A Shadowed Birthright

A Shadowed Birthright - Chapter Sixteen

At the same time Remy, August, Clara and Admeta convene together at the workshop...

The Dux sits comfortably in his office as he pours over books and files regarding the slab before giving up, dropping the file with a heavy sigh and massaging his temples with his fingers.

For the life of him, he couldn't find anything that could be remotely useful in deciphering the slab. Even though he was told repeatedly that it can only be deciphered by a Argentum Maria citizen, he believed that the way to unlock the slab's secrets lied somewhere in the books and his building had a limitless supply of them.

But now he's starting to doubt that limitless supply books. What need does he have for them if they can't even give him what he wants? He should just burn them and replace the shelves with better quality ones that are guaranteed to give him answers whenever he seeks them.

The Dux picks up his mug of strong black coffee and brings it to his lip when his office door bursts open. He glances up at it lazily as if the rattling of his ornaments on the shelves doesn't faze him, the mug pausing just on his bottom lip

"You can't burst in there! The Dux is in the middle of his work!" his secretary argues furiously, worried eyes darting to the placid man behind the mahogany desk.

The man that barge through the door, a heavy built, middle-aged man with a bald head ignores her, gazing angrily at the elder though his anger isn't directed at him.

"A word, Sir." He demands tightly and the secretary opens her mouth to argue but stops when the Dux waves his hands to placate her.

"Lucretia, it's alright," he says, briefly flicking his eyes to the blonde. "You can go home for the day and make sure to say hi to Jasper when you get to his school for his winter play."

The blonde gapes at her employer for a few moments, opening and closing her mouth like a fish before bowing. "I will and thank you, Domine."

Throwing a displeased look at the bald man, Lucretia closes the door softly, instinctively coating the office in a tense silence.

For a moment, the Dux stares at the man standing on the other side of his desk, noticing the way the skin of his bald head stretches over as if it was forcibly pulled over his cranium. The roots of his hair look as if they were snatched out, giving the illusion that his close-set eyes were put there deliberately.

All in all, the Dux decided that the man is quite ugly. Not quite, incredibly ugly.

"A drink? Scotch? JD?" he asks politely, striding to his drink set and opening a crystal lid of his decanter full of a dark brown liquid. He smells the quality, swirling the liquid before pouring it into two glasses.

"This is not the time for chatter, Sir," the bald man states stiffly, beady eyes watching the Dux's back as if he wants to burn a hole through it. "The slab has been stolen not too long ago."

Alta's movements pauses temporarily before he picks up the equally crystal glasses and walks over to his subject.

"Stolen by whom?" he questions coolly, placing the second glass down when it's refused.

"My guess is that it was stolen by the Shade and that damn Ember partner of hers."

"Guess?" the Dux interjects as he walks back to his desk. "Tell me, Baptiste. Do I pay you to guess or to know?"