Unhallowed (Rath and Rune #1) - Jordan L. Hawk Page 0,8
said at last. He placed the letters atop the rest of the paperwork, then opened his desk drawer and took out a small pouch of black silk.
The squarish bones that tumbled out of the pouch onto the green leather blotter were marked on each side with strange symbols. The bones might have come from a sheep or some other animal, but Ves was almost positive they had once resided in a human hand.
“These belonged to my predecessor,” Mr. Quinn remarked, though whether he meant the crude dice or the bones themselves, Ves couldn’t bring himself to ask. Quinn examined the symbols, a faint frown creasing his forehead. “Are you certain, Erasmus?” he murmured. “Very well.”
He swept the bones back into their pouch and tucked them into the drawer. “You have the job, Mr. Rune—on a trial basis. Not everyone is fit to serve the library and by extension Widdershins. A final decision will be made within the next three months, depending on various factors. Is this agreeable to you?”
Ves would be gone long before the three months ran out. “It is. Thank you, sir.”
“Mr. Rath will give you a brief tour of the library. You start work at eight o’clock sharp tomorrow morning. Tardiness is unacceptable.”
Knowing a dismissal when he heard it, Ves rose to his feet. “Of course. I look forward to working here.”
As he turned to the door, Mr. Quinn said, “One last thing, Mr. Rune. An observation of interest, if you will. Do you know how the librarians of old protected their books from theft?”
Ves’s heart quickened its pace. Quinn would never have hired him if he truly thought Ves was up to no good. He didn’t know anything—couldn’t know anything. “No, sir.”
“Curses.” Quinn smiled abruptly, the expression stretching his face in a way that made Ves more uneasy than reassured. “Of course, few believe in curses these days. No matter. I merely wished to remark that, though books have been stolen from the Ladysmith in the past, none of them have ever been taken directly from the precincts of this library. Isn’t that interesting?”
It was just that Ves’s past in the rare book trade had made the head librarian suspicious. That was all. The talk of curses was just that—talk. Clearly Mr. Quinn had gone a bit dotty in the head, sitting here in the semi-dark with his skull and his knuckle bones, and his bloody book mounted on the wall.
“Very interesting, sir,” Ves agreed, and shut the door behind him.
Chapter 4
After leaving Rune with Mr. Quinn, Sebastian hastened to the small staff room nearby. Irene was just finishing up her cup of tea when he entered.
“I don’t like him,” Sebastian announced.
Irene arched a brow. “Like who?”
“Vesper Rune, the new binder,” he snapped. “We just walked past.”
Irene’s curiosity turned into a frown. “What’s wrong with him?”
Where to start? The man looked more like a prize fighter than a bibliophile. Though a few inches shorter than Sebastian, he probably outweighed him by thirty pounds. The slim line of his suit had shown off Rune’s wide shoulders and muscular thighs to good effect.
Rune’s features were pleasant, his hair dark brown and his skin olive. Thick lashes framed wary brown eyes. Overall he gave off an air of reserved control. Perhaps he had been a fighter of some sort, or even a soldier; he had that air of discipline about him.
In short, he was far too good looking. But that would sound stupid if he said it aloud, so Sebastian settled on, “It’s too soon to hire someone. What if Kelly comes back?”
“Mr. Rune hasn’t been hired yet,” Irene pointed out. “And he likely won’t be. I can’t believe Mr. Quinn even considered bringing in an outsider.”
Sebastian felt his spirits lift. Still… “You’re an outsider.”
“I’m an Endicott,” she corrected him.
“Even worse.”
She shot him a look of annoyance. “My point is, the library holds secrets. Rare books of arcane knowledge, which could be devastating in the wrong hands. Rune probably doesn’t even believe in sorcery. And I doubt a random outsider will be willing to take the Librarian’s Oath.”
“Widdershins knows its own, in blood and spirit, breath and bone. I swear on my life to defend the library, the town, and the maelstrom,” Sebastian murmured. It probably would sound rather mad to anyone who hadn’t been born here, let alone not versed in the arcane arts. “You’re probably right.”
Irene’s gaze became unfocused. “Still…I wonder why Mr. Quinn advertised the position outside of Widdershins? Perhaps he knows something we don’t.”