Vellum and Green Vitriol
Copyright © 2007, S. Y. Affolee
The Third Conjuration
Seal XXXVIII
Well, that had been a waste.
We had spent the entire afternoon combing through books for information--with frequent interruptions from the librarian--but had found nothing. Tomorrow would be more research in the library, which I was not looking forward to.
It was after dinner and I had retired back to my room at the Northern Sea Hotel. I wasn't feeling at all sleepy, so I went to the room's balcony that overlooked one of the canals. It was cold--late autumn with the approach of winter--so I closed the balcony doors to keep the heat in and bundled myself up in a coat.
The sky was clear, the gibbous moon shining among the dark clouds like a strange coin. The street across the canal was mostly quiet except for the occasional early reveler rambling about in mask and lantern. There was no street below the balcony, just the watery canal.
When I strained my ears, I could hear the sound of fiddles and pipes several canals over. The musicians were doing a lively jig and despite my usual temperament about such things, I felt an urge to dance.
I gripped the balcony railing, telling myself that it was just foolishness. I needed to focus on the real reason that I was here in Haven--searching for the seventh edition of the Liber Tutelarum. I would have to compile a list of the local antiquarian booksellers first. And then go visit each of them one by one.
The pounding of the door from within interrupted my mental planning. I opened the balcony doors and walked across the room to peer through the peephole to see who was paying me a call. When I saw who it was, I made a surprised exclamation and quickly opened the door.
"Rhys, you look awful! Did you lose your mind and decide to take a dip in the canal?"
He scowled as he shouldered his way in, carrying his suitcase. His clothes were damp and his hair was wet, plastered to his head. His eyes burned green in irritation.
"I just wanted to wash my hands when a pipe above my head decided to break," he told me. "My room is flooded. I contacted the hotel management about it, but they can't get anyone to fix the mess in such a short notice."
I looked at his suitcase. "And you're moving in with me because..."
"The rest of the hotel is booked full. It's Carnival, remember? The whole place is filled with tourists."
I glanced around my room. "It's going to be somewhat cramped in here."
"Oh come on, Ana. Don't tell me you haven't been in smaller places. Just remember your experiences being shelved in overcrowded collections. With just me here, this place is a palace."
"Well, you don't have to sound so surly about it!" I shouted back at him as he stormed into my bathroom to dry off.
I locked the room door and closed the balcony doors. It was true, the room was rather spacious compared to some other places. There was enough room for a wardrobe and a desk. Next to the balcony doors was a rather large sofa, but the bed was larger. Rhys would take the bed, I thought. He was taller than me. It was inevitable that he would make some needling remarks about sharing body heat. I needed to think about a comeback to put him in his place.
The room was warm and I took off my coat to drape it over the chair at the desk. The balcony doors rattled and I assumed that a strong wind had blown up. I finally decided to rummage in my own luggage for my sleepwear. Now that Rhys had disrupted my time alone, there was nothing to do but to go to sleep.
The bathroom door opened, revealing Rhys in a towel.
I found myself gaping at him. "Have you noticed that you haven't finished dressing?"
He gave me a cocky grin. "I'm not that oblivious. Besides, I forgot my pajamas. That water pipe explosion rattled me more than I thought."
"No it didn't. You're deliberately prancing about in my room..."
"I never prance. Strut maybe."
"...strutting about in my room in a desperate chance to get lucky."
"Well, is it working?"
I eyed his naked chest and felt heat rise to my cheeks. "Maybe."
"That's music to my..."
The balcony doors rattled again and burst open revealing a large figure in tight black pants, a white and red striped shirt, and a gondolier's hat. Determined eyes sparkled behind a white mask decorated with small red feathers. Something glittered in his hand. A knife.
"I'm only here for the girl," the intruder gurgled with a fat grin. "Come ‘ere miss, and no one gets hurt."
"I don't think so," I replied. I lunged towards my suitcase.
"Ana!"
Something grabbed at the back of my blouse. In another second, I was yanked backward. The knife was a cold sting at my throat. I froze in the middle of my struggle.
"The boss says to kill you off since he wants to have a one on one with him there. But I think I'll have a bit of fun with you first."
Rhys inched forward, towards the suitcases. Don't move, Ana. I'll have him under control.
"Stop right there," the man barked. He moved the knife threateningly against my skin.
Rhys halted.
I was pulled back, out towards the balcony. The cold air pricked at my exposed skin. I noticed a rope and a hook that connected it to the balcony railing.
Just one more moment, Ana.
I didn't want to wait for one more moment. I wanted out of this ridiculous situation as soon as possible. Of course, the pounding terror in my veins and the knife at my throat didn't help matters much.
Forcibly, I willed my left hand to loosen its grip on my captor's arm. I didn't have much time. The man was going to cart me off to who knows where to do his evil deeds. I reached down.
Just when I was about to paralyze him where it would hurt the ego the most, something--my clothes iron?--flew over my head and slammed into the man's face with a sickening crunch. The knife clattered onto the floor and the man howled as he reflexively released me. Bits of white plastic and red feathers rained down next to the knife. Whatever had planted a facer on the intruder fell into the canal with a small splash.
In the next moment, Rhys was there, strong arming the man as he clawed at his own face. With a strained grunt, Rhys hoisted the intruder in a gondolier costume over the railing.
The man made an even larger splash in the canal.
I smoothed down my skirt and then noticed Rhys glaring into the canal. "Bastard!" he growled under his breath. Despite the adrenaline running through me, there was also something else about Rhys that struck me. It made my mouth run dry and my palms damp despite the weather. But I wasn't precisely complaining.
I swallowed. "Uh Rhys, what happened to your towel?"
He finally glanced down at himself. "Bloody hell."
|