It hadn’t taken Lucas long to commandeer the entirety of the bastion to accommodate his new acquisitions—and he really needed to stop thinking of them as his, they were the Queen’s, but he couldn’t help it—and lately he’d been eyeing the wide rooms to either side of the Library for possible expansion. He was starting to run out of room in the Library itself, priceless books and scrolls crammed all the way up to the hoarding and turrets, and anyway, Cráwa had an entire tower all to himself, so it seemed only fair, in Lucas’s considered opinion.Lucas turned and pointed at Bramble when they crossed the threshold. “You. Sit. Stay.”Lucas set about carefully lighting the lamps, making sure the covers were secure. Bramble stayed but not without trotting out the sad, betrayed puppy face first. He hadn’t yet seemed to figure out that Lucas was immune to it by now. Well, mostly. But Lucas’s love only went so far when it came to precious books and cultural antiquities.And then Slade sidled quietly into the room and all of Bramble’s reluctant obedience vanished.
