Paige and the Quest for Truth: Book 2 in the series

4

Chapter 4

The infinity symbol on the doorway to the Protector's Athenaeum glared at her. Paige felt as though the inanimate symbol was judging her. Maude shook her out of her trance. Pulling her along, Maude made her way through the double doors.

In front of them, the Curator was seated at a desk. Well, she was slumped in her chair with her feet resting up on the desk, trademark nude heels nowhere to be seen. In the center of the room, floated a large ball seemingly made of liquid mercury. As it glowed in front of her, she remembered where this journey began, standing here, viewing memories with Billie not so long ago. As the door slammed into its frame behind them, the Curator was jolted awake.

She fell out of her chair and landed on the floor with an uncharacteristic 'son of a...' escaping her lips. Climbing up slowly, she straightened her dress and braced herself on the desk, as if she felt unsteady.

"Greetings Maude, it is quite good to see you again". The Curator said, seeming to wince at the volume of her own voice.

She was wearing the same dress she had on at the wedding. Paige had no idea how long ago the wedding had been, but it seemed like it was still the same day. She did remember, however, time moving differently in the Atheneum.

The Curator waved her hand, coffee, aspirin, and greasy fast food appeared on her desk. She was about to sit back down when she seemed to notice Paige.

"Paige"! She shouted, wincing again.

The Curator then did something completely out of her character. She ran over to Paige and embraced her in a tight hug. Paige hugged her back, feeling extremely guilty for ignoring her calls for the last few months.

Whispering this time, the Curator looked Paige in the eyes. "Paige, where the hell have you been? I was worried you had gone off and done something stupid. Not returning my calls is one thing. I know we didn't always get along the best. But Marcus and Thaddeus have taken you in and loved you as their own. Running off and not telling them of your whereabouts is quite rude."

Now Paige felt even more guilty. She never intended to hurt the Curator's feelings, and she hadn't even considered how Marcus and Thaddeus would feel about her disappearing from the wedding.

"Curator...um..I" Paige tried to explain, but her voice betrayed her. She cleared her throat and tried again to speak.

"I don't have a good excuse, except that I...I'm broken without her. Without Billie." Her sentence trailed off with a whisper.

"Well, we're all a little broken, my dear. I do my best not to take it personally." The Curator patted her on the head and sat back at her desk.

She began shoveling her food in her face, and slurping down coffee like she needed it to live.

"Are you...hungover?" Paige gently asked her.

The Curator wiped her face with the back of her hand. "Of course not. That would be unbecoming of a lady and a librarian, I am quite sure. But If I was, hypothetically, that ridiculously extravagant blue concoction at your fathers' wedding is to blame."

"They're not my..." Paige began.

"Oh, of course, they are your fathers. Well, as close as you've got these days, so just accept the fact so we can move on. I found edible glitter in my teeth this morning. Whatever possessed Thaddeus to put glitter in the alcohol anyway?" The Curator mumbled while sipping on what was left of her coffee.

Maude stepped forward, chiming in. "Oh my, I was wondering that myself. Nearly killed me, those edible silver stars."

Paige waited patiently, for once, while the two ladies discussed their shared near-death experiences at the wedding, chatting like they were old friends or something. She wasn't sure if the Curator would help her, or if she would even be able to.