Page 14 of The Alien in the Archive (Galactic Librarians #1)

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B y the time Riley drags me out for socializing again in Mythara, I’m desperate for a break—not that I’d ever tell him that.

I lied and said that I went to the doctor for my migraines, which has put him at ease. My lessons with Thorne have helped—I can control my mind reading much better now—but headaches were never the problem. Still, Riley is satisfied that I’m on the mend, and I’d like it to stay that way.

The city square is alive tonight, buzzing with light and sound. Floating lanterns drift lazily above the cobbled streets, casting warm, shifting patterns on the ground. In the center of the square, a fountain glows gold, making it look like the water is alive.

“There she is!” Riley calls when he sees me. He’s sitting at a round stone table near the fountain, surrounded by his usual entourage—Lyn, Orin, and Thalara. They’ve all got a drink in front of them, and Riley even seems to have ordered something for me. The sight of them makes me hesitate for a split second, not really up for a whole lot of social interaction, but Riley waves me over. “My favorite sister, in the flesh.”

I sigh, plastering on a smile as I join them. Lyn scoots over to make room for me, smiling. I really do like her, admire her scholarship and her drive to know things. Orin leans back in his seat, long legs stretched out lazily in front of him, while Thalara sits primly with her hands folded in her lap, skin reflecting the lights from the water.

“It’s been a while,” Lyn comments. “Heard you’re deep in some pretty interesting research.”

I glance over at Riley. “There’s no way you framed it that politely.”

“Well, his exact language was ‘she’s probably in the Obscuary, buried under a mountain of books, muttering about lost civilizations’,” Lyn says.

“Sounds about right,” I say dryly. “Don’t let him fool you. He’s just mad I don’t have time to babysit him anymore.”

“Babysit me?” Riley sputters. “I’m the reason you even survived college. Remember the coffee runs? The midnight pep talks? The unshakable belief in your questionable decisions?”

“Right, because ‘unshakable belief’ is what you call, ‘Maybe you should drop out and open a bakery’.”

Lyn laughs. “Hey, it’s a solid backup plan. But I get it. You’re tenacious. In fact, I think Riley could learn something from you if he wants to get out of hot water with Professor Rhyss?—”

“I get it, you like my sister better than me,” Riley scoffs, feigning offense. “It’s fine, it’s fine…”

“Don’t be dramatic,” Thalara chimes in with a small smile. “We like you just fine, Riley. Most of the time.”

“Most of the time?” Riley gasps, clutching his chest. “That’s a betrayal. Lyn, back me up!”

“Oh, I’m neutral. No alliances here.” Lyn grins wickedly. “ Though…you do get on my nerves more often than Page does. Just saying.”

I take a sip of my drink and listen as they fall into comfortable banter, going back and forth as if I never even showed up. I like it this way—just listening and watching, distracted from…

…from Thorne.

Fuck.

Even now, I can’t get him out of my mind, lodged there like a splinter. Thorne's voice lingers in my head, his sharp words from earlier echoing alongside his frustrating charm. God…why can't I shake him? I should be participating, engaged, enjoying this rare moment of normalcy, but Thorne is ever-present.

I don’t want him. I’m not even sure if I like him.

Right?

“Wait—you and Page have the same birthday?” Lyn is talking to Riley, catching my attention with my name. “I have to be honest, I wouldn’t have pegged you for twins.”

“That’s because we’re not,” Riley says. “We uh…”

He trails off, looking away from his friends.

I cut in for him, because I always do. “We were both orphaned by the Pemberton Refinery Accident. Grew up together in Boston, and just decided to celebrate our birthday at the same time because the nuns said we were joined at the hip.”

“Yeah,” Riley says, giving me a quick, grateful look before he takes a long swig of his drink. “And you know what they say, trauma bonds are forever.”

“Jesus,” Orin breathes.

Riley shrugs. “What? It’s true. Besides, we turned out alright, didn’t we?”

“Speak for yourself,” I tease. “I’m still a work in progress. ”

“Aren’t we all?” Thalara raises her glass. “To being works in progress.”

We clink glasses, and for a moment, I feel the weight lift off my shoulders. But now that the moment’s over, I’m back in my own head. Orin seems to notice, because he catches my eye.

“So how do two orphans from Boston end up on M’mir?” he asks. “Like…there’s gotta be some great lore there.”

I laugh and shake my head. “Nah, just a hell of a lot of hard work and stubbornness from both of us.”

“Page always talked about getting here, at first I tagged along…then it turned out I fucking loved robots,” Riley says with a half-smile. “So, we studied our asses off; she went to Harvard, I went to Berkeley…and we met back here. Right, sis?”

I nod. “Damn straight.”

Lyn nudges Riley’s shoulder. “Speaking of hard work, Riley…how’s your project for Professor Rhyss going?”

Riley groans. “God, don’t remind me. That guy’s a nightmare. He’s got me working on Nyeri’i neural interfaces, and nothing I do is good enough. It’s always, ‘Riley, you’re not thinking in enough dimensions,’ or ‘Riley, why haven’t you mastered Nyeri’i cyberdynamics yet?’ And I get it, I should know that stuff…but damn it, not even the hardasses at Berkeley prepared me for this.”

“That’s because your sob story doesn’t work on aliens,” I say, smirking.

“Hey, it’s not just my sob story; it’s our sob story.”

Thalara tilts her head, chewing on her lip. “You’re not giving yourself enough credit,” she says. “You’re learning something completely new, in a language most humans can barely grasp. It’s impressive, even if Dr. Rhyss can’t see it.”

“Thanks, Thalara.” Riley gives her a crooked smile. “At least someone believes in me. ”

“Don't let it go to your head,” Orin adds. “Next thing we know, you'll be applying for Dr. Rhyss's job.”

“God forbid,” Riley chuckles. “One grumpy genius on campus is enough.”

I should say something, too. Offer some kind of encouragement, tell him he’ll figure it out like he always does. But my thoughts are drifting again, pulling back to the Obscuary, to Thorne. I reach for my drink, glancing down to make sure I don’t knock it over?—

I freeze. The glass is already moving.

It hovers an inch off the table, trembling slightly, as if caught between two opposing forces. My breath catches, and I jerk my hand back. The glass wobbles, tips?—

—then steadies. The drink inside settles as if nothing happened, the glass perfectly still.

But I know better.

I made it do that.

Which scares the hell out of me.

“Page?” Riley’s voice is sharp, pulling my attention back. He’s looking from me to the glass, eyes wide. “What the hell was that?”

Fuck, fuck, fuck…he saw that.

He saw that, and he has no idea what I’m capable of and?—

“Nothing,” I say quickly. “It was nothing. Probably just the wind.”

“The wind?” Lyn questions, and I realize she saw it too. “Page, I swear that glass just levitated?—”

Riley’s hand brushes my arm. "You sure you’re okay? That didn’t look like nothing."

I force a laugh, but all it does is make me sound even more insane. “It’s Mythara,” I say. “Weird stuff happens here all the time, right? Could’ve been some kind of energy field or…I don’t know, maybe something from the lift system… ”

Am I really trying to explain engineering to two brilliant engineering students right now?

My stomach churns, panic rising as I realize I can’t explain what just happened. I grab my bag and stand up, looking around at Riley’s friends. “Sorry—I just remembered I need to get up to the Obscuary. I forgot some notes there and?—”

“Page, wait.” Riley’s getting up, looking me over. “If there’s something off with the lifts around here, you could get hurt?—”

“I’m fine, it was nothing,” I interrupt, my voice too high for anyone to believe it. My heart feels like it’s trying to claw its way out of my chest. I back away from the table, gripping the strap of my bag. “Thanks for the drink.”

Riley takes a step toward me, his hand half-extended as if to stop me. “Page, seriously?—”

“I’m fine!” The words burst out louder than I intended, cutting through the comfortable hum of the square. A few nearby tables glance our way, and my face burns with embarrassment. “I’ll text you later, okay?”

Before anyone can stop me, I turn on my heel and push into the crowd, weaving through the tables and stalls with my head down. My breaths come fast and shallow, my heart hammering in my ears.

The noise of the square feels overwhelming now—too many voices, too many thoughts pressing in at once. My bag bumps against my hip as I walk faster, my mind racing with every step.

First my thoughts, and now I can levitate things?

The memory flashes back to me unbidden: the glass hovering, trembling as if caught between two opposing forces…only to settle when I wanted it to. It wasn’t just a coincidence. It wasn’t an accident.

It’s getting stronger .

I can feel it, like a storm gathering inside me, growing more chaotic by the second. My fingers tighten on the strap of my bag, knuckles white.

I need to talk to Thorne.

My pace quickens, almost a jog now, as I aim for the nearest library entrance. The thought of him calms and unnerves me all at once. He’ll know what’s happening—or at least, he’ll understand it better than I do. Even if he was an asshole today, I need him.

Right now, he’s the only one who might have answers.