Ventus by Karl Schroeder

Karl Schroeder / Ventus / Page 284
17
Megan had never seen so many books. They crowded on
high shelves around all the walls of a large room on the third
floor of the palace. All the shelves had diamond-patterned
glass doors. She watched as Armiger walked from cabinet to
cabinet, opening them in turn and gazing at their contents.
This was their second day here, but as yet the queen had not
found the time to speak to them. Armiger was getting restless.
The books didn’t interest Megan, but the room itself was
sumptuous. It contained a number of couches and leatherbound
armchairs, with side-tables and many tall oil lamps. The
entire floor was covered with overlapping carpets that glowed
in the shafts of morning light falling from tall windows along
one wall. She curled up in one of the armchairs, feet under her,
to watch as Armiger prowled.
This room and the others in the queen’s apartments
provided a shocking contrast to the other parts of the palace she
had seen. Below this tower, the palace grounds were crowded
with the tents of refugees; children and the wounded cried
everywhere, there was talk of cholera. The lower corridors and
outbuildings bristled with armed men, and conversation there
was strained and infrequent. Here, though, it was like another
world--luxurious and calm.
Megan knew she would always remember their entry into