Page 3 of Dragon Unleashed
I do my best to focus, though. Getting caught daydreaming is worse than actually listening to him drone on. With that in mind, I look away from his nameplate where I’ve been staring blankly at his name, Hoc Novensile, Head Librarian, and instead refocus on where he sits across the desk.
Like his lectures, Hoc’s dark brown beard is timeless, as is the ire in his strong yet weathered gaze. His professor’s robe is patched in dozens of places from refusing to replace it with a new one over the years. Even his office looks the same as it has my whole life, with stacks of books littering every bare surface including the floor.
The fact that a troll serves as head librarian to the most revered and dangerous library in the supernatural world still surprises most folks. Not me. Hoc is too perfect for this job. No, heisthe job.
Overhead, a high ceiling accommodates Hoc’s massive frame and considerable stature. Unfortunately, it also allows for his voice to boom even louder from the rafters as he goes on at me about mis-shelving dangerous books.
Separately, most of them cannot open on their own.Note, most of them.But, when two volatile tomes are placed together, the magic mixes, and the most recent spell placed over the newly shelved one gets canceled out. Which means, most of the time, it’s the seal spell that goes.
“You know better, Paige. That’s what I can’t understand about all this.”
When he pauses, I realize he’s waiting for me to say something. “It was an accident,” I rush to say. “I must have been lost in the book I was listening to.”
The moment the words are out, I know they’re the wrong ones. His forehead crinkles, and his mouth tightens as he steps up to his desk and braces his hands, leaning over it to where I sit.
“Getting distracted in the library is dangerous enough. But when you’re this close to being taken away from here?” He shakes his head sadly.
I wince.
“One more strike,” he says before I can answer. “One more offense and the council will insist you be dismissed from the position of intern. I don’t have to tell you what that would mean.”
“No,” I agree quietly.
I know exactly what that would mean. In fact, the mere thought of it makes me shudder. He’s right. This isn’t just a job. And I’m not just an intern either.
Not to mention the council has never liked me. Then again, they don’t like anyone. Even with Hoc, they seem to be merely tolerating him.
“But... Hoc, you’re the head librarian. Surely you can speak for me. Make them understand. In fact, maybe there’s a different role I can move into. Something more suitable for me—”
“The council won’t allow me to offer special treatment. You know that. The rules and expectations of the Athenaeum are absolute. Beyond sacred. The council’s only duty is to make sure no one is above the laws of this place, and they don’t waver. This isn’t a favor I can ask or a string I can pull. Not even for my own daughter.”
“Maybe I’m just not cut out for the Athenaeum,” I say.
He looks horrified, and I can’t blame him. “Paige, even if that were true, you know what happens to interns who are dismissed. Your memory will be wiped. You’ll be banished.” He swallows as if the words are hard to say. “I’ll never see you again.”
Guilt weighs me down at the anguish in his eyes. Hoc is the only family I have in the world, and I can’t let him down, nor am I willing to give him up—even if it means being stuck in a job I don’t love. “I’m sorry, Hoc. You’re right. I’ll do better.”
“One more month,” he says, his voice strained. “That’s all you have left before your internship is complete and you officially become a keeper. Can you just stay focused and keep your head down for another month? For me?”
I take a breath that’s meant to steady me and instead find my throat closing around it. “Yes,” I manage to tell him.
He relaxes, though not by much. “Good. Shadow Blossom for the rest of the day. She’ll keep you out of trouble.”
I nod, rising to my feet, ready to get the hell out of this room. But Hoc stops me, rounding the desk to block my path.
He gazes down at me with eyes that are far gentler than one might expect upon first glancing at the giant. “You know I love you, daughter.”
I smile. “I know. I love you, too.”
He holds out his arms, and I step into them, hugging him until I can feel us both let go of the tension and worry.
“I have faith in you,” he says when he pulls away.
“Thank you, Hoc.” I leave before he can glimpse the truth in my eyes--that I’m not sure I have faith in myself.
Chapter2
Aries
