Despite the low-level headache lingering at the back of her skull, she couldn’t stop paging through, taking in the aged parchment covered with arcane symbols. The same symbols which had covered Tesse’s throat and shoulders. The longer she looked at them, the more they almost made sense.
She’d seen these symbols in the historical manuscript of the Great War in the campus library archives, but with no frame of reference at the time she’d assumed they were an illustration or decoration. Now she knew there was more to it.
Shamus and Lorelai moved towards the entryway to the rooftop garden, and a moment later Hanna emerged from the house. At first Shamus blocked her, but then Becka motioned her over and he let Hanna pass.
Hanna sauntered over, a seemingly genuine smile on her face. “How did your talk with Brent go?”
“Quite pleasant, although he’s all business.”
“As one would expect of a hired guard! Oh, what in the world is that?” she asked, pointing at the book in Becka’s lap.
“It’s part of the Shadow-Dweller investigation.”
“How wonderful!” Hanna laughed, amusement dancing in her eyes. “I heard the enforcers are investigating monsters from children’s stories now.”
Becka had to bite her tongue. She liked Hanna, and knew she wasn’t trying to be spiteful, but her words stung.
She took another deep breath, getting her emotions under control. “This book is very real.” Becka turned the open book towards Hanna so she could have a quick glance, and then placed it back on her lap. “It’s a piece of a puzzle I’ve been trying to figure out. My gift might help lead to insights about this ancient tome that’s not well understood.”
“Oh, I love puzzles! With all of those geometric designs, it looks like someone’s sketch pad. What’s the mystery?”
“Well, I’d love to be able to translate this, but I don’t think the glyphs are words after all. So I’m focusing on the magic instead.”
“Do you think you’re on the verge of a breakthrough?” Hanna took a seat across from her, which just happened to be where Vott had sat when they were poisoned. She arranged her diaphanous skirts around her like a work of art, her gaze focused on the book in Becka’s hands.
“I wish. I mean, maybe I am? It’s that sensation where you have a word on the tip of your tongue, but it just won’t surface.”
She nodded. “I know what you mean. Like there’s something floating out there just outside the range of your perception?”
“Uh huh.” Becka left the book open on her lap, insulated from her Null magic by mere layers of fabric and her now ever-present intention.
“How are you feeling?” Hanna asked. “You still look a bit tired.”
Hanna’s genuine concern was a welcome gesture, and Becka felt herself smiling.
“I’m almost back to normal. Fatigue is still dragging my energy down, but I mostly have my stamina back.”
“That’s good to hear. Have you checked in with Healer Illan today?” Hanna asked.
“I am going to, but he didn’t seem to have any concerns about my progress. Wait, did Maura tell you to ask that?”
Hanna scrunched her nose. “No, silly. That was just my general concern for your wellbeing. Are you sure working with that book is safe? It sounds like it might be just a smidge dangerous.”
At that moment, movement between and underneath Becka’s fingers caught her eye. Simultaneously, a low throbbing kicked in at the back of her skull.
“You like a bit of danger, do you?” Hanna asked her, nodding almost imperceptibly to herself.
Becka frowned, more interested in the book than Hanna’s line of questioning. Moving her gloved hands to the edges of the pages, the movement clarified. The arcane symbols on the pages faded ever so slightly as squiggly lines undulated underneath the blockish forms, like worms crawling around the page. She flipped a page and then back again.
Is the book reacting because of Hanna’s presence, the change in location, or some other factor?
Similar squiggly worms appeared on the other pages. Their movement slanted toward Hanna.
The forms reminded Becka of words.
“I suppose it might be a smidge dangerous,” Becka admitted. She picked up the book and showed Hanna the open page full of squiggles and now transparent glyphs. “But I’m more curious than afraid. What do you see?”
Hanna laughed. “It looks the same to me, Becka. It’s just a book. An old, faded book.”
Becka returned the book to her lap.
There must be some illusion that hides it from Hanna, but I’m immune to it? Just like before, with Quinn not being able to see the marks on Tesse. It must have some illusion or obfuscation spell that doesn’t work on me.
Becka felt the smile spread across her face. Finally, a breakthrough! She sat back in her seat and looked with renewed interest at Hanna, suspicion peaked. What was the book trying to tell her and why was it reacting this way towards Hanna?
She paused a moment; what if Hanna was a Shadow-Dweller? How would Becka know? And if so, would Hanna be able to see the squiggles too? But if that were true, Hanna would never reveal it, obviously!
Becka decided to err on the side of caution and not mention the squiggles to Hanna, just in case. Instead, Becka continued to study the page. All at once, the squiggles froze and she could make out a word, repeated along the lines, again and again.
TEA.
Did it mean the tea she’d had with Vott? The upcoming tea party this afternoon? It wasn’t lost on Becka that they were sitting on the couches where she and Vott had been poisoned.
“Hanna, what do you remember about the tea?”
Shock and confusion pinched Hanna’s delicate features. “What an odd question to ask. I suppose you’re asking about the lapsang souchong tea I brought to Vott?”
Wait, what?
“You brought Vott the tea?” Becka asked, pulling back from Hanna as she tried to calm her suddenly speeding pulse.
The squiggles on the book had lost the word TEA and returned to their sunburst alignment.
“I did. Alain had shared with me Vott’s love of rare teas, so I brought some of his favorite flavor from home as a gift.”
Excited, Becka felt a puzzle piece move into place in her mind, one she didn’t yet know the importance of but was certain it mattered.
“You did it to curry favor with Vott?” Becka asked.
Hanna frowned. “It’s customary to give gifts to allies. I didn’t feel a need to curry favor or get him to like me, since my mere presence here is a gift from House Hawthorne.”
Becka bit her tongue to keep herself from laughing. Surely, Hanna was referring to the gift of her services and not just her august presence. Right?
And she knew from Quinn that the tea itself wasn’t poisoned, so…
“Hanna,” Becka asked, “what happened when you gave Vott the tea? Where were you? And was anyone else there?”
The squiggles shook as if hit by lightning.
Is that good or bad?
“Well, let’s see. I presented Vott the tea in his study. Calder was in attendance but didn’t seem interested in my arrival nor the gift. His focus was entirely engaged with his paramour, Alvilda. In fact, he wasn’t receptive to me at all. But there was nothing particularly noteworthy about the conversation. Oh, there was a female shifter guard at the door; I don’t know her name. She wasn’t introduced.”