The Invisible Library (The Invisible Library #1)(10)

‘And you had . . . friends at boarding school, right?’ Kai put the question tentatively, as though she was going to bite his head off for asking it.

‘Of course.’

‘Still in contact with any of them?’

‘The time factor counts against it.’ Irene shrugged. ‘With the amount of time I had to spend in dedicated study in the Library, or in other worlds, it’s been hard . . . I did stay in contact with some of them for a while. I dropped off letters whenever I could, but ultimately it didn’t work. It was a school in Switzerland. A nice place. Very good on languages.’

They turned another corner. Ahead of them, the corridor narrowed dramatically, and began to slope upwards. The floor, walls and ceiling were all made of the same creaking boards, worn and aged. Panel windows in the left wall looked out over an empty street lit by flaring torches, where muddy wheeltracks marked the passage of traffic, but there was no sign of anyone there.

‘Straight ahead?’ Kai asked.

Irene nodded. The floor creaked under their feet as they began the climb.

‘This is like a bridge,’ Kai said.

‘Passageways between the Wings are always a little strange. I went through one once that you had to crawl through.’

‘How did they move books through that?’

‘They didn’t, usually. They routed them round some other way. But it was useful if you were in a hurry.’

He jerked a thumb at the window. ‘Have you ever seen anyone out there?’

‘No. Nor has anyone.’ The passageway levelled out, then began to slope downwards again. ‘Now if only we could find a Traverse that accessed onto that, wouldn’t it be interesting.’

‘Yeah. That was one of the big topics of conversation among the students.’ Kai sighed.

Irene had been looking around, and she saw what she wanted on the left. ‘Just a moment,’ she said, indicating a slot in the wall. ‘Let me drop this book off for Coppelia.’

Kai nodded, and slouched against the wall, leaving Irene to take an envelope from the stack by the wall slot and slide her book into it. He did lean over just a little bit as she scribbled Coppelia’s name on the envelope, just enough to see the title of the book, and his eyes narrowed in curiosity. ‘You could always take it to her in person,’ he suggested. ‘Say you wanted to make sure she got it, and ask her a bit more about the assignment while you were there.’

Irene dropped the envelope into the slot and raised an eyebrow at him. ‘Yes, and I could also get myself called an ignorant buffoon who didn’t know how to read orders, let alone follow them. Someone who clearly didn’t deserve any sort of mission, if I was just going to come running back to her for more details when she’d given me everything I needed.’

‘Oh.’ Kai sighed. ‘Oh well.’

‘Did you think I hadn’t heard that speech from her?’

‘I know I have. I was kind of hoping you hadn’t.’

‘Yes.’ Irene gave him a brief smile before starting to walk again. ‘Good try, though. So, 395.’ The corridor turned and they walked into a room containing two terminals on a glossy ceramic table. One was being used by a young man, who didn’t bother looking up, keeping his focus on the monitor’s screen. His brown suit was scruffy and battered at the elbows and knees, and lace cuffs framed his bony wrists. It was probably appropriate for whatever alternate he’d just come from, or was about to go to. And it was still better than Irene’s current battered grey dress.

‘See,’ Irene said, and took a seat at the other terminal. ‘Give me a moment and I’ll find the best route to get to the Traverse point for this mission.’ And pick up anything else I can about that world, she added to herself. She’d been too flustered by Kai’s arrival to do the sort of research she’d normally put in on a mission. Also, even if they were briefed by the alternate’s Librarian-in-Residence, it’d be useful to have some idea of where they were going.

Kai looked around pointedly at the lack of other chairs, then sank down to sit cross-legged with his back to the wall, with an air of saintly patience.

Irene quickly logged in and pulled up the map. The Traverse to B-395 was within half an hour’s walk. Better than she’d hoped. No wonder Coppelia had sent Kai to her, rather than have Irene come to meet her. She reached for the usual pen and notepad, and jotted down directions, before looking for more information on the alternate itself.

Her reaction must have shown on her face, because Kai straightened and frowned at her. ‘What is it—’

Irene hastily pointed at the other young man, and mouthed Shhh, putting her finger to her lips in as obvious a manner as she could.

Kai glared at her, then relaxed again, looking away.

She scribbled down the few facts hastily, then folded the paper and logged off the computer. With a vague nod to the young man, she got to her feet and strode for the door. ‘Come on, Kai,’ she said briskly.

Kai rose elegantly to his feet and strolled after her, his hands in his pockets.

Some way down the corridor on the far side, once out of earshot, she said, ‘I apologize for that.’

‘Oh, don’t worry,’ Kai replied. He twitched a shoulder in casual dismissal, seemingly fascinated by the beech-panelling and decorated plaster ceiling. His voice was arctic in tone. ‘You’re quite right, I shouldn’t have made a noise and disturbed other students at work. I apologize for offending against the Library rules—’