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I kept a careful distance from him as we wound our way through the night-dark corridors. The only illumination came from candles perched on thick, gold sconces, their flames dancing in the shadows and their warm wax scent comforting under the drafty, vaulted ceilings that seemed to swallow most of their light. Next to me, Shaw maneuvered easily, probably due to his Fae eyesight.
We walked until I forgot what direction we’d come from. I would never find my way back to my room at this point. “Does this place ever end?”
“The court?” he asked, glancing over at me. “It does.”
I looked toward one of the windows and the endless night beyond it. “What’s out there?”
“Gardens, and then beyond those, the city.”
“There’s a city?”
Shaw looked like he wanted to pat my head. “There is. There’s an entire world,” he said as he opened a door. “More cities and villages, but it’s safer to stay at court.”
My gaze swept around the unfamiliar room, cataloging the overstuffed shelves filled with books and knickknacks. Strange art hung on the walls, the paintings seeming to glow with some internal light that must have been magic. A pair of plump velvet chairs were wedged into the corner, more books piled around their legs. It wasn’t the formal, regal library I’d expected to find at the Nether Court. It was cozy and welcoming and so much better for it. “I’m still wrapping my head around this place.”
Shaw nodded and lit a brass lamp. “Take anything you like.”
“I’m not going to get you into trouble?” I picked up a novel and flipped it over to read the title.
“My brother might be pissed, but what’s new?”
My fingers tightened on the book. “Brother?” I flushed and was suddenly grateful that the dim light likely hid my face.
He smiled. “Shaw Gage. The baby—the unwanted, unplanned, unwelcome baby.”
I hadn’t put two and two together until now. Not with mishaps like accidentally selling my soul and dress fittings and car fires distracting me. I needed to spend some time stalking the Gages on the internet. Yet another reason I needed the modern amenities of the Avalon. “I know that feeling. Look, your brother is a prick. I wouldn’t take it personally.”
“He forgets about me. I was at school until recently.” He sounded almost wistful, and I thought about what Lachlan had said about Fiona keeping her distance from the Nether Court. “But all good things must come to an end.”
“And why are you here now? I thought everyone stayed at the Avalon.” Everyone but me and Shaw, it seemed.
He frowned. “Not tonight. I’ve been ordered to hang here while Lach and Roark deal with some stuff by the docks.”
“You mean you’ve been left to watch me.”
He shrugged. “That’s Lach’s excuse, but he doesn’t want me around while he’s dealing with business.”
I studied him for a moment. “He’s trying to keep you safe.”
But Shaw snorted. “Lach doesn’t worry about safety, or he wouldn’t be out there tonight.”
I decided I didn’t want to know more about what his brother was doing, because I suspected that whatever it was was likely very illegal. “He must think about safety sometimes, because he didn’t leave me to my own devices.”
Shaw’s eyes twinkled. “Troublemaker?”
If he only knew. “Not anymore.” Was that a fact or a reminder?
I stared at the books, drinking in the woodsy, worn scent of them. Some of the titles, I recognized; many, I did not. My eyes skipped over spines emblazoned with strange characters, the same language that was inked on Lachlan’s flesh. I bypassed those, perusing the shelves until I found a leather-bound collection of Jane Austen novels. I reached for one and paused.
“If I borrow a book from your library, you aren’t going to make me give you a kidney or something, right?” I asked.
Despite the frost coating my voice, Shaw snorted. “No. Read as many books as you like.” He dropped his voice to a whisper. “Lucky for you, I’m not the type to make bargains.”
“So you wouldn’t have tricked me out of my soul?”
“Unlikely,” he admitted with a contagious laugh. Shaw was different than his older brother. He was more like Ciara. It would be easy to be friends with him, to trust him, to like him. I couldn’t say any of those things about his brother. If likability was a genetic trait, it must have skipped Lachlan and Fiona in favor of their siblings. “It’s only worth making a bargain if you know it won’t be broken. Otherwise…”
“Oh?” I fixed a neutral stare at the book in my hands, but my heart raced. “What happens then?”