The Buried Symbol (The Ruins of Issalia Book 1) (30 page)

He felt her body tight against his chest. The blood in his veins surged as his heart pounded harder. After a bit, she released her arms and sat back on the bed.

“
I was afraid you
’
d say no.
”
She wiped tears from her cheeks with her sleeve.

“
How could I say no? You asked for my help. I guess I
’
m a sucker for a damsel in distress,
”
he said with a smile.

Amber laughed. Her laugh warmed his heart.

She gave him one last smile before standing and stepping toward the door. Brock stood to open it for her. She stopped him, gripping the front of his shirt as she stepped close. Her breath tickled his neck as she whispered.

“
Stop by my room at sunset the day after tomorrow. It
’
s room 1034. That will give me time to get my thoughts on paper. When we meet, we can go over my statement to make sure I worded it correctly. I want to make sure I get it just right.
”

She closed the last bit of distance between them, putting her lips on his. He responded, his lips intertwining with the softness of hers. With eyes closed, his head swam with the pleasure of the moment. She pulled away and his eyes opened to see her staring at him.

“
Sunset, the day after tomorrow then,
”
she said, slipping out the door.

The door closed, leaving Brock alone with the sound of his heart pounding in his ears. What had he gotten himself into?

CHAPTER 48

During dinner, Brock had little attention to spare. While others traded stories of their day, his mind floated back to thoughts of Amber. She seemed to consume his attention on a frequent basis the past two days, wavering between concern about her situation and the memory of their kiss.

After contributing little to the dinner conversation, Brock grabbed his empty plate and made his way to the kitchen. He slowed when his eyes landed on Corbin Ringholdt, sitting among the group of boys from Sol Polis. Brock found it irritating that they followed Corbin around like servants, fawning over him. Benny
’
s roommate, Parker, was among them.

After a moment, Corbin
’
s gaze met Brock
’
s. Corbin stopped talking, glaring in response. He then smiled and made a cutting motion across his neck. A message. Brock already didn
’
t like Corbin for what he had done to Amber. The feeling of dislike was becoming stronger.

“
Brock, are you going to the library tonight?
”

He turned to see Benny beside him. His quirky friend gave him a smile as he pushed his spectacles back in place. With the tense moment between he and Corbin disrupted, Brock resumed his trek to the kitchen with Benny in tow.

“
I guess I should. Mae wants us to have history topics to discuss soon,
”
Brock replied. Then he thought about Amber. He was to meet her at sunset, giving him less than two hours.
“
But I can only go until sundown.
”

Benny nodded.
“
I
’
ll go with you then. I need to find some history topics too.
”
He raised one eyebrow.
“
Why only until sundown though? Do you have a date or something?
”

He turned sharply toward Benny, blushing as he thought of Amber.

“
You do!
”
Benny
’
s head bounced side to side, sporting a grin.
“
You sure work fast, Brock.
”

Brock shrugged.
“
Well, it
’
s not really a date. I
’
m just meeting a girl about
…
a project.
”

“
Sounds like a date to me,
”
Benny replied.

They left the dining hall and followed the corridor to the knowledge center. Brock gripped the cool metal door handle and pulled hard. The heavy wooden door swung open, and they stepped inside.

Brock prided himself on his ability to read. However, most of his reading experience involved the small collection of books his mother had gathered before she died. He had read and re-read those fifteen books numerous times. Now standing inside the Academy library, he was in total awe at the sight of seemingly endless shelves of books. Prior to this moment, he would have doubted this many books existed in the whole world. To see them in a single building was astounding. He doubted he could read them all in a single lifetime.

Brock and Benny walked down a wide aisle, toward the heart of the building. After passing a dozen rows of bookshelves, the middle of the room opened to reveal desks arranged in a circle around a spiral staircase. Brock
’
s eyes drifted up the staircase, where he noticed a catwalk leading to terrace levels at the second and third floor. The ceiling above the third floor held glass panels, light streaming through to illuminate the open center of the room. As his eyes drifted back down, he noticed another set of stairs located along the far wall, heading to the upper levels.

“
Can I help you?
”

Brock
’
s gaze returned to the circle of desks, most occupied by students who were busy writing. A rail-thin girl with short brown hair was looking at him with one eyebrow raised in question.

“
Um. Yes.
”
Brock approached the girl while turning on a smile.
“
Can you please direct me to a section covering details of the Banished Horde?
”

“
That would be late pre-empire era.
”
The girl squinted as she considered the question.
“
We don
’
t have many books from that period, but you can try looking in shelving rows 2236 through 2242. You
’
ll find them on the second floor, southeast corner.
”

Brock had stopped listening, distracted.

“
Excuse me, miss. Can you tell me what
’
s down there?
”
he asked, pointing at a trap door beneath the spiral stairwell. The girl glanced at the door before turning back to him.

“
That
’
s the archives. It
’
s where we store books too old and brittle to handle. That way, the originals stay safe and secure.
”
She pointed toward the nearby desks.
“
These students are working as scribes, copying books that will soon be in the same condition. It allows access to the information without risking damage to the original works, some that are hundreds of years old.
”

“
Um. Okay,
”
Brock said.
“
Thank you for your assistance.
”
He turned to follow Benny toward the stairwell located near the south wall.

The girl called out,
“
I think you
’
ll want one of these.
”

Brock turned to find a glowlamp swinging beneath the handle in her hand.

“
Yes. Can we get a second lamp as well?
”
Brock asked as he returned to fetch the lamp. The girl nodded and handed him two lamps.

“
Thanks again,
”
he said as he retreated.

They crossed the room to the stairs. When reaching the second floor, they walked toward the east side. After a little searching, they found the shelves matching the numbers suggested. Brock stepped into an aisle, holding his glowlamp up for light. Thousands of books filled this single aisle.

“
This is going to take a while,
”
Brock muttered.

“
Yeah. You take that side, and I
’
ll take this side,
”
Benny replied.
“
There has to be something about the Horde in here.
”

CHAPTER 49

Judging by the darkening room, it was nearly sunset. After more than an hour of searching, they had scanned the shelves of two of the six suggested aisles. In that time, they had collected twelve books that showed potential.

Brock and Benny each grabbed a pile of books and descended the stairs, heading back to the desk to return the lamps.

“
I see that you found a few books to check out,
”
said the girl at the desk.

“
Yes,
”
Brock replied.
“
Here are the lamps as well.
”

“
Hold a minute while I record the books you
’
re taking.
”
She read the binding of each book, noting it in a ledger.
“
I need your name and room number as well.
”

“
Sure. Brock Talenz. Room 1099,
”
he replied.

The girl recorded his name and pushed the two stacks of books toward them. Since Brock had other plans, he piled the books into Benny
’
s arms to be hauled back to their rooms. The thin boy grunted under the weight of the volumes stacked to his chin. Brock held the door as Benny stepped out and scurried down the hall, weaving under the heavy load. He headed the other direction, toward Amber
’
s room.

As he strolled down the hall, Brock thought about the pretty girl. The memory of her embrace quickened his heart again. She also seemed quite taken with him since his heroic entrance into her life. In other circumstances, she might not have given him a second look. However, he wasn
’
t going to worry about it now. He had enough to worry about in supporting her quest to have Corbin convicted of attempted rape.

When he entered the narrow hall leading to her room, he saw a crowd of people ahead. A purple cloak was among the blue of novice cloaks. As he neared the crowd, he heard frantic, anxious voices.

“
Calm down and go back to your rooms.
”
The female master told the students.

In groups of twos and threes, girls began to peel away. They were holding each other, clearly distraught. As Brock passed the girls, he noted their blotchy, tear-streaked faces.

A female master blocked the hall before him.
“
What are you doing here?
”

“
I
’
m meeting someone about a project,
”
he replied.
“
Her room is just ahead.
”

“
Which room? What
’
s her name?
”
the woman asked.

“
Her name is Amber. Room 1034.
”

The woman
’
s stern features softened. She glanced backward. Brock craned his neck to see what she was looking at. Next to the open door was number 1034. Master Varius stepped from the room, her eyes downcast. She looked up, shaking her head with sadness in her eyes.

Fear struck Brock so hard, he stumbled backward a step. He then darted forward, passing both women as he ran into Amber
’
s room. The scene was one he would never forget.

The room was a mirror image of his own room, but with a single chair in place of the second bed. On the floor, an open jar lay on its side with pale yellow powder spilling out. Amber lay still on her bed, too still.

He ran to her side, falling to his knees as he grabbed her hand. It was cold and limp. Her skin was pale and felt clammy, her lips blue. Tears began to track down his cheeks. He looked at Varius, who stood in the doorway.

“
You need to help her. Please do something!
”
he pleaded.

She shook her head.
“
I cannot. She
’
s too far gone. It
’
s not possible to heal the dead. I
’
m so sorry, Brock.
”

His vision blurred as tears collected. He held the girl
’
s cold hand to his cheek as he struggled with the loss of a new friend. A deeper feeling of despair began to creep in. A feeling that any woman who got close to him was destined to die.

“
How could this happen?
”
Brock asked, sobbing.