Black Holes - The Mors Mortis Trilogy Book 3

Chapter Twenty Two

Seth Azemar wasn't sure what he was supposed to be doing anymore.

Riley hadn't appeared again since he'd sent Jared through that portal, and all his attempts at finding the knife capable of ending his own life, and the live world with it, had fallen short. He wasn't exactly surprised. The entire point of the S.I.S was to keep that knife far from him, but it didn't make it any less frustrating.

Ever since Jared disappeared, Tai had started following Seth around like a shadow too, making his searches more difficult. Technically, that'd always been Tai's job, but lately Seth felt like he was being monitored rather than guarded. Tai's suspicions clearly hadn't solidified enough to involve Andrew and Sophie yet, but they still radiated from him, strengthening each day, and Seth knew he didn't have long before they grew too pervasive for Tai to ignore.

So, he'd started creeping around at night, waiting until Tai drifted off and then sacrificing his own sleep to search the base, or comb through a safe house. He knew he'd be more effective if someone helped him. But the risk was too great.

If he told his plan to anyone in the S.I.S, they'd think he'd gone mad, but they weren't privy to the warning signs he was.

At first, it'd been subtle; nausea and exhaustion he'd put down to grief, body aches he blamed on training. But the more portals opened, the more he felt. His body had started pulling itself apart. The parts that belonged to the world of the dead were desperately detaching themselves from the live bits, trying to flee whatever catastrophe was building. It was causing chaos inside him, and even before Riley appeared he'd known what he had to do.

He was dying. His world was dying. And he needed to get everyone else off it before he dragged them down with him.

"Seth?"

Seth looked up from the book he'd been staring at to find Tai in the doorway. His mouth was set in a thin line, and his face a collage of fading bruises, remnants of the violence at the rebel's base. It somehow made him look more intimidating than usual.

Seth set the book aside and rubbed his eyes, bringing Tai into sharper focus. He didn't look happy that Seth had managed to sneak off without him. Again.

"Hey."

"What are you doing here?" Tai asked.

Seth looked at the walls of books around him, the dust coating them. Not many people came to the S.I.S's library anymore, and if they did, they didn't delve this far into the archives. He'd been hoping to find some hints of where the S.I.S had hidden the knife in the past, but so far no luck.

"Reading," Seth said. "I thought the archives might have some advice on how to stop all of this."

Tai frowned. "All these books have been scanned. Why didn't you just look at the PDFs?"

Because I didn't want anyone to figure out what I'm looking for.

Seth shrugged. "The library's peaceful."

Tai looked around, taking in the towering shelves, the dim light filtering through the window. Seth watched as Tai's eyes landed on the shelf he'd been riffling through, filled with some of the oldest books the S.I.S had, the dust drawn through in thick lines and slabs.

"Hmmm."

"Did you need me for something?" Seth asked.

Tai's eyes returned to him and he straightened. His arm was still in a sling, making one shoulder droop, and Seth couldn't help but think he looked slightly lopsided.

"Maud's come to see you."

Seth stifled a groan. He didn't like his fortnightly meetings with Maud at the best of times, but now, they seemed completely ridiculous.