Ruby Red

Chapter Six

Alana stacked a pile of thick books on her left side, slamming a blue leather-bound one on top. Another manuscript, another piece of information she could use. This one had been about Cordavis's prison system and the conditions inside, and thankfully, it was published only a couple of years ago right in the time frame she needed.

Stabbing a pen through her ponytail to free both of her hands, Alana shuffled through a stack of old court records and newspapers and gossip pamphlets looking for the one she wanted. Finding it, she slid it in front of her and propped her head up on her fist. Her eyes scanned the same words they had for the past week. Everything had to be perfect.

Digging a journal out from under her stack of papers, she caught the old librarian in the shelves behind her, peering through the stacks with a glare. She was getting tired of this woman hovering over her shoulder and muttering complaints about the mess Alana was making under her breath. She should be lucky someone actually visited the library to read these days instead of hiding in the shelves and participating in illicit affairs.

After retrieving her pen from her hair and scribbling down another note, Alana sighed and leaned back in her chair. From her extensive notes and research, she had formed a plan. A rather well-thought-out plan, if she said so herself. Now, all that was left to do was double-check and execute.

Suddenly, she felt the unexplainable, unmistakable energy of someone entering the same room as her. She had been the only one in here for days, and the librarian had moved to another section across the room.

Glancing up, a familiar strong form stood with his arms crossed examining a shelf. Alana trained her eyes on Karis, watching to see what he was going to do. He pulled a volume off down and was now flipping through the pages. He hadn't noticed her yet, but Alana felt a strange urge to hide under the table. But she kept staring at him, waiting to see what he was going to do.

Karis put the book back and turned to face her directly. Alana let out a soft gasp and her eyes shot back to her reading, blood rushing to redden her cheeks.

She pretended to ignore him and turned back to her notes. Karis approached the desk she was working at and sat down on the edge of it. "I've been looking for you," he said, anxiously waiting for her to acknowledge him. "I missed you."

Alana stopped writing. She rolled her head up and leaned back in her chair. "Have you?"

"Yeah. Training and duties and stuff aren't as fun as they are when you're with me." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Have you been here the whole time?"

"More or less." That wasn't entirely a lie. Some days, she was in the library researching her target and the things she needed to do. Other days, she was in town gaining intel on the places she would need to go. "What do you need?"

Karis reached toward one of the old newspaper articles Alana had pulled aside. She tried to gather them toward herself, but Karis was too fast. He grabbed a few of them and gave her a look, then skimmed his dark eyes over the printed words.

A snicker escaped his lips. "Sorry. I didn't mean to laugh." Alana rolled her eyes. Sure he didn't. "Why are you looking up old arrest records? Especially for high crimes. This is useless, Alana. These people are all either captured or dead right now."

She stood up and tried to snatch the papers back. Karis jumped up too, holding them above his head. He knew his shorter friend hated it when he did this. Alana jumped, but Karis just moved back. "Karis, I'm not playing right now. Stop."

He made his way to the other side of the desk, Alana still chasing him. He grabbed more records, turning his back to read them. Alana slapped his back, then grabbed some of them out of his hands.