Page 57 of Sinistram
One of the Keepers from the library? No way,Travis thought, but as soon as the words crossed his mind, he knew it was true, however unlikely.
“I’ll be right there,” Travis told Jon, who nodded and withdrew.
Brent put a hand on Travis’s arm as he moved to rise. “It could be a trap.”
“Don’t worry. I’m not going to invite him in or go past the wards. But if my hunch is right, this might be the missing piece we need.”
At this point in the evening, the community rooms were dark and empty. Curfew was near, and most residents welcomed the quiet.
Jon waited for him by the door, armed with a silver crucifix, a wooden stake, and a high-powered rifle. Brent stood next to him, equally well-armed, where he could step in if needed.
“Glad you’re prepared,” Travis said, and Jon gave him a nod.
“Gotta be ready for everything,” Jon replied.
Travis opened the door and walked out onto the top step. The man on the other side of the sidewalk wore a brown, hooded robe with a knotted rope belt. Travis recognized the outfit immediately from the Sinistram library, and when the man raised his head, he knew he had seen the Keeper before, on his most recent visit.
“Father Dominick,” the Keeper greeted him. “Dire times are upon us. Choices have been made that many oppose. The elders have been replaced with immortals, vampires, ancient witches, shifters, and others. I have brought you something that may help. You will need it to stop the End of Days.”
From beneath the voluminous sleeves of his robe, the man produced a leather-bound book that looked exactly like the one from Travis’s dreams.
“From the missing section you inquired about,” the Keeper replied with the barest hint of bitter humor in his voice.
“Thank you, but I have to ask, why now? And if others oppose the…regime change…why haven’t you gone against the elders?” Travis remained alert for treachery, but neither the protective ghosts nor his own intuition suggested the situation was other than what it seemed.
“Their protections are too strong,” the Keeper replied. “And our vows carry a compulsion. I bring you this at the risk of my life for breaking my vows. I’m trusting you to do what we cannot.”
At that, the Keeper placed the book on the ground, turned away, and vanished into the darkness.
Travis waited for a moment, alert for trickery, but when the ghosts assured him that no one was lurking to attack, he hurried down the steps to take the book. He felt a frisson of magic as soon as he touched the tome, and quickly returned to the sanctuary behind the protective wards.
Jon had stepped outside to cover him and had brought out a steel-sided, warded case that they used for hazardous relics. Travis put the book inside and felt the buzz of power end.
They moved back inside to where Brent waited in the lobby, gun in hand.
“Who was that?” Jon looked up and down the street to make sure they weren’t about to be besieged.
“A Keeper, one of the librarians at the Sinistram library,” Travis told him. “They’re pretty creepy, and they’ve usually made it clear that while they will assist me, they disapprove that I left the Order. That guy helped me the last time I was there, when I noticed all the vampire books were missing.”
“What did he bring you?” Brent eyed the box warily.
“I haven’t had a chance to look, but I felt the magic when I picked it up,” Travis said.
“Do we need to contain it?” Jon looked askance at the case as if the book inside might attack.
“He said it put him at great risk to break his vows and bring me the book,” Travis said. “But even if it’s not a trap, magic is dangerous. Let me get a space prepared so I can study it in a ‘bubble.’”
Jon waited with the case while Travis and Brent went back upstairs and cleared everything from the kitchen table. Travis said protective spells while Brent set down a salt circle and marked sigils to banish evil. Jon brought the box to the door and watched from a safe distance.
“Everything okay?” Jon asked.
Travis nodded. “Yeah. I think the real danger is what’sinthe book, not the book itself. There’s something that the new bosses at the Sinistram didn’t want anyone to know, and I can’t wait to find out what it is.”
He checked his watch. They still had two hours until they were due to talk with Cassidy and Sorren. “With luck, I might stumble on something useful by the time we do our call.”
“Let me know if you need anything,” Jon said. “I’ll close up for the night.”
Brent checked the coffee pot and made fresh. “How can I help?”
