window. "I hope you have a way past the window."

A steel blade appeared in Jo's hand. "Security here isn't exactly air tight, but I guess that's expected."

"Why do you say that?" she said.

"The monks guard Elan's writings around the clock. They've secured the writings in a room at the library's center. Getting past the dozen locked doors and knights would be this side of impossible." Jo's eyes flickered away. "Well, for most people it would be impossible."

"If you'd asked Lady Finn, she would've given you permission to enter the library," she said.

"I told you before, the monks know me. It's best I not tempt fate." Jo slid the knife along a thin seam at the window's bottom and a muted click came from behind the glass.

She popped her head out of the well and peered down the alley. Empty.

Jo pushed the window open an inch and leaned down pressing an ear to the opening. After a short wait, Jo glanced behind. "I'll tell you when it’s safe."

She nodded and Jo disappeared through the crack.

She scooted forward and peered through the opening. The musty scent of old books prickled her nose.

Jo's face reappeared a few feet below.

"Come on," Jo said. "It's clear."

She hooked her leg through the window and gripped the window sill. She let go and dropped a few feet, landing with a sharp thud on worn wooden floorboards.

Her head spun and she reached out bracing herself against a stack of books.

Jo steadied her arm. "Are you okay?" Jo said in a whisper.

She wasn't okay. Unless she took a life, she would continue to weaken. But, she couldn't tell Jo. She'd gone longer without feeding, but her body shut down. During her voyage from Baerin she'd killed as a last resort. She had arrived on Meranthia's shores near dead. How long could she last? "I'm fine. Falling has always made me dizzy." She forced a thin smile.

A long row of books stretched out beside them.

"Where can I find books written during Elan's time?" she said.

"Bottom floor," Jo said.

"This isn't the bottom floor?"

Jo gazed on her as if she'd lost her mind. "We're in the modern section of the library," Jo said in a whisper. "These books are no more than a hundred years old."

"Then where —"

Jo tugged her sleeve and pulled her along the row. Row after row flashed by with the occasional monk or scholar perusing a section of books. None noticed their movement or if they did, found nothing unusual.

"I hope cramped spaces don't make you queasy," Jo said.

"I'm not going to like this am I?"

"The doors to the lower stacks are locked." Jo paused at the room's back corner and glanced along the row. "We have to hurry before someone comes. You'll go first."

"Go first? I —"

Jo pulled open a thin wooden door revealing a three-foot square box. "Get in."

"Get in there? I can't fit."

"You have to." Jo glanced along the row. "A monk will be by here any second. Go."

She gave Jo a long hard stare.

"Trust me."

With a quick nod, she hitched her dress up around her knees and squeezed inside the box.

"When you get to the bottom, send it back up to me, wait thirty seconds, and lower me down." Jo grabbed a frayed brown rope nestled inside the compartment. "Use this. Okay?"

She nodded and the door slammed shut. Blackness enveloped her.

The box rattled downward. A minute later, she came to a stop and pressed against the wall where she expected to find a door.

Cold metal touched her palm and the door squeaked open.

Dim light revealed stacks of books stretching into the murky gloom. Unlike the upper floors, the books here stood in jumbled heaps without any order.

She crawled out of the box, faced the compartment, and fumbled in the shadows searching for the brown rope.

Where was it? Her adrenaline spiked and turned her legs to mush. If she didn't hurry she'd find herself trapped in here forever. She touched the frayed cord and yanked.

The compartment whirled upward. A few seconds later, the rope stopped. She'd reached the top. She waited thirty seconds and pulled in the reverse direction.

She struggled against the added weight and considered it a good sign.

A minute later, Jo's face came into view and relief washed over her.

A warm smile spread across the girl's face. "Miss me?"

"I'm just glad you didn't leave me down here to rot," she said.

Jo leaped from the compartment and closed the elevator door. "The monks use the elevator to move books from the stacks to the main library."

She turned to face the room. "How do you find anything down here?"

"You have to know their system," Jo said.

"And, you do?"

Jo nodded. "I made friends with a boy who went to academy at the monastery. He worked in the stacks."

Why didn't that surprise her? "I need to find anything related to Elan's earliest research."

Jo nodded. "That's easy enough. The church doesn't like anyone to see Elan's research notes, so they keep them tucked away in one spot."

"Why does the church hide his research?"

"They believe science diminishes Elan's image in the eyes of humankind," Jo said. "They want you to believe Elan's power came through divinity."

She didn't have the time nor inclination to debate church dogma. "Is there anybody down here?"

"Not usually. Most people don't know this place exists. These books haven't been read in centuries."

"Why not?" She said. "The books here might hold the answers to any number of mysteries."