The Frozen Prince (The Beast Charmer #2) - Maxym M. Martineau Page 0,30

start with.” Leading us back to a table, he organized the texts by year and relevancy, mumbling quietly to himself as he pondered which tome to study first. Gaige followed Kost’s lead and took the chair at the head of the table, fingers snagging Zane and the Fallen Leaders.

Silence, save the occasional whisper of parchment scraping together, dominated the room. Even the low-burning fire hardly popped. I sank into a nearby chair with tufted arms and an ottoman, but I couldn’t bring myself to read the tome before me. Not with Calem slumbering on a medical cot upstairs.

Noc and Oz had taken him there upon our return, and they still hadn’t shown their faces. I could’ve gone to the medical wing. Pushed open the heavy double doors and taken a seat by Calem’s side. But the sight of my friend as a raging monster burned in my mind, and I couldn’t help but feel guilty. Responsible. And so I avoided the wing altogether, first taking a long bath, then simply standing in my bedroom with the hope that Noc would come and find me. But he didn’t, and an idle mind only made things worse. So, I’d changed and found Kost and Gaige, insisting we follow through with Noc’s request.

But now that I was here, with too much knowledge and no idea where to start, the whole damned thing felt pointless. A wave of cold rushed over me, and I brought my fingers to my lips as the walls of the library threatened to close in.

“Leena.”

I startled, nearly falling out of the chair, and looked up to see Gaige crouching before me. Kost tore his gaze away from his text to watch.

My voice cracked. “Yes?”

Angling his chin down, Gaige reached behind his neck and unclasped a simple silver chain. “Why don’t you start with this?” The book-shaped pendant dangled before me, and he reached for my hand. Forcing my palm open, he pressed his bestiary into my grasp. “I give you permission to read its contents.”

Sparkling citrine light exploded from where our fingers met, and the projection of a large book floated to life before us. The branded tree on the worn leather cover matched our marks, and I stroked the inscription of Gaige’s name written in our ancient language across the binding. The bestiary purred and flipped open, waiting for me to browse its pages.

I gave him a relieved smile. “Thank you.”

Gaige’s chuckle warmed my soul. “You’re welcome. I’m not certain there will be a beast in there that can help, but it’s a start.” As Gaige stood, Kost ducked his head and returned to his book, but not before I could catch a faint spark of interest in his gaze. Perhaps the Charmer’s lure was starting to work on Kost, making him more amiable toward Gaige, but I strongly suspected it had more to do with these subtle hints of kindness tucked away behind Gaige’s flirtatious demeanor.

Hours ticked by as I worked my way through Gaige’s massive bestiary. At some point, Kost had left and returned with three coffees and brown sugar cubes. The sweet richness of vanilla rolled over my tongue, and I settled further into my chair. It was easy to get lost in the world of beasts. In my mind, I imagined taming them all. Learning from them. Watching them find peace in the realm. But the closer I got to the final page, the less the warmth from the coffee or the subtle murmurings of the men could chase away the doubt and fear. Those emotions were monsters, not beasts, and I didn’t have the wherewithal to tame them.

I flipped another page. The mirage of an inky-black horse with turquoise, fuchsia, and emerald-green auroras dancing across her hide bled to life. She tossed her endless mane, and powerful, feathered wings unfurled from her back. A curved horn more like a blade glowed a painful white, and light streamed about her on a hidden current of air.

“Gaige.” I reached for her, but my fingers met formless magic. She rippled out of existence only to reappear once I dropped my hand. “How did you get a Zavalluna?”

He looked up from his coffee and offered me a crooked grin. “She was gifted to me.”

“Who would part with such an amazing beast?” Awe filled my words. Zavallunas weren’t found anywhere on Lendria, and were extremely selective when it came to their masters. I’d never met, or even heard, of another Charmer who had one. It was entirely possible