AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Sooty grunted in response, not looking up.
Hali shook her head, but there was no real annoyance in her voice. She’d long ago learned to appreciate Sooty’s no-nonsense attitude, a perfect counterbalance to her own flights of fancy. While she was the face of the shop, spinning tales and weaving dreams for their customers, Sooty was the true backbone of Quintessential Quills, with his encyclopedic knowledge and keen eye for detail.
She moved to the counter and watched as Sooty unlocked the register and began counting out the day’s starting till. “Did you finish pricing those new acquisitions from the auction?” she asked.
Sooty nodded. “Yep. All set to go.”
“Excellent. You’re a lifesaver, you know that, Sooty?”
Another grunt.
Sooty finished with the register and moved on to the daily tasks of opening the shop. He quickly fell into his routine, his movements efficient and practiced. Dusting the shelves, straightening the stacks of books, rearranging the window displays with a critical eye.
“You know, Sooty,” Hali said, unable to resist needling him just a little, “if you keep rearranging the histories section, you might actually find a customer who can reach the top shelf.”
Sooty’s lips twitched, and he glanced back at her. “I like it how it is.”
She laughed, and with a final pat on Sooty’s shoulder, she glided over to the kettle to set it on for tea. The shop was as it should be, and with Sooty in charge, Hali could focus on the true task at hand.
The kettle whistled, and Hali quickly set about preparing her tea. As the fragrant leaves steeped in the teapot, she took a deep breath, letting the earthy scent wash over her. She carried the teapot and a delicate china cup back to the counter, and with a joyous smile, she settled onto the stool.
“Ah, thank you, Sooty. You’re a lifesaver as always.”
Sooty grunted, and Hali was about to tease him further when her gaze drifted to the display stand they had used to try to draw the Obsidian Circle out of hiding. The one that should have held the grimoire, bound in its protective wards.
It was empty.
Hali’s heart skipped a beat, and she set her tea down, the fragrant steam going ignored. “Sooty,” she said, her voice rising in pitch. “Sooty, where’s the grimoire?”
Sooty glanced over his shoulder, and then followed her gaze to the display. With a puzzled frown, he hurried over to the counter. “I thought you took it upstairs to clean it.”
Hali’s heart pounded in her ears. “No. No, I didn’t. I was going to, but then I remembered the wards, and I didn’t want to risk it. Did you move it for restocking?”
Sooty shook his head, a lock of dark hair falling into his eyes. “No, ma’am. I haven’t touched it.”
Hali’s heart raced as her mind caught up to the implications of the missing grimoire. “Oh, by the stars. This is bad. This is very, very bad.”
“And now the Obsidian Circle has the grimoire.” Sooty sighed. “Great.”
Hali’s mind was racing. She had been so focused on catching the man who had broken in, she hadn’t even considered the possibility of a second intruder. And now, with the grimoire in the Circle’s hands, who knew what other secrets they might uncover.
Sooty nodded, his expression serious. “What do you need me to do?”
“First, we need to secure the shop. I need to check the wards on the doors and windows, make sure they haven’t been tampered with. Then we’ll need to do a full inventory, make sure nothing else is missing. And then . . .”
Hali’s voice trailed off as she thought. “And then we wait. We wait to see if the Circle makes a move. And in the meantime, we’ll just have to be ready for anything.”
She started pacing back and forth behind the counter, her mind racing with thoughts of traps and alarms and safeguards. She couldn’t afford to make the same mistake again. Lives were at stake, not just her own, but Osric’s, and Sooty’s, and who knew how many others.
“We’ll catch them, Hali. I promise.”
She stopped her pacing and looked over at Sooty, his dark eyes steady and unwavering. For all his grumbling and grousing, he was always there when she needed him, her rock and her anchor.
“Thank you, Sooty,” she said. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
Sooty snorted. “Probably get yourself killed.”
Hali laughed, a watery, relieved sound. “Yes, well. Let’s try to avoid that, shall we?”
