Chapter 59

The library was quiet and the same as she remembered it.

Poorly lit, white lights placed at a distance too far from each other, maybe because of the vampire's overly sensitive sight or maybe not; Zezi really didn't care. The large hall was filled with numerous high shelves with books in them, rightly ventilated, and with the Librarian missing from his or her seat.

Everything.

Just the same.

Except that this time around, she was visiting the library in the middle of the night.

There was something or someone that had been present the last time she had been here though.

Lady Delice.

It wasn't until that thought had crossed Zezi's mind that she considered the fact that she might run into her again, just as she had the first time she had visited the library.

Zezi hoped she wouldn't though, not because she didn't have believable lies to tell as her reason for being here, but because she just felt that she had seen enough of Lady Delice for tonight.

Too many encounters between them, and she might start seeing her in a different light, and that was something that Zezi really wanted to avoid.

An enemy was an enemy and no matter the camouflage personality they put forward, one shouldn't be tricked to see them differently.

Zezi wasn't about to lose a battle before it even started.

The fact that the Librarian's seat was empty wasn't an issue but, the possibility that the whole library was just as empty, was starting to bother her.

She took in a deep breath, listening in with her werewolf hearing.

Then she let out an exhale.

Yes, she was the only one here.

Different new thoughts were starting to run through her mind; maybe it was the slightly echoing silence that was getting to her or the cold temperature of the library, but these disturbing thoughts kept increasing.

What if this was a trap?

Why hadn't she thought about the possibility of this being that before? Was it stupid that she hadn't made enough findings about anything going on in the castle before coming here? Yes, she should have tried to find out if there were rumours of a possible revolution that was going on underground.

For a Zeta, this was a mistake she had fallen victim to because of her emotions.

Mixing emotions with logic?

Shame!

But it was too late to walk out of this now. Besides, she had nothing to lose, so she would see this till the end.

Then again, if this was just a ploy made by the King to see if she hated him, she wasn't shy or afraid to give him the answer.

Yes, she hated him and she wasn't scared of the consequences of that. In fact, with her actions lately, that was no secret.

Still, there was a high possibility that this was just a trick. A trap. A bait.

But her instincts told her otherwise, and Zezi always trusted that tingling thing in her brain; it had led her to more victories than failures.

Kept her alive even.

This was real.

Zezi moved slowly along the aisle in between the shelves that were on either side, her fingers tapping on the hardcovers, subconsciously searching for "The Dark Times" while observing her surroundings in a search for the mystery sender.

"Hmm," Zezi sighed, flipping through a book before putting it back on the shelf and picking another.

She looked around at the silent space.

The chairs were empty, and the tables were just as empty; she was sure those back seats even had cobwebs all over them.

Why were they neglecting their library so much?

Was Lady Delice the only vampire that read books in this Castle?

As much as Zezi wasn't a writer, she was a reader and this display of carelessness certainly wasn't how a place of books should be treated.

It unsettled her in a kind of way that she couldn't describe.

She also wondered if something had happened here for people to have deserted it in the first place, probably something that happened during the Dark Times. Before? After?

Ah, this Castle and the entirety of the Kingdom were filled with questions, but to want the answers to those questions was to be interested in the Castle and its people.

Zezi wasn't interested and she didn't care.

She put the book in her hands back on the shelf, her eyes skimming over to find another. Then she reached for it but another's hand was doing the same.

The warmth from the hands that brushed against hers was foreign, the sound of the heartbeat that filled her ears, strange.

Yet, there was no scent.

Zezi took a step back from the person, her hand tight on the book they had both reached out for but she had quickly grabbed.

"Maybe there will be another of that." His voice was a little hoarse, light with humor.

The man standing in front of her wore a pair of black pants, a fitted shirt, and a hood over his head that hid away most part of his face.

"Maybe." She said, her voice firm, her grip tight around the book, her eyes sharp with observation, her demeanour filled with ease.

"I better go searching then." He by-stepped her, then stopped, before turning back to meet her unwavering gaze.

"I'm looking for someone, by chance, have you seen her?"

"I'll decide when you tell me who you are looking for."

He pulled the hood away, the fact that he was backing the dim light made a shadow cast over his face but Zezi could see it clearly with her wolf sight. He was a slightly muscular man, with hooded eyes, high cheekbones, and lips as thin as a line, black short beards, and a mustache, but not a single hair on his head. His skin was as dark as hers, no--- a shade lighter. He looked young, like he was twenty or thereabout. He looked like he could be keeping things on him. She took in a sniff for silver or wolfsbane but she found none.

No scent.

"My ally." He said to her, his lips tugged up in a side smile. "Are you her?"

She had never seen this face before. He was not a vampire; his eyes didn't look so soulless, his aura felt vibrant with life, and his scent was non-existent.

Zezi became defensive.

She hated it to be at a loss of something.

"What are you?"

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((I don't have a good feeling about this.))