She saluted me, grinning, and hurried off. Sure enough, within moments the bold bar of light Ruven had chosen to sit in narrowed to nothing as Venasha drew the curtains shut.

Ruven lifted his head, frowning in annoyance, and rose from his reading table.

As soon as his back was turned, I emerged from behind my shelf, trying to remind myself to walk slowly and casually so I wouldn’t draw attention. But suddenly I had no idea what walking normally looked like. To make matters worse, I was still in my elaborate gown from my audience with the duke; I felt ridiculously out of place in the solemn stillness of the library.

I bent over Ruven’s book, first slipping my fingers between the pages to mark his place and checking the title on the embossed leather cover: Interactions of Magic, Volume Two.

He’d mentioned to Domenic he was interested in volume one, so that didn’t tell me much. I opened the book again and scanned the pages Ruven had been studying.

The left-hand page showed a great, impressively detailed artifice circle. Smaller circles marked the points where the inner diagram touched the outer one. I’d only seen nested circles a few times before. Whatever this design was trying to accomplish, it was complicated and ambitious.

I skimmed the accompanying text on the right-hand page. Then skimmed it again, more slowly, a weight like chunks of obsidian settling into my stomach.

The chapter outlined a theoretical way to stimulate a volcanic eruption using artificers and vivomancers in concert.

“Mount Whitecrown,” I whispered. “The Vaskandran troops. Grace of Mercy.”

A hand fell on my shoulder.

Full, golden light shone on the page I stared at. I hadn’t noticed it brightening, in my shock over what I’d read.

“Lady Amalia Cornaro,” Prince Ruven said. “Such a pleasant surprise.”

Chapter Twenty-One

I turned, pulling my shoulder out from under his hand as I straightened. “Prince Ruven.”

Now what? I could pretend I’d only stumbled across the book, and not known he was reading it. I could try to distract him. I could run away like a child caught stealing cakes. Grace of Wisdom, I needed an idea, and fast.

He leveled his violet-ringed eyes at me. “If you wanted to know what I was reading, my lady, you could simply have asked.”

I’d had enough of pretending to be friendly to this shark in human skin. I raised an eyebrow. “Oh? Would you have told me you were researching a means to trigger an eruption in Mount Whitecrown?”

Ruven’s eyes widened. “Why, no, Lady Amalia. Whatever could have made you think such a thing? I was researching the eruption of Mount Enthalus.”

“Mount Enthalus. The volcano that erupted a few years ago and altered the course of the River Arden.”

“Yes. That one.” Ruven’s mouth curved in a smile. “Do you know what caused it?”