Unhallowed (Rath and Rune #1) - Jordan L. Hawk Page 0,22

were waiting there in order to warn me off.”

“I see.” Ves didn’t like the implications of this, not at all. “You think Mr. O’Neil didn’t leave of his own free will, and that whoever made him disappear doesn’t want anyone looking too closely into the circumstances of his departure.”

Sebastian nodded. “My friends don’t believe me—though they might, once they find out I’ve been followed.” He hesitated. “You believe me, don’t you?”

Unfortunately, Ves did. The question was, had Fagerlie had the man removed in order to free up the position for Ves, or had that merely been a happy coincidence?

If Fagerlie was involved and Sebastian found out, he would assume Ves had been in on the plot as well. Worse—it would mean Ves might not get the map drawn in time, or Fagerlie might be forced to flee, or any of a dozen other scenarios that all had the same result: the curse on himself and Noct wouldn’t be broken.

Ves couldn’t let that happen. He couldn’t let down his brother. He might be able to eke out a pale existence such as he had in Boston—no friends, but a job, a place in society, and some contact with other people, however superficial. He’d always be afraid of discovery, but he could do it.

Noct couldn’t. The curse was far worse for him. If Ves failed, Noct would be doomed to spend his entire life hidden away, with only Ves and the constant terror of discovery as his companions.

It was possible Fagerlie had nothing to do with any of this. That O’Neil’s disappearance had, in fact, been an unplanned opportunity that Fagerlie had seized upon. The strange note left for him this morning seemed to support that theory, at least.

“I believe you,” Ves said, leaning in and lowering his voice. Sebastian leaned in as well, close enough Ves caught his scent, of vanilla and old books, mingled with the beer on his breath. “Whoever left the note on my desk has access to the bindery. Do you think another librarian might be behind O’Neil’s disappearance?”

Sebastian bit his lower lip, teeth white against the soft pink curve. “It could just be someone unhappy that Mr. Quinn hired an outsider, I suppose. Did you make a complaint?”

“On the first morning of my employment?” Ves arched a brow. “I wadded it up and threw it in the trash. Besides, I thought I knew who it was from.”

“Me.” Sebastian winced. “Would you recognize the handwriting again?”

“It was typed.”

“Blast.”

Ves considered for a moment, then said, “If the same person arranged for O’Neil to disappear, then it must be someone in the library. Or on the janitorial staff, I suppose. At any rate, we should keep our suspicions to ourselves for the moment. We don’t want to tip anyone off prematurely.”

“We?” Sebastian asked, his eyes brightening behind the glass lenses. “You mean to help me find Kelly?”

Kelly. Ves wondered if there had been something more than friendship between them, then pushed aside the thought. That was none of his business. “I do. I rather feel as though I owe it to the man, since I wouldn’t be here in other circumstances.” Plus it would let him reassure himself Fagerlie wasn’t involved.

Sebastian nodded. “Thank you, Vesper. I can’t tell you how nice it is to have someone finally believe me.”

“I’ll take a careful look through the bindery tomorrow, just in case Mr. O’Neil left some clue behind there,” Ves said.

“An excellent idea.” Sebastian finished his own beer. “Another round?”

It startled Ves that he actually wanted to stay. But he was already risking too much by agreeing to spend more time with Sebastian while they looked into O’Neil’s disappearance. “I should return to my room.”

Disappointment flickered across Sebastian’s face, replaced quickly by a smile. “Of course.” He put out his hand, and Ves took it automatically. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

Sebastian seemed inclined to let his palm linger. Ves savored the warmth of the touch for a moment, before withdrawing. “Tomorrow,” he agreed, and thrust his hands into his pockets, as though he might somehow preserve Sebastian’s heat from the cool air outside.

Chapter 8

When Sebastian woke the next morning, he felt lighter than he had in months.

To say last night had taken an unexpected turn would be an understatement. Though the terror of being chased revisited him in dreams, his rescue at Ves’s hands had proved to be an unlooked-for turning point.

And how embarrassing that had been. Of all the people to run into, Vesper Rune would have been at