AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Hali’s voice dropped to a hush, though Sooty was already eavesdropping from behind a teetering stack of books. “It’s probably nothing, just my overactive imagination. But I keep hearing . . . voices. Whispering, when I’m here in the shop by myself. And the shadows, they move. I catch glimpses of something out of the corner of my eye, but when I turn to look, it’s gone.”
She gave a self-conscious laugh, but there was no mistaking the troubled look in her eyes. “I know how it sounds. I probably just need more sleep. But then there are the books. They keep getting . . . rearranged. I’ll put something back in its proper place, and the next morning, it’s back out, like someone’s been looking for something.”
She reached out and placed a hand on Osric’s forearm, her grip surprisingly strong and sure. “It’s probably just the shop playing tricks on me, trying to get settled after all the new inventory. But with that man showing up yesterday, and now the attempted break-in . . . I can’t help but feel like there’s something more at work.”
Her eyes searched his, as if she were gauging his reaction.
“The grimoire,” she said. “The one the man was so desperate to get his hands on. I think it might be marked up with some kind of coded message. I’ve been trying to decipher it, but so far, no luck.” She gave a wistful sigh. “Maybe you could take a look at it. With your expertise and all.” She laughed, a nervous, tinkling sound. “Not that you’d want to get mixed up in my nonsense, of course.”
Osric tried to keep his expression calm—no reason to worry her unduly, after all, especially since she was already on edge. He covered her hand with his, and gave her a reassuring squeeze. “I’d be happy to help, however I can. You have but to ask.”
Hali’s smile was a beacon of light in the encroaching darkness. “Thank you, Osric. You’re too kind, you really are.” Hali bit her lip, and after a moment’s hesitation, she reached into the pocket of her trousers and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper. It was covered in a jumble of letters and symbols, ink so faded that it was almost illegible. “I found this tucked inside another book yesterday, as well. It looks like a cipher, but I can’t make heads or tails of it.”
Osric’s brow furrowed as he studied the paper. The symbols were a mishmash of alphabets, a different code entirely. One that he’d been trained to recognize, to decipher, to use for the order’s most secret correspondences.
“It’s a Venthian cipher,” he said, his voice barely more than a whisper.
Hali’s eyes widened, and she leaned in closer. “A what now?”
“A Venthian cipher. It’s an ancient code, dating back to the First Age. Each symbol represents a different phoneme, allowing for multiple substitutions within a single word to confound frequency analysis.” He cleared his throat, trying to shake off the instinctual recitation that had been drilled into him. “It’s a devilishly clever system.”
Hali’s mouth fell open, and she stared at him, searching his face. “Can you . . . can you help me decipher it, then?”
Osric hesitated, his mind racing. He knew he should tell her the truth, that he could crack the code in a matter of minutes. But the more he thought about it, the more he realized it would be far too dangerous to reveal his true abilities. If someone was trying to get their hands on the grimoire, then they might be after him, as well, once they knew what he was capable of.
“I’m afraid it would take me some time to work it out,” he said. “But I can certainly give it a try.”
Hali’s shoulders slumped, and she let out a disappointed sigh. “Oh. I was hoping you might know something about it right off the bat. But I suppose it’s a long shot, isn’t it?”
Osric’s chest ached at the look of vulnerability in her eyes. He wanted nothing more than to ease her fears, to protect her from whatever shadows were gathering around the shop. But the truth was, he didn’t know who was behind the break-in, or the coded message, or what other dangers might be lurking in the city.
“I wish I could help you more,” he said. “But I’m afraid my skills lie more in the realm of locks and wards.”
Hali looked away, her cheeks tinged with pink. “Of course. Silly me, getting all worked up over nothing.”
“It’s not nothing,” Osric said, and he meant it. “If there’s something strange happening in your shop, then it’s worth investigating.”
Hali’s gaze flickered back to him, and there was a glimmer of hope in her eyes. “You really think so?”
Osric nodded, the flames on his skin sputtering and fading. “I do. And I’d like to help in any way I can.”
A smile tugged at the corners of Hali’s mouth, and she reached out to take his hand. “Thank you, Osric. That means a lot to me.”
The touch of her hand sent a jolt of warmth through him, chasing away the last of the flames. He laced his fingers through hers, and was rewarded with a dazzling smile.
Maybe this was fate, he thought. Maybe he was meant to meet Hali, to help her uncover the mysteries that had been lurking in the shop. It was a dangerous game he was playing, and he knew he was taking a risk. But the more he looked into Hali’s eyes, the more he heard the laughter in her voice and felt the warmth of her hand in his, the more he knew it was a risk worth taking.
She led him deeper into the shop, the shelves of books towering over them like ancient stone pillars. “I grew up in Luminara, and my uncle ran a rare books acquisition business,” Hali said, as they wove their way through the labyrinth of tomes. “He was the one who introduced me to the world of rare books, to the magic that lurks within the written word. I always dreamed of taking over the shop one day, of filling it with all the wondrous tales and secrets I could uncover. It isn’t quite the same as what he does, but I think he’s proud of me in his own way.”
Osric listened, captivated, as Hali spoke. Her love for the written word shone in her eyes, and her voice was a melodic song as she wove her tales. She had a way of making even the most ordinary book sound like a treasure beyond price, and Osric found himself hanging on her every word.
“How about you?” Hali asked, after a moment. She raised an eyebrow, and the corner of her mouth quirked up. “You strike me as the kind of person who’s on a quest of his own.”
Osric’s throat tightened, and he looked away, his gaze fixed on the rows of books. If only she knew how right she was. But his mission was one he couldn’t share, not with someone as kind and trusting as Hali. The dangers he faced were his and his alone, and he would do whatever it took to keep her safe from the shadows that were gathering around him.
“I suppose I am on a quest, in a way,” he said, after a moment. “A quest for knowledge, you might call it.”
Heat rose in his cheeks, and he pressed on, eager to turn the conversation back to Hali. “I’ve always been fascinated by the ancient primordials and the relics they left behind. It’s a passion I’ve devoted my life to, in the hopes that one day, I might unearth some long-lost secret, some powerful artifact that’s been hidden away.”
