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“I’m fine. Thank you.” I gestured for him to sit, then sat across from him. “You haven’t gotten back to me with any information on who might have given your father that book.”
“I’ve been searching. Many of them have also passed away from old age, so it’s been hard. Not impossible, though.” He eased into his chair. “But I’m afraid the one link I’ve found is a bit out there.”
“Out there, in what sense?”
“Literally in that she allegedly lives several hours away in hiding. Figuratively in that…” Luthor paused, trying to gather his words. “The person who told me about her is known to exaggerate stories. He also said that she was mysterious and is probably dead by now. She wasn’t looking well the two times he and my father met her.”
I sighed through my nose and resisted the urge to grind my teeth. “Who is she?”
“The Keeper of Knowledge, as my father’s friend called her.” Luthor swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down. “He claimed that he and my father got books from her over a century ago in an underground exchange. She was wearing a hood, so he hardly saw her face, and she hurried through the transaction. It was like she gave them away so no one would find them in her possession.”
The more he talked, the more questions I had. My frown deepened.
“What was in the books? Did your father’s friend find out?”
“All she said was that they shouldn’t try to unseal them. But of course, my father’s friend tried to undo one book despite my father’s warning. He couldn’t help himself.” Luthor sighed, drumming his fingers on the armrest of his chair. “The book was sealed with such powerful magic that he had to get help. And when it was unsealed, it tripped a self-destruction spell. The pages went blank, and the cover turned to ash.”
That piqued my interest. “It was probably something forbidden.”
“Exactly. Or maybe not. Sometimes sealed books are filled with inconsequential secrets, or they’re made to self-destruct if the wrong fae touches them, but a lot of times, they’re used to keep information safe.” Luthor looked out the small window, which hardly let in any light. “The second time they saw her, she had come looking for that particular book to buy back. She was furious that he’d tried to unseal it and disappeared again. Never heard from her after that.”
I crossed an ankle over my knee and leaned back in my chair. “Do you think that the book you gave us was from this female? The one your father’s friend didn’t destroy?”
“Yes, especially because it was sealed.”
“Where is this female, allegedly?”
“I have the region she’s supposed to be in. It’s extremely rural, so you might have to go from town to town to find her. And like I said, she looked unwell, like she was sick. She might be dead.”
What other choice did we have but to try to find her? Every ounce of information we got about this made me crave more. The mystery of it haunted me.
“What’s the region? We’ll try to find her.”
“Trysthaven.”
I blinked. I’d nearly forgotten about that area because next to nothing happened there. It was truly at the edge of the kingdom, ruled over by some distant cousin of mine? Of Jagger’s? I didn’t even know, that was how inconsequential that area was.
“Thank you.” I stood. “If you find out anything else, tell us immediately.”
“Of course, Your Highness.”
I left, my thoughts swirling. I was capable of going alone and fending for myself, but something about the story of this keeper of knowledge didn’t sit well with me. Was it complete bullshit? Why was this fae in such a rush to get rid of that book? I needed Arden to come with me, even if we weren’t on the best terms.
Chapter55
Arden
Istared up at Flint, blinking. He’d burst into Jagger’s quarters—well, more like Jagger’s, Lex’s, and my quarters at this point—and started spouting off some stuff about seeing the Keeper of Knowledge in the far reaches of the kingdom. Flint was the steadiest of the three Royals and never had outlandish ideas. But this? This was out of character for him.
“You want me to go to Trysthaven with you?” I crossed my arms over my chest. “Is that area even occupied? I thought it was just trees?”
“Yes.” Flint glanced between Lex and Jagger, who were sitting on either side of me. Lex was wary, but Jagger was intrigued. At least both of them felt slightly less angry at Flint now. “I know it sounds like a reach, but it’s something. And I need you to come. Remember that book that I touched that went blank? There might be more of those there.”
“If this fae is even alive,” Lex added.
“If she’s alive, yes.” Flint’s clear blue eyes met mine. “Are you in, Arden?”
“She’s not going anywhere unless she’s with me,” Jagger said before I could speak.
