“Holy shooting star!” Robin exclaimed, stepping into the library behind me. “This is amazing.” She rushed past me, a skip in her step as she stopped before a shelf to run her fingers along the historic spines. Her fiery red hair reflected the warm glow of the lighting, making it look like it really was on fire.
“Very impressive,” Dmitry added. “You have quite the collection.” He walked past one of the several desks in the room, eyeing the open volumes. His eyebrows rose in surprise at one particular book whose cover was a faded royal blue. “You have a copy of Hinrik Leif’s theory of vampire evolution?”
“Not a copy,” Leona said, floating into the room beside me. “That is the original. The only one in existence.”
“I thought he destroyed all the copies before he died?”
“All, except one.” She approached him, her evergreen gown trailing behind her. Opening the book, she pointed to something inside before flipping through the pages one by one. “It is in his own handwriting. See his signature here?”
“Wow. How did you find this?” Dmitry asked, completely awestruck.
“That’s a tale for another time, young one,” she smiled, amused by his captivation.
“I’d love to hear it,” Robin chimed in.
“As would I,” Dmitry added.
“And you shall, but as I have been instructed, you have other information that you seek?” Leona directed her gaze toward me for confirmation.
“We do.” I nodded, stepping farther into the room. “We need to find a vampire burial ground.”
Shock painted itself boldly on her face before she quickly masked it. “There are countless burial sites. Is there something specific you are looking for?”
I couldn’t help but notice the hint of apprehension in her tone. “Not something, but someone.” I shifted nervously under her scrutiny.
“I see,” she replied flatly, walking to a shelf that stood beside a tall, paned window.
“It’s Luka,” Robin clarified, looking over to me with encouragement. The thought of finding Luka’s grave not only frightened me because of the chance of finding Ana, but also because I knew I was the one that had put him there. I had felt satisfaction when I killed Baal’s dark vampires, but I still regretted killing Luka. It couldn’t have been avoided; it was kill or be killed. Still, seeing the pained expression on Dmitry’s face made it agonizingly obvious that the mere mention of his brother would never dull in its sting.
“The vampire who tried to kill you?” Leona asked.
I swallowed hard as I caught sight of Dmitry stepping away from the conversation, pretending that a small book he held in his hands was incredibly interesting.
“Yes. He wasn’t buried at the family tomb in Noire. If someone had wanted to lay him to rest, where else could they have taken him?”
“Well…” Leona sighed and headed toward a far shelf across the room. I eyed her for a moment till my eyes wandered over to Robin. A thick book standing open on a pedestal had drawn her attention. And, for a moment, I envied her. I wished I could lose myself in these books and forget the world around me, but I had never been one for reading. I could never quiet my thoughts enough to focus on the words without distracting myself.
“That is going to make it considerably more difficult,” she said, as she began pulling books down from the shelves and depositing them on the nearby desk.
“I should have known it wouldn’t be easy,” I groaned, making my way toward one of her towering stacks.
“Why is it going to be so hard? Don’t you keep records of burial sites here?” Robin asked, curiously.
“Of course we do, dear, but…” she ran her index finger along the spines of nearly a dozen books before pulling three volumes off the top shelf. “What you are looking for won’t be in any records.” Leona dropped an armful of books onto a desk and gestured for me to take a seat. I did so, and Robin took a seat across from me, separating the teetering stack into two.
“Then how are we supposed to find it?” Dmitry asked, sounding agitated as he plucked a book from Robin’s stack.
“During the dark ages, battles raged all over our realm. Back then, there wasn’t time to build tombs and honor the dead as they deserved.” Her voice saddened at her words, emanating from her like a cold breeze. I didn’t dare ask, but I knew that Leona must have had to bury someone in such a way.