Page 58 of The Secret Librarian
Avery frowned at her reflection in the mirror. It wasn’t that she didn’t think she looked nice, because she had put a huge effort into her appearance, but she wasn’t convinced about going out at all. Ever since finding out about James a few days ago, she’d found it hard to be interested in doing anything other than work, and she’d rather curl up on her bed and eat dinner with a book balanced between her knees than go out.
‘Thanks. I just, I don’t know, I wish I hadn’t said yes. It doesn’t feel right.’
‘Avery, look at me,’ Camille said. ‘You’re going to have a wonderful night out with a gorgeous man. Just enjoy it. You deserve it.’
Avery nodded.
‘I know you’re still feeling distraught about it all,’ Camille said. ‘But you need to give William a chance. He’s shown himself to be kind, and he’s rather gorgeous to look at. James fooled you, don’t you forget that, so you shouldn’t waste any time thinking about him.’
Avery knew Camille was right, but she still found it almost impossible to believe that the man who’d kissed her beneath the street light, the man who had made her laugh whenever she was with him, was capable of such duplicity. Because of that, she wasn’t convinced she was the best judge of character, or that she should be going out with any man.
‘You saw Kiefer this morning, before he left?’
‘I did. It was strange saying goodbye to him, I had this overwhelming sense of relief when he walked away from me. Like that part of my life, pretending to be someone I wasn’t, was finally over.’
‘That you no longer had to keep up the charade?’
Camille nodded. ‘I suppose that’s what it was. But also that all of this, the search that’s driven me almost crazy, is almost over. That it will soon come to an end.’ Her eyes met Avery’s in the mirror.
‘What does that mean?’ Avery asked. She hadn’t actually imagined what Camille might do to James if he ever came back to Lisbon. She hated what he’d done, her stomach turned whenever she thought of how easily she’d fallen for the man, yet her heart still hurt when she thought about him. ‘You’ve never actually talked to me about what you’ll do next.’
‘Nothing. Just, nothing. Please don’t worry about it,’ Camille said. ‘Now come on, otherwise you’ll be late.’
Avery hesitated, staring at Camille, wondering what she could possibly mean by that, but a quick glance at her watch told her that she would indeed be late if they didn’t hurry. She’d wanted to ask her how careful they would have to be going forward, now that Kiefer wasn’t there to offer at least some degree of protection, but that could be a conversation for another day.
She’d agreed to meet William outside the hotel and Avery was going to chaperone her there. What James had said in jest that first night, about not letting a spy know where she lived, had stopped her from giving William her address. Camille might believe thatWilliam was trustworthy, but Avery had decided to be much more careful moving forward.
Tom was sitting in the living room, his feet up on the coffee table, and she gave him a cursory glance as she passed. She reluctantly stopped when he cleared his throat, clearly trying to get her attention.
‘Avery, you have a letter from Washington,’ he said. ‘I left it on the table for you.’
She raised a brow. ‘You didn’t open it for me?’
He let out an audible breath. ‘No, Avery, I didn’t open it for you. OfcourseI didn’t open it.’
She turned to Camille. ‘Can I meet you downstairs?’
Camille didn’t need to be asked twice, and Avery saw how Tom kept glancing at her friend.
‘She’s the bookshop owner?’
‘She is indeed. Her name is Camille.’
‘She’s the one I’ve seen with a Nazi.’
Avery laughed and resisted the urge to roll her eyes. ‘So have I, Tom. Anyone who doesn’t live under a rock would have seen her with a Nazi at the hotel. We all do what we have to do, no?’
He looked uncomfortable and she almost felt sorry for him, but she still hadn’t forgiven him for the threats he’d made, and she didn’t want to let him off the hook too easily. She used a knife to slice the envelope open, taking out the letter, which appeared brief.
Avery, excellent work. I don’t know how you’re sourcing these maps and other documents, so I won’t ask questions. Washington wants to commend you, so from now on please preserve your film and focus only on your most recent work. I’m certain you’ll know what I’m referring to. You were certainly the right person for the job.
Stay safe. Kilgour.
She looked up, seeing that Tom was watching her intently.
‘Everything alright?’ he asked.
‘Everything is just peachy,’ she said.With no thanks to you.
