CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

I pushed open the door to Bronner’s Books, and the warm scent of freshly brewed coffee immediately grabbed me.

The place was bustling with people, all of whom looked like zombies as they combed through the bookstacks, picking up books and then setting them down again. Meanwhile, a few other books got the special treatment of being tucked underneath someone’s arm, presumably to be purchased later. Additionally, the coffee line was snaking around the inside perimeter of the store.

It took me a second to make out Luke, who was busily in the thick of it all, happily finding a book that a customer at the counter had ordered. As he fished beneath the counter for said book, I just watched him and felt a sense of warmth washing over me. Yeah, there was definitely still something between us—at least on my end anyway. I could only hope this whole mess with Valerian wouldn’t get in the middle of it.

Unless there’s also something between you and Valerian, I suddenly thought to myself.

There’s nothing between us and there won’t ever be, I firmly responded.

That’s not what your pajama bottoms would say.

Jeez.

Luke looked up then and saw me standing there, watching him, because he quickly waved and then mouthed, be with you soon . I waved back but made no move to do anything else, just simply continued standing there, watching the way he smiled at his customer, and the gentle kindness in his demeanor. As he chuckled at something the man said, I zeroed in on the soft cadence of his voice. It was strange, but all those things suddenly struck me with an unexpected intensity. I could only hope that what happened with Valerian hadn’t sullied Luke’s feelings for me.

Once Luke finished up with his customer, he jogged over to meet me with a big smile.

“Kate,” he said before another customer intercepted him with a question about a history book on the Civil War. Luke gave me a hurried and apologetic smile and said, “Give me just another few minutes.”

“Take your time,” I replied with a casual wave. Then I turned to the display table that was proudly featured at the front of the store, and decided to peruse the various books that were piled high on it. This table was reserved for the bestsellers and recent releases, which made sense since it was the most prominent display in the store. I flipped through a few books without finding anything that grabbed my interest, so I moved onto the next pile and the next pile after that. At the end of the top row, a book on the tarot caught my eye, especially the cover, which revealed an image of The Hermit card. Curious, I picked the book up and flipped through the pages, getting lost in the beautiful images of each of the cards.

“That book you’ve got in your hands is the best one to study if you really want to learn how to understand the hidden world of the tarot and the meaning of the cards,” an old man’s voice said from behind me.

I turned around to find the same old man I’d seen in this bookstore before—in fact, he was even sitting at the very same table he’d been sitting at the last time I’d seen him. As far as I knew from Luke, the old guy spent hours here, sipping his coffee and watching everyday life unfolding around him. I smiled at him, grateful for the company.

“Thanks for the recommendation,” I said as he pushed out the chair on the other side of his table with his foot, inviting me to sit.

“Have a seat if you’d like.”

I gave him a smile and accepted his offer, taking a seat across from him as I placed the tarot book on top of the table. “Is this your usual spot?” I asked. “I think you were sitting here the last time I saw you.”

“Ah, yes,” he chuckled. “I’m certainly a creature of habit, and this table is my favorite. ”

He gestured towards the tarot book once again, the lines on his face deepening as he smiled. “That really is the best book on the subject.”

“I thought it looked interesting.”

He nodded. “Do you know how to read the cards?”

“Only a little,” I admitted. “What about you? You seem interested in the subject.”

He leaned back then like maybe he’d said too much or maybe I was just asking too many questions.

“I dabble in it,” he replied, his eyes twinkling as he took in the cover of the book once more. “As I do in most things.”

“Do you offer readings then?”

“Oh, no,” he answered with a quick laugh as he shook his head, like the idea was ludicrous. “I prefer to dabble on my own. I suppose you could say I have a fleeting interest in the cards. It’s not much more than that.”

“Ah,” I answered with a quick nod.

The old man’s gaze remained on the image of The Hermit on the book’s cover, and his smile widened. “That’s my favorite card.”

“The Hermit? ”

He nodded. “The artist did a wonderful job portraying The Hermit’s aloofness as well as his power.”

The tarot card of The Hermit depicted a solitary and aging man standing on a mountain peak, cloaked in a long, flowing robe. He held a lantern in one hand, which emitted a soft yellow light. In his other hand, The Hermit grasped a tall staff. His head was bowed, so I couldn’t make out his features, other than the long, white beard that fell on his chest. The backdrop of the card was a dark, vast landscape, that imbued the card with a feeling of solitude and introspection.

“Do you know why I like it so much?” the old man asked.

“No, please enlighten me,” I answered with a smile, becoming intrigued.

“The Hermit is wise,” he explained, his old eyes looking down at the figure with an expression that appeared a lot like admiration. “He’s wise because he understands the difference between being alone and being lonely.”

“What’s the difference?”

The old man nodded like he’d expected me to ask this question. “Being alone means being by oneself, often by choice. Aloneness can bring peace and clarity. Being lonely, however, is an emotional state of isolation and disconnection, marked by sadness and longing for meaningful social connections.”

I nodded thoughtfully, taking in his words. “That sounds like a very valuable lesson.”

“Indeed.”

“So, are you alone or lonely?” I continued, more curious than ever about this strange man who only seemed to get more mysterious the longer I talked to him.

He just smiled back at me, a tinge of mischief in his eyes. “What do you think?”

“Alone, like The Hermit. Probably alone on purpose,” I ventured, studying his face for clues. His eyes were old but not tired and they still twinkled with a sense of mischief.

“Ah, very perceptive,” he nodded, clearly pleased. “Like our friend, The Hermit, I’ve learned that there is wisdom to be gained through solitude.”

“Tell me more.”

“Well, The Hermit walks alone, carrying a staff and a lantern to light his way,” he began, gesturing with his old, gnarled fingers like he was painting a picture in the air. “The lantern illuminates only what is in front of him, but points him towards truth. His advanced age signals his deep wisdom, while the staff suggests his power. ”

“His power?” I echoed, leaning closer to the cover of the book. “What kind of power does he have?”

The old man shrugged, his eyes briefly distant. “The ability to look within, to rely on oneself, and exercise tremendous patience.” He breathed in and then paused a moment, nodding. “There’s much to be learned from the Hermit, my dear.”

I nodded thoughtfully, his words resonating with me. “Since I don’t know your name, I’ll call you The Hermit. If that’s all right with you?”

“Call me The Hermit, then,” he agreed, his smile warming as he nodded and seemed to warm to the idea immediately. “Or you can simply call me ‘friend’.”

That single word sent a shiver down my spine, and I realized I’d just met the person who embodied the role of my friend—the man Artemis and Temperance had intended for me to meet.

“Are you... the friend?” I whispered, leaning closer.

The old man simply looked at me, wearing a slight lift at the end of his lips. Even though he didn’t answer me with words, the twinkle in his eyes hinted that I’d just hit the nail right on the head .

“I am and will remain your friend,” he said softly. “Know that you can come to me with whatever you need, whenever you need to.”

“Thank you,” I murmured, my voice thick with emotion, even though the sudden flood of feeling didn’t make much sense to me. In general, I wasn’t a very emotional person. But somehow, this old guy seemed to have the ability to get past my defenses—even though we hadn’t really said much to one another. Maybe that was exactly what the friend was meant to do—help me access my repressed emotions? Or maybe I was totally off-track and becoming perimenopausal or something.

“I’m having a hard time adjusting to this new life of mine and it’s nice to know I have someone I can… well, talk to.”

“Ah, all situations require time to adapt to them,” the Hermit reassured me gently. “You’ll find your way.”

“Right,” I answered, breathing in deeply as I considered it.

“It seems something weighs heavily on your mind already?”

I looked at him and nodded, figuring I might as well open up about this particular topic because, who knew? Maybe he could offer me some insight. “I’ve been told I have a gift within myself,” I confided as I glanced down at the book in front of me once more and smiled. Now that I looked at it more closely, the image of The Hermit could easily have been the guy sitting in front of me—if his beard were longer. At least, their physiques seemed to be the same—long and lanky. “But I don’t know how to access that gift.”

“Maybe it’s not a matter of accessing the gift,” the old man mused, his eyes revealing the kindness within him. “Perhaps the gift will reveal itself to you when the time is right.”

Just as his words sank in, Luke approached us, a big smile on his face. “Kate, how are you doing?” he asked, nodding politely to the old man.

“Hi,” I greeted him, standing up and brushing imaginary crumbs from myself. Turning to the old man, I smiled warmly. “Thank you for the talk.”

“You are quite welcome, my dear.”

“I imagine I’ll… see you soon.”

“Indeed,” the Hermit agreed, his eyes full of promise. “Until then, my friend.”

“Until then,” I responded with a quick nod. “My friend.”

“Do you want to take a quick walk? Get some fresh air?” Luke asked as we walked away from the old man and Luke motioned toward the front door .

I didn’t respond, other than to quickly nod, because my mind was still pretty much entirely occupied by the conversation I’d just had with The Hermit—the man who embodied the role of my friend. I could only imagine the countless lessons I could learn from the man, because he looked like Father Time in the flesh.

“Were you planning on paying for that book or just swiping it?” Luke asked with a laugh before motioning to the tarot book which I’d tucked underneath my arm. I glanced down at it and then up at him, my eyes widening. He, meanwhile, opened the door for a few customers that were leaving and held it open for the two more that were entering.

“Oh, I’m sorry!” I said, feeling guilty about the fact that I’d basically just stolen it from him, without even knowing it.

He chuckled again and shook his head. “No worries, Kate. I’d actually like you to have the book. It’s the best one on the subject.”

“That’s what the old man said,” I responded. “Of course, I’ll pay you for it.”

“No,” Luke said, shaking his head as he held the door open for me. “Consider it my gift to you. ”

“Well, thanks,” I mumbled, feeling unsure of what more to say. Instead, my mind kept replaying the conversation I’d had with the old man.

“You seem uncharacteristically quiet.”

“Yeah, I just have lots on my mind.” As I walked through the door, I glanced back at the very busy store. “Are you sure you want to leave… now? It looks pretty busy in there.”

Luke nodded. “I could use a break. It’s been crazy all morning.”

Well, who was I to argue with that? Once I stepped outside, I breathed in deeply, enjoying the rush of breeze that raced down the road, as if it were wrapping its arms around me. The crisp air felt invigorating, and I couldn’t help but think back to the strange events of the past few days.

I turned to look at Luke as soon as the door closed behind him. “Soooo… I’m pretty sure I just met the final member of my trio—the friend.”

Luke raised an eyebrow at me, obviously curious. “You mean the old man you were just chatting with?”

“Exactly.”

“Why do you think he’s ‘the friend’? ”

I shrugged. “Artemis told me to go to Bronner’s Books to meet my friend, and at first I thought it was you—”

“—it couldn’t be me, because I’m your guide and I can’t provide two roles at the same time.”

I nodded. “Right. That’s what Artemis said in her letter, so I’m pretty sure it was the old man because he basically said as much.”

Luke studied me with a question in his expression. “He said as much?”

“Yeah, he told me to call him ‘friend’.”

“Kate, that doesn’t necessarily mean—”

“—he was the only one I talked to at your store and then we got into a long conversation about the meaning of The Hermit card, a card which I’m pretty sure depicts him.”

Luke cocked his head to the side. “Well, now that you mention it, he is pretty much a hermit, himself.”

I nodded. “Yeah, he is.” Then I paused. “How did you not know he was The Hermit? It’s like he’s a permanent fixture in your shop.”

Luke shrugged. “I never claimed to know everything there is to know about this calling.” He paused. “I don’t. I know what the moon wants me to know and nothing more.” Then he paused again as he looked over at me once more. “I’d like to know more about this new friend of yours.”

I nodded and then remembered my dream visitor from the night before. “So, the reason I was even able to hear from Artemis about going to your bookstore to find my friend was because Temperance showed up in my dream...”

“Temperance?” I nodded. He continued to frown. “You mean as in the emissary, Temperance?”

I nodded again. “Right. That’s the one.” And then I remembered the most interesting information I’d learned from her. “But she’s not only a tarot card, Luke, she’s also that voice I occasionally hear inside my head.” And if that comment didn’t make me sound like I was completely bonkers, I didn’t know what did.

“Interesting,” Luke mused, stroking his chin. “What else did Temperance tell you?”

“Well,” I began, “she said the same thing that the maiden did from the tarot card of The Star—that I have the gift of The Star already within me.”

“Well, that’s good to know.”

“Except for the fact that I have no idea how to access it or if it’s even really there. It’s not like I felt any different after visiting that room.”

“Did Temperance or the maiden tell you what the gift was?”

“Yeah, Temperance said the gift is ‘True Sight’, which of course means nothing to me. But she explained that it allows me to see through shadows and fa?ades and stuff. Like I can see the truth.”

“True Sight is a very good gift to have,” Luke assured me.

“Really?” I replied, unconvinced. “I mean, it doesn’t sound that great.”

“Trust me, it’ll come in handy when the time is right,” he said with certainty and then gave me that handsome smile of his that always did something to my stomach. We walked in silence for a few seconds before I noticed his expression shifting and I sensed the shift promised that whatever was now on his mind wasn’t something I would want to talk about.

“I’d like to know what’s going on with Valerian,” he started, his voice much softer now—like he didn’t want to be overheard.

“What do you mean?”

“Just that I know something’s up with him—something is happening between the two of you. ”

“Nothing is going on with him,” I said with a shrug, because I wasn’t exactly sure what Luke was talking about—something was up with Valerian having magic? Something was up with Valerian being a douchecanoe? Or something was up with my feelings for said douchecanoe?

“Come on, Kate,” Luke insisted, his voice gentle yet firm. “Not only have you been standing up for him constantly, but I can see the look in your eyes whenever you… well, whenever you look at him.”

I had to take a deep breath because his previous comment was right—but this wasn’t something I wanted to talk about. It wasn’t even something I wanted to think about. “It’s just... I want to believe he’s a good person—that he’s Gray.”

At the mention of Gray, Luke’s expression hardened slightly—something which made little sense to me. “Talk to me about Gray,” he urged.

I hesitated, because I wasn’t sure what to say about Gray—the man Valerian used to be. I wasn’t even sure what my feelings were towards him then or now. “I liked Gray,” I confessed, figuring that was the easiest way to put it.

“Liked him? ”

“Yeah, I thought he was a good guy. Confused and lost, sure, but still good. I thought that whatever had landed him in that garden had to have been pretty bad, but it seemed like he’d atoned for it and was now… a better dude or whatever.” I took a deep breath and then let it out again. “And I guess… well, I’m still hopeful that the man I knew as Gray is still inside Valerian somewhere.”

Luke nodded and was quiet for a few seconds, just looking down at his shoes as if he were reminding his feet to walk by putting one foot in front of the other. When he lifted his face and met my eyes, his were searching.

“And you were attracted to Gray?”

I swallowed hard, but figured I shouldn’t lie to him about this. Not when he was asking something so directly, which meant he had to have already guessed the answer. “I guess you could say there was something about him that… attracted me to him.”

Luke’s eyes, usually warm and inviting, now held a steely intensity as he looked at me. “Kate, you can’t trust Valerian,” he said with conviction, and his voice was firm. “He’s a master manipulator. Once he senses someone can be played or used to benefit him, he’ll exploit them and if he doesn’t do so right away, he’ll just wait until the time is right.”

“Why do you think that?” I challenged him, shaking my head because I didn’t see him that way at all. And maybe that was dumb. Actually, it probably was dumb. “You don’t have any examples.”

“I do have examples—many of them,” he said and then he cleared his throat. “One such example is when he took the key from you and tried to access the room of The Star,” Luke pointed out, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

I frowned, recalling that incident with a pang of shame. But I wasn’t ready to give up on Valerian, not just yet, especially when it seemed that not only Artemis agreed with me, but so did the maiden. “While that’s true that Valerian took the key and entered the room,” I started as I looked up at Luke, “he could have done so much worse than what he did. He could have left the castle, Luke. Or he could have killed me or Magnus.”

“It would be extremely difficult to kill Magnus,” Luke argued, shaking his head. “If not impossible.”

“Fine,” I conceded with a huff, because it did seem like the only way to take Magnus out would be by cannon or firing squad or bomb or something. “The point is: Valerian could have hurt me, or kidnapped me, or killed me, but he didn’t. And that has to mean something.”

“All it means is that you’re still a pawn in his game and you’re still useful to him in some way,” Luke replied, his voice unwavering.

“Artemis believed in him!” I shot back, my frustration starting to bubble over. I was just tired of this conversation—tired of protecting Valerian and tired of seeing that Luke never seemed to want to soften even an iota towards him.

“Artemis wasn’t always right in the choices she made,” Luke said gently, his tone softening slightly. “And this is an example of her being wrong.”

My heart ached at the thought of being mistaken about something so important. But I couldn’t help but wonder if maybe, just maybe, I wasn’t the one who was wrong this time. “What if you’re wrong, Luke?” I asked, looking him straight in the eye. “What if Valerian really is on our side, like he insists he is?”

For a moment, Luke was silent. Then, with a sigh, he said, “If that’s the case, and he can prove as much beyond any shadow of a doubt… ”

“Then?” I pushed him when he quieted.

He cocked his head to the side and shrugged. “Then I’ll have to eat my words. But I’m sure that’s not the case.”