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“Hide and Seek?”
“You know, the children hide, and the adult finds them. In this case, the adult in question didn’t plan to look for them at all.”
He snorted and fingered through his hair. “That’s Kora, for you. I apologize. I wish I could say he means well, but...”
For some reason, she felt inclined to come to Kora’s defense. But what could she say? He didn’t paint a very good picture of himself and didn’t act like he cared what anyone thought of him. No, this was probably a matter to be left between brothers.
“Well, I should be checking on the children,” she announced with forced levity. “They must be wondering where I am.”
“Yes.” But he made no indication he intended to rise.
She bit her lip, hesitated a moment longer, and then clambered to her feet. “I’ll be seeing you around then.” She turned to flee from the storage room.
“Anrid.”
His quiet voice halted her before she’d taken three steps. She didn’t dare turn around but tilted an ear to hear him, hiding behind her own hunched shoulder.
“We will need to discuss this some more. If you notice any strange...side effects. Please inform me immediately, no matter the time of day or night.”
The implication that these side effects warranted arousing the keep in the wee hours of the night made her skin shiver and stomach clench into a knotted fist.
“I see.” She cleared her throat and forced a calmness she did not possess. “I will keep that in mind, but I am sure it won’t be necessary. I’m fine.”
She fled for the doorway. She couldn’t tell from his silence whether or not he believed her.
For crying out loud, she didn’t believe herself.
Her heart thundered as she retraced her steps up the dim corridor to the antechamber with the stone bench. Once there, she took a moment to press her palm against the wall and collect her battered thoughts. Her emotions felt frayed and pulled too taut all at once. Why had everything become so convoluted? It had been simple to begin with: get out of these confining tunnels and back to the open skies and the life she’d expected to live. Perhaps it wasn’t the life she wanted, but it was the planned life, the safe life, and the right life.
But the more time she spent in Imenborg with the children—with Jael—the less appealing her planned life began to appear.
Giggles echoed from the other tunnel.
Anrid narrowed her eyes in that direction. Were the scoundrels still hiding in the library, then? They had extraordinary patience for such wild little things. She marched toward the voices. This tunnel twisted at a sharp, ninety-degree angle and led up to a large rectangular chamber. Her shoe bumped against something on the ground.
A book left open on the floor, the pages crumpled and curled as if...
Oh, no.
She scanned the chamber and noticed other books strewn across the stone floor. Piles of books. The shelves appeared to be empty, with their contents chucked across the room. Rig, Crag and little Gorge stood at the center of the chaos, blinking at her, the proof of their crimes still clutched in their hands. The rock monkey reared its head from a stone shelf where bits of paper had been erupting in wild bursts. The creature spit out a mouthful of parchment and blinked at her.
Angry words leaped to her tongue, but she swallowed them back. She mustn’t lose her temper. Now wasn’t the time for that. First, she needed to get them out of the library, and when she had calmed down, she would discuss the destruction they’d caused.
“Put those books down.” Her voice held a deadly calm that brooked no disobedience. The child gawked at her. Then, to Anrid’s horror, Crag’s ears exploded with fire. Smoke curled around his head and made odd swirls in the air around him. She shrieked and darted toward him. “Fire! You’re on fire!”
Rig roared with laughter as Anrid tried to swat at the flames with her bare hands. The heat singed her fingers but didn’t burn her. Confused, she took a step back as Crag giggled too. Even little Gorge let out a chorus of hoots at her shock and distress.
She planted her hands on her hips as Crag’s ears put themselves out with a pop. “That’s your gift, isn’t it, you naughty boy. You nearly stopped my heart! I thought you were on fire!”
Rather than feel bad, the goblin boys found this more amusing and jumped about, flapping their hands in an unflattering imitation of her. Even the stupid monkey joined them, shrieking at the top of its lungs and cantering about their feet.
“That will do.” A bit of heat creeped into her voice, against her will. “Stop it at once, please.”
Muffling their giggles, the children responded and lined up in front of her with penitent expressions. She made eye contact with each of them: Rig in his tattered clothes and shocking white hair, Crag with his broad shoulders but round boyish cheeks and smoking ears, and Gorge—bless him—wearing only his enormous trousers which hung precariously low on his narrow little bottom. “I want you all to go to our bedroom and stay there until I come for you. Do you understand?”
They nodded as one.
“Yes, ma’am?” she coached.
