Page 44 of The Alien in the Archive (Galactic Librarians #1)

44

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T he summons comes through my comm just before dawn.

Page– Need to meet. Come to my office when you wake. –Davina

It doesn’t say why. It doesn’t need to.

I sit on the edge of our collection of cushions, staring at the message while the last of last night’s warmth fades from my body. Thorne is still asleep, one arm heavy over my waist. For a moment, I just watch him, his face unguarded in rest, his hand curled like he’s still holding onto me. The bond hums faintly, quiet for once.

I push it aside and stand, tucking the blankets around him. “I’ll be back,” I whisper, though I know he can’t hear me.

I dress quickly, then—to my surprise—I manage to use my powers and unblock the door without incident. I leave the nook without waking him or Ashlan.

He needs his rest.

The walk through the Obscuary and back to the gate feels longer than usual. I try to focus on the summons itself, turning it over like a puzzle. If this is about the Obscuary, why now? Why not just wait until two weeks?

And if it’s about Lyn…why not go straight to security?

The gate to the Obscuary creaks open into the silent main hall of the Grand Library. The lift is ahead of me; Davina’s office to the right. I walk down the hall, my steps echoing, Davina’s door ahead…

…and I hear a voice.

Not Davina’s.

“…an ongoing concern, Professor Ferhalda,” the voice says—male, with an otherworldly hum beneath it. “Whether or not she realizes it.”

Shit .

I freeze outside the door, not wanting to take another step forward. I sense Thorne waking up without me, panicking.

Then Davina’s voice comes. “Page, are you out there? Please come in.”

Fuck.

I somehow manage to force my feet to move, closing the distance to the door. Davina’s office is open, but as suspected, she’s not alone; a Nyeri’i male is standing to my right. He’s got purple tendrils on his head, flicking slightly, and wearing a long black coat that makes his violet skin pop. His gaze flicks to me and narrows, a quick assessment.

Lyn is nowhere to be seen, but it doesn’t matter. I know she sent him. I’ve seen pictures from when Riley was applying to the Engineering program.

This is Dr. Kaelion Rhyss.

“Page.” Davina’s voice cuts through my thoughts, pulling my attention. She’s seated behind her desk, hands folded in front of her, her expression as neutral as ever. “Close the door.”

I do as I’m told, though my pulse kicks up as I turn back to face them. Rhyss doesn’t sit. He doesn’t even acknowledge me, really, beyond that first glance. He’s already decided who I am.

Davina gestures to a chair in front of her desk. “Sit.”

I don’t want to, but I do. The silence stretches just long enough to make me squirm before Davina breaks it.

“Dr. Rhyss has brought some concerns to my attention,” she says. “About your…activities in the Archive.”

I look at her first, searching for any sign that she might believe him. She doesn’t give anything away. Rhyss, on the other hand, is a wall of disapproval.

“I’m not sure I understand,” I respond, keeping my voice steady.

Dr. Rhyss steps forward, folding his hands behind his back. “Don’t insult us both, Dr. McRae,” he says. “You’ve been spending an unusual amount of time in restricted sections of the Obscuary. And your colleagues have reported strange…incidents. Flying books, perhaps?”

My stomach drops.

Rhyss’s gaze sharpens. “You’re hiding something. Or rather, some one. ”

I look at Davina. “You don’t actually believe this, do you?”

“I believe Dr. Rhyss has reasonable concerns,” Davina replies evenly. “Concerns I expect you to address.”

I force myself to breathe. “If this is about my research, I can explain. I’ve been looking into the Borean Empire—early Elixir usage, the Lost Expeditions?—”

“And you’ve been remarkably successful,” Dr. Rhyss interrupts. “Finding sources no one else has uncovered. Accessing knowledge we assumed was lost.” He tilts his head. “A little too successful for someone at your level. You’re a university fellow, Dr. McRae. I would like an explanation.”

My hands curl into fists in my lap. “I’m not hiding anything dangerous. ”

“No?” His voice is cold. “Then perhaps you’d like to explain why Lyn Walker came to me yesterday with some startling information.”

It’s like the floor shifts beneath me, but I don’t move. Alarm bells are ringing in my head. This is what Thorne told me wouldn’t happen, what I was afraid of.

Davina leans back in her chair, giving him space to continue, though her gaze lingers on me. I don’t know what she’s looking for—guilt, maybe, or fear—but I force myself to look at Dr. Rhyss instead.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I say…but it’s weak.

I’m too bad of a liar to keep this big of a secret.

“She told me you’re hiding a Borean fugitive in the Obscuary.”

There it is.

A heavy silence crashes into the room. I feel Thorne’s presence through the bond, a flare of alarm as he senses my dread.

I can’t let it show. I can’t let him panic.

“Well?” Dr. Rhyss says, staring at me.

I open my mouth, but nothing comes out. Every instinct screams at me to deny it, to throw Lyn under the bus and hope it buys me time. But the words catch in my throat.

She’s justified in being angry…and there’s no point in trying to lie.

If Davina got Thorne’s letter, she already has proof.

“I don’t know where Lyn got that idea,” I murmur, my voice breaking.

Rhyss’s expression doesn’t change, but something shifts in his posture—a subtle tilt of his head, the flick of his tendrils. He doesn’t believe me.

“She didn’t just come to me with an idea,” he replies. “She was very specific. The Borean’s appearance, about his location…about his connection to you.” He pauses, letting that sink in, and my cheeks flush red. “And yet, when I heard all of this, I thought, surely not. Surely Dr. Patience McRae hasn’t been hiding a dangerous monster in a sealed archive. Surely there couldn’t have been one there in the first place.”

“I don’t…please, let me explain,” I start.

He raises his hand to stop me. “Dr. McRae, I don’t think I’m the one who needs to hear your case at this point. I wanted to give you a chance to explain, to confirm that this was in fact an absurd idea. But…now, it’s clear. This is a matter for university security.”

He turns toward the door.

My chest tightens. He’s leaving . Going to security, and I can’t stop him. If I block the door, if I use my powers, then what? Thorne will be exposed anyway. Dr. Rhyss will have proof. I can’t let this spiral into something worse.

“Wait,” I say, a last ditch effort to stop this. Dr. Rhyss pauses with his hand on the door, glancing back at me.

“What?”

I scramble for something, anything, to slow him down. “You’re making a mistake. Gambling your reputation on a wild accusation. If you take that to security and you’re wrong, how’s that going to look?”

He studies me for a moment, considering. I think I’ve bought myself half a second of hope, then he shakes his head.

“I’m going to assume you’re threatening me because you’re under the creature’s influence,” he murmurs. “But you can’t stop me from doing what’s right.”

Then he pulls the door open and leaves without another word.

Davina’s stayed silent this entire time, but I suddenly remember that she’s in the room. I turn and find her sitting at her desk, her hands clasped in front of her. She’s regarding me with…not anger, not disapproval .

Curiosity.

“Is he gone?” she asks.

I peek my head out of the door and see the top of his head disappearing on the lift.

“Yes,” I nod.

“Good,” she says, gesturing at the chair across her desk. “Let’s talk.”

I don’t sit at first. I purse my lips, jaw tense. “You got his letter.”

Davina motions to the chair again, her tone calm and even. “Sit down, Page.”

This time, I do as I’m told. My legs feel unsteady, like the panic in me hasn’t caught up to the shift in tone. Davina waits until I’m settled before speaking again.

“Yes…I received Thorne’s letter,” she says. “It was clear, detailed, and, to my surprise, handwritten. It was also very convincing.”

I grip the edges of the chair. “You didn’t say anything to Dr. Rhyss though?—”

“I needed time to look into it,” she cuts me off. “You understand how…unprecedented this is. A living Borean, in our library, who has not only survived but has chosen to preserve knowledge rather than destroy it? It’s something scholars like me have only dreamed of.”

She pauses, her sharp eyes locking onto mine. “It’s also something that would terrify the wrong people.”

I blink, my mind racing to keep up. “So, you believe him?”

“I didn’t at first,” she admits. “I assumed it was some kind of elaborate hoax. A forgery, maybe. But I followed the clues Thorne left in his letter—and I found records.”

“What records?” My voice comes out hoarse.

She leans back in her chair, steepling her fingers. “Nothing definitive—at least not about him specifically. But there were rumors, whispers about a Borean who vanished before the Convergence reached its peak. An archivist. A dissenter.” Her lips curl faintly, like she’s uncovering a secret no one else knows. “The name Valtheris appeared once in an ancient catalog I retrieved from a restricted wing in the Turitella. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to make me take him seriously.”

My heart lurches. “So…what now?”

Davina’s gaze softens, just slightly. “Now, I help you.”

I blink. “You what?”

“I want to help you,” she repeats, her tone patient but firm. “If Thorne is what he says he is—a Borean dissenter who fled his people’s atrocities—then his testimony is invaluable. Not just to history, but to understanding the Convergence and what led to it…along with countless other changes in Borean society. I don’t want him locked in some security vault, Page. I want his knowledge preserved.”

A weight lifts from my chest. Thorne feels it too, the bond between us flickering with cautious hope.

But it’s not enough.

“Dr. Rhyss is already on his way to security,” I say quietly. “What happens when they come looking for Thorne? It’s only a matter of time.”

Davina tilts her head, regarding me carefully. “That’s where the two of you come in. If he’s willing to meet with me, I’ll help him make his case. We’ll bring this to the administration as carefully as possible, with the right framing.”

I nod slowly. “I’ll tell him.”

“Good,” she says. “Do you have a way to contact him remotely? Or is he listening now?”

I swallow hard. “He’s listening now.”

She looks surprised, but…not as surprised as she might be. “Good. I’d like to meet him tonight in the Obscuary, if he’s willing. If possible, I would like access to the reading room so we can create a report for the administration. ”

Thorne considers her words, then I feel his assent.

“He can do that,” I say.

“But…you should try not to return to the Obscuary,” she continues. “You could be followed.”

“But Thorne?—”

“Page, no,” he says in my mind. “ She’s right.”

Davina watches me, cocking her head in curiosity. “Did he agree with me?” she asks quietly.

I laugh. “Yeah…he agrees with you.”

Davina smiles faintly. “Then we’ll proceed cautiously. I’ll be in the Obscuary at dusk. Tell him to meet me there.”

I rise to my feet as well, my legs steadier now that I have a path forward—tentative as it might be. “He’ll be there,” I promise.

“This won’t be easy,” she says, her voice quieter now, less of a supervisor and more of a confidante. “Once Thorne reveals himself, there’s no going back. You both need to be certain about this.”

I meet her gaze, unflinching. “We are certain.”

For a long moment, she studies me, as if searching for cracks in my resolve…but there are none.

“Excellent,” she says. “Then I look forward to meeting your Borean tonight.”