The Dark Archive (The Invisible Library Novel) Page 11

  “You can go, Anna,” Cuifen said over Kai’s shoulder. Humans were definitely lower in the hierarchy here. “Well, cousin. I’ve been nagging you to visit me for a while now, but I have to tell you, this isn’t the best moment. We’re all busy, Uncle Zhang Yi in particular.”

  “I was told he was too busy to receive me, but I’d assumed that was customary . . .” Kai said.

  “Yes. Something happened—a month or so ago—which means we need to review much of the royal houses’ security software.”

  “I won’t stay long—but I have a problem and would be very grateful for your advice,” Kai said. “While I have no claim on your time or assistance—”

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” Cuifen said, clearly impatient with formalities. “Sit down and tell me about it.” She dropped into one of the heavy chairs, folding her legs underneath her. And despite her semi-draconic form, he noticed she was wearing a casual human wardrobe of heavy knitted jumper, jeans, and woollen striped socks. Clearly humans had some influence here.

  “All right,” he said, sitting opposite her. “I have a laptop which I need analysed.”

  “Can’t you do it yourself? You’ve got access to worlds which have the technology—your lord uncle Ao Shun’s hideout, for a start.”

  “It shames me to admit it, but I’m not sure I have the level of skill needed. It’s from a high-chaos world—and I can’t risk mistakes.”

  Cuifen’s eyes widened in delight. “You’ve brought me a computer from a high-chaos world? Cousin Kai, you are a darling!”

  “More than that,” Kai said. “The laptop belongs to a powerful Fae—someone who’s trying to kill me. And Irene too.”

  Cuifen rubbed her hands together. “Better and better. How exquisite! I mean that in the nicest possible way, you understand. I don’t usually get the chance to hack top-level Fae software.” She paused, remembering. “But don’t we have a truce with them? Why’s a powerful Fae trying to kill you?”

  “Personal matters,” Kai said. The less people knew about the individuals involved, the better—especially while they were still investigating. He ran over the basic details of the last few days—the book-collecting mission, the poisoning attempt, the submarine-base ambush, and how Irene had stolen the laptop as she fled. “So you see,” he finished, “I need an expert to take that thing apart and extract the data. Our lives might depend on it.” We might even be lucky enough to find Guantes’s entire evil plan, with easy-to-follow presentations for his minions, he thought. Fae were like that sometimes.

  Cuifen’s elegant brows drew together. “I didn’t realize your assignments were quite that dangerous,” she said. “I thought you attended Fae cocktail parties and coaxed them into indiscretions over canapés.”

  “Unfortunately not all Fae throw cocktail parties,” Kai said. “And even those who do can be extremely dangerous. You should see their buffet selections—and I never touch the fugu livers. Or the absinthe.”

  Cuifen frowned at his flippancy. “There are risks, cousin, and then there are stupid risks . . . I’m not asking you to withdraw—”

  “Thank you,” Kai said drily. “It is my job, after all.”

  “—but you need to consider your security from a more adult standpoint. Take a couple of bodyguards. You’re putting yourself at risk.”

  “Life is risk.”

  Cuifen leaned forward, her eyes intense. “Your life has worth, cousin. Don’t throw it away.”

  Between them, unspoken, lay the words because you care about a particular human being . . .

  “I doubt that some family members valued me before my new position,” Kai stated, his voice icy. There was a reason why he’d approached Cuifen rather than . . . a certain other computer expert here.

  His cousin shrugged. “You can sulk about your brother, or you can accept how things are and work with it. With the risks you’re facing, perhaps you should relocate for a few years. If you move to a different world, your enemy will be inconvenienced. It’s not as if you have to keep your embassy on that world, after all.”

  She had a good point. But following her advice would mean deserting Vale’s world—and Vale. And would Irene follow me? If the Library told her to stay, which of us would she choose? “You’re not wrong,” he said, desperately searching for a solid rebuttal. “It’s just that . . .”

  The door clicked open, and Kai looked up with relief. Coffee would be a welcome distraction. Then his heart sank to see his half-brother, the very person he’d hoped to avoid. He rose and bowed with a carefully judged level of courtesy. “Elder brother,” he said. “I did not expect to see you here.”

  “Which explains why you didn’t pay your respects to me first?” his brother said. Shan Yuan’s scaled skin was the same clear ruby as his eyes, and he was gowned in heavy scarlet brocade. He acknowledged Cuifen’s bow with a casual gesture. “Still, it’s good to see you. My letters appear to have been going astray.”

  Kai had taken care to answer Shan Yuan’s letters as politely as possible. But he’d had to meet all his brother’s demands upon the embassy, or his attempts to restructure it, with variations on no. “I apologise,” he said, rather than contradict his half-brother in company. “I’ve had so much correspondence of late.” This was in fact true; a number of dragons had suddenly found him worthy of interest, after he’d gained his new position.

  “So if you aren’t here to see me, why are you actually here, little brother?”

  “Someone’s trying to kill me.”

  For a moment Shan Yuan’s brows rose in surprise—and what seemed to be genuine anger at his kin being targeted—but then he composed himself. “I suppose that’s an occupational hazard, given your current position.” Shan Yuan’s tone suggested that if it wasn’t for the treaty’s importance to his people, he’d happily have sat back and watched with a bucket of popcorn. “So did you come here to snivel on Cuifen’s shoulder?”

  Cuifen said pleasantly, “Would you care for refreshments, Shan Yuan, even though you’ve barged into my territory, completely uninvited?”

  Shan Yuan ignored her, his attention returning to Kai. “But what does Cuifen have to do with your little problem?”

  “I’m here to get a laptop analysed. It may contain details of my adversary.”

  “Fair enough.” Shan Yuan extended a long-fingered hand, claws gleaming like garnets. “Hand it over.”

  “Kai asked me to look at it!” Cuifen exclaimed.

  “Yes. And my technical knowledge is superior to yours. I am Lord Zhang Yi’s first student, after all.”

  “You are indeed—since Indigo is no longer here,” Cuifen said, her smile icy. “And as you’re always telling us, your skills are vital to Lord Zhang Yi’s current project. But you’ll drop everything to help your brother? How touching.”

  “I’ll prioritise it . . . appropriately,” Shan Yuan said, a glint in his eyes.

  Kai knew what that meant. He’d have to wait here until Shan Yuan “found time,” the very thing Kai didn’t have to spare. He tried again. “Elder brother, this matter may relate to the treaty. And those involved may be the ones who abducted me before—”

  Cuifen snorted. “Come on, Kai, let’s go visit the other students. Some people would be extremely interested to hear about your diplomatic work. Lord Zhang Yi might find time to talk too, over the next few days.”

  Shan Yuan rounded on Kai. “If you expect me to help you at all, I would suggest you don’t remind me of your incompetence. Follow me. We’ll look at the laptop in my quarters.”

  Kai suppressed a smile. His cousin’s comment had hit the mark. Clearly the last thing Shan Yuan wanted was Kai hanging about the compound, “showing off” his work on the treaty and making Shan Yuan feel less important. He really hadn’t realized Shan Yuan would feel so bitter about Kai’s new role and higher status amongst their kind. With a nod of farewell to Cuifen, he follo
wed his elder brother obediently.

  Once they were outside, he said, “The sooner I get that data, the sooner I can be gone.”

  Snow melted on either side as Shan Yuan stalked along the path, revealing dead grass and bare earth. “Oh?” he snarled.

  “I didn’t want to inconvenience you. I didn’t even want you to know I was here.”

  Shan Yuan’s eyes narrowed, and the circle of melting snow around them expanded. The stone path beneath Kai’s feet grew warm as Shan Yuan’s ire rose. “Are you telling me that you came here with the deliberate intention of avoiding me?”

  Kai wasn’t a great detective, but even he could deduce that yes was the wrong answer here. Though he couldn’t fathom why Shan Yuan would even care. He’d always treated Kai with dismissive contempt—and Kai had eventually duelled his brother over his refusal to acknowledge Kai’s mother. He’d broken Kai’s arm in that fight—which he’d won. He constantly criticized Kai’s manners, skills, and conversation. Why should he want Kai to visit?

  “I know how busy you are,” Kai offered hopefully. “I know you’re Lord Zhang Yi’s senior student—”

  “In Indigo’s absence,” Shan Yuan interrupted. “You don’t need to say that.” He paused. “Everyone else does.”

  That surprised Kai. He’d never realized that his elder brother could feel any sort of inferiority. “Well, it’s not as if I’d know what goes on here, is it? I didn’t get invited to study under Lord Zhang Yi.”

  “You could have been,” Shan Yuan snapped. “If you’d applied yourself. Instead you ran off to play around in high-chaos worlds and seduce Librarians. You are a disappointment.”

  Fury ran through Kai like fire. He looked Shan Yuan in the eye. “Our lord father is proud of what I have achieved.” Old grievance and current ire mingled in his heart and drove him to insult. “I hope you can say as much.”

  Shan Yuan’s blow knocked him to the ground.

  Kai clung to the laptop, shielding it from impact with his body, but his cheek stung where his brother had struck him. He staggered to his feet, feeling his power call to the roaring waterfall nearby. “Again, brother?” he snarled. “You’ll find I’m not as easily beaten as last time—”

  “Cease this folly!” The voice was thin but rang with authority. The brothers turned simultaneously, then bowed.

  Lord Zhang Yi—for who else could it be?—showed his age, as did all dragons from less powerful families. He was in human form, wrapped in the same heavy brocade robes as Shan Yuan—though his were pale grey and far more ornate. His tufted white eyebrows shadowed his eyes like an eagle owl’s, and his thinning hair was braided down his back.

  He looked at them and sighed. “Why must your father’s children always come to blows beneath my roof? You will both attend on me at once. We have important matters to discuss.”

  CHAPTER 10

  The bespectacled man—Mr. Kenneth, the main face of the business—looked reproachful as Irene locked the door behind her. “I thought you’d finished with us today, madam.”

  “Wait, what?” Catherine said, surprised. “You’ve already been here?”

  Irene glanced around the rather basic office, checking for new threats and thankfully finding none. It was comparatively bare, if you were expecting a library of exotic tomes. The rare books were safely locked away elsewhere in the building.

  “She has indeed,” Mr. Kenneth said. “One of our most valued customers, of course—always welcome, whatever the hour, whatever the circumstances . . .”

  Werewolves certainly counted as “circumstances.” “We’ll be leaving by the back way, if you don’t mind.”

  “What happens when those ruffians come back looking for you?” he asked.

  “Tell them we paid you to let us out.”

  “But you haven’t . . . Ah.” He swept up the coins that Irene was counting out on his desk. “Always glad to oblige. Anything else before you go?”

  “Yes. Get hold of that Ivanhoe we were discussing earlier, please. I’ll pay the usual commission on delivery.” As he nodded, Irene added casually, “Oh, one last thing—I didn’t ask you this before, but does the name the Professor mean anything to you?”

  Mr. Kenneth’s hand jerked, and a coin went spinning across the desk. When he looked up at Irene, she could see the fear in his eyes. “I’m sure I don’t know who you mean.”

  “That bad, huh?” Irene said quietly. She’d avoided asking him during her first visit, as she’d suspected mentioning that name would be burning her boats with him. But since she had no plans to come back soon . . .

  “You heard nothing from me. Now do me a favour and get out of here. You know where the back stairs are.”

  Irene nodded. “Come along, Catherine. I’ll explain when we’re out of here.”

  To Irene’s relief, there were no watchers—well, no obvious watchers—waiting at the back of the building. “We’ll walk towards Covent Garden,” she said quietly, “and catch a cab on the way.”

  “To stop any other werewolves following us by scent?” Catherine guessed.

  “Correct. Well done.” She caught Catherine’s hand as the Fae was about to signal an approaching cab. “And we won’t take the first one. Never take the first cab.”

  “But if everyone does that, won’t the second cab always be a trap?”

  “Unfortunately it’s quite possible that the first half-dozen will all be traps,” Irene said. “Sometimes devious plotters really irritate me.”

  Irene had an ear cocked for distant screams and howls at their escape, as she flagged down a ride, but all seemed peaceful behind them—or as peaceful as could be expected for London. She helped Catherine in and took a seat opposite her.

  “Where to, ma’am?” the driver asked.

  “London Zoo,” Irene said firmly. With the current traffic, that should take at least half an hour too—hopefully long enough to find out what was going on with Catherine. “First things first,” she said. “Are you all right?”

  “I think so,” Catherine answered. “I wasn’t hurt.” But she was clearly still on edge, glancing out of the window as though she expected to see werewolves running alongside them.

  “Good. Now . . .” Should Irene immediately grill Catherine for information, or instead try to gain her confidence by explaining what she’d been up to? She decided to take the second route. “I’d already spoken to Mr. Kenneth before you arrived. He didn’t want to admit it, but they had a break-in a week ago. And it wasn’t to steal books—but information.”

  “What sort of information?”

  “Their shop records. Whom they sold to, their suppliers . . . They took a few obviously valuable books as well, but the information was the real prize.”

  Catherine pursed her lips. “And if their customers found out someone had stolen their data, it would mean losing those customers.”

  “Exactly,” Irene agreed, glad she was so quick to understand. “The thieves tried to conceal that they’d been into the records, but Mr. Kenneth said that they disturbed some safeguards he and Mr. Ruthcomb had in place. And the records the thieves examined included the transaction Kenneth and Ruthcomb set up for us on Guernsey—including the date and time of the meeting with Madame Pipet.” The break-in had been several days ago, so their enemies could have arranged the ambush.

  “So how come he admitted all that to you?”

  “A carrot-and-stick approach,” Irene said. “The carrot was me paying him a lot of money. The stick was threatening to tell his other regular customers about the data breach.”

  “Would you have actually done that?”

  Irene sighed. “The bookhounds are even more unscrupulous than I am, in case you think that was unfair.” She wasn’t sure whether Catherine wanted to be reassured that Irene was a fundamentally decent person—or a fundamentally ruthless one. “Let’s say I’m glad I wasn’t forced to
put it to the test. Mr. Kenneth believed I would tell, which is the important thing.”

  Catherine nodded, her eyes wary. “So where are we going?”

  “Ultimately? To a place I rent.” Irene wasn’t going to give the address with the cab driver listening. “Now, what have you been up to?” She controlled her impulse to scold her apprentice for her disobedience. She wanted Catherine talking, not retreating into a sullen silence.

  “I’ve been busy,” Catherine said, doing her best to make herself sound proactive rather than like werewolf bait. “You read my note, didn’t you? After securing the Malory book, I went on to investigate why our last assignment was jeopardized.”

  “But I told you to stay where you were,” Irene said.

  “I decided it was just too risky.” Catherine looked rather smug at her logic. “And I bet the hospital’s now been blown up or attacked by assassins, hasn’t it?”

  “Well, no. Not the last time I checked.”

  “Oh.”

  “You don’t have to sound so depressed,” Irene said. “Besides, our assassins were busy somewhere else. They set fire to Sterrington’s office. While I was in it.”

  Catherine frowned. “That’s rather reckless. Attacking you is one thing, but attacking the Cardinal’s agent risks drawing him into this.”

  “Thanks,” Irene said drily. “But that’s a good point. Perhaps that’s why the attack was so sweeping in scope.”

  Outside, London went about its business, the streets churning with afternoon traffic and the pavements crammed with pedestrians. Inside the cab, the two of them were as privately closeted as in a confessional. If one ignored the driver—which they did.

  “What do you mean, ‘sweeping in scope’?” Catherine asked.

  “There were other people in that building who might have been targets—assuming that the fire was even recognized as an assassination attempt, rather than an accident. If Sterrington had died, and if Kai, Vale, and I were also mysteriously murdered, the Cardinal would have been left with no clear evidence as to who was responsible—even if all three treaty representatives dying accidentally might seem an unlikely coincidence.”