Diana's gaze was pulled away from Professor Clairmont when the sound of a door opening and then closing made its way through the silent library. She turned back around to look at the professor, but was shocked to find his reading bench empty. The panic she'd felt earlier that morning, knowing that she was alone and Peter Knox was following her, was beginning to build once again. It seemed to chill the air in the library as a wind whistled through her ears – until a cool hand closed over her own, snapping her back to reality.

"Act naturally, Diana. Don't draw attention to yourself."

"Where did – " Diana's eyes darted back towards the empty desk Professor Clairmont had been occupying all day, and then down to the space that Gillian had been sitting in. Clairmont's notepads, full of his elegant handwriting, and the manuscripts he'd been reading now filled the space her friend had just vacated. To anyone else, it would look as if he'd spent hours in that seat.

"It doesn't matter right now," he explained calmly. "As far as anyone's concerned, I'm just helping you with your research proposal."

"You're a biochemist," was all she could think to say, because somehow, having Clairmont sitting in front of her like a human shield felt far more reassuring than it should have been.

"You'd be surprised how knowledgeable I am when it comes to the topic of history," Professor Clairmont teased, before withdrawing his hand. "Just keep your eyes focused on your work, Diana. Don't give him an opening to speak to you."

Diana wanted to say something – anything to express her gratitude at that moment – but the sound of even footsteps on the old wooden floor could be heard echoing around the space, and she knew that she was out of time.

She tried hard to focus on the manuscript she had open in front of her. There were notes that needed to be made and comparisons that she wanted to draw. But the words on both the parchment and her laptop screen all seemed to blur together, twisting and turning into one long black line of gibberish.

Concentrating on anything was even harder when Diana felt a sharp stab on the top of her head – which told her that Peter Knox had finally located her. She saw Clairmont shift ever so slightly, straightening his back and sliding across the seat so that Knox's gaze was no longer on her, and Diana could have wept with the relief it brought her.

After a few moments of strained silence she felt Clairmont shift again, but this time, he leaned in a little closer so that he could use his pen to point to a particular paragraph she was supposed to be reading.

"See this part here, Miss Bishop," he whispered. "This directly contradicts what we spoke of yesterday. And I believe that when you refer to one of the other manuscripts on your list, you'll see that it too contradicts the points you made yesterday afternoon."

It took a moment for Diana to realize that he was trying to focus her attention back on the work she had to do. And even longer for her mind to finally read the passage he'd pointed out to her, which did indeed contradict what she'd read the day before.

"Thank you, Professor. I'll be sure to make a note of that for further investigation."

Diana tried to keep her focus on her work after that. She didn't manage to accomplish even a quarter of what was on her to-do list for the day, but she did tick off a couple of items – with Professor Clairmont's guidance – so she tried not to be too disappointed with herself.

Throughout it all, Diana could feel the occasional red-hot stab of Peter Knox's attention on her. She hadn't lifted her head to see where he'd decided to linger and watch her from, but she assumed that Clairmont somehow knew. Whenever she felt Knox's harsh gaze on her, the professor would shift in his seat to block it until she could relax once again.

Diana was just starting to think that Clairmont's plan might actually have worked when she saw the professor stiffen in front of her. His back straightened and his shoulders pulled up, making him look stiff and imposing even though he remained seated. Every single one of his muscles seemed to clench as he held himself tightly in place.

"Miss Bishop?" questioned a voice to her left, and Diana just managed to stop herself from sighing heavily. Although, if the small upturn of the corners of his lips told her anything, Professor Clairmont hadn't missed it.

"Mr. Knox," she replied, lifting her head briefly so as not to seem impolite before she turned her attention back to the notes she'd been making on her laptop.

"I was wondering if perhaps you'd like to join me for a coffee? You've been working hard all day, surely a small break won't hurt? I'd love to share some stories with you of the time I spent getting to know your mother."

Although he didn't move a muscle, Diana could somehow sense the rage that was filling Clairmont's body at the use of her dead mother as a bargaining chip. Somehow, it gave her the confidence she needed to straighten her spine and reject the offer.

"Thank you, Mr. Knox, but I'm afraid I'm working to a very tight deadline and I already have plans for the rest of the day."

"I'm sure your friends won't mind," he chuckled, although, to her ears, it sounded a little forced.

"Diana's plans for this evening are with me," Clairmont interjected smoothly, his eyes still tracing the words in the paragraph he'd been reading. "We wish to continue our healthy debate without disturbing those who use the library as a silent working space." He lifted his eyes to fix the man at their side with a hard stare before dropping them back to the manuscript's page again.

Knox's face clouded with fury at the idea of Clairmont blocking his attempts to spend time alone with Diana, but it quickly passed as he turned his head to scan the room. A few people at benches close by were eyeing the three of them suspiciously, and Diana realized with a start that Clairmont had managed to pick up on their frustration at the loud conversation taking place in their working space.

"I see," Knox finally stated, although he made no immediate move to leave. "Perhaps another day then?"

Diana hummed in what she hoped was a non-committal tone while she stubbornly typed out the next line of notes she wanted to make.

For a long moment, there was a painfully awkward silence in the room as Peter Knox stared down at the table where Diana and Professor Clairmont were working away, almost as if he wasn't there. When he finally spoke again, his voice had dropped to a whisper and his tone was much harsher than before.

"I'd be careful who you spend your time with if I were you, Diana. Your parents would never have approved."

He was gone before the shocked outrage could fully settle in Diana's veins.


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