Author's Note: For now I have exams but I will keep uploading. One thing is for certain is that we will meet Eragon next week. I hope you enjoy and review. This chapter is still as important as the rest. New chapters will be uploaded every Sunday.


A Peculiar Customer

I - Edmond

Edmond had awoken early at dawn expecting someone unexpected to enter the front door of his bookshop. He kept the mysterious letter in front of him on the counter scrolled in the finest calligraphy he had ever seen. It stated:

I believe you are in possession of a rare book that I would simply love to get my hands on. Do not worry for you will be paid handsomely for it. Await my arrival come the earliest morning and we shall negotiate.

Many Regards.

He turned the letter suspiciously in his hand and smelled the lavender fragrance from it. It was definitely a woman, which was odd in itself. He rarely had women purchasing books from his shop. And a rich woman at that made it all the more rare.

Edmond sighed, waiting long enough to the point he realised this must have been a hoax concocted by one of the pauper boys down the street.

"Come on Edmond," he whispered to himself, "none of the boys can write something this fine."

Then he felt a sudden rumble beneath his feet and instinctively embraced the wooden counter for support. He waited a moment, counting the amount of times he exhaled his foggy breath. After the tenth he stood back up.

"What?" Edmond said, donning on his old cloak. He walked to the window right of the front door and what he saw squeezed his old, dying heart. A shadow of something long and spiky in the fog waved in the distance down the street. It then trailed off into the air, disappearing.

"That can't be," Edmond said, wiping the fog off the windows to catch the sight for a bit longer.

"What can't be?"

Edmond turned around. Smiling back at him innocently was a short woman with long black hair wearing a simple purple dress and red shoes. She stood three steps away from him.

"I didn't see you arrive," Edmond said, pressing himself back to the wall. Even though he towered over her her smile told him not to try anything rash.

"Of course you didn't see us old man," another voice said. "You were too busy looking out the window."

Edmond looked towards his counter and standing there was a young man wearing leather armour. He had a brown cloak tied behind his back that covered his belt. Edmond wanted to know if he was armed or not.

"Please excuse him," the woman said, "he is quite bitter during mornings."

"I would have seen you arrive," Edmond said shaking his head. "I was a professional ranger back in the days."

"Oh please," the man said. "It is clear you left for a reason."

That was true. He had indeed left ranging because he was terrible at it. These strangers didn't need to know that. But by the calm look the young man gave Edmond it seemed as if the young man knew everything about him.

"I do believe I sent you a letter," the woman said walking to the counter and standing beside the young man. At first, Edmond's suspicion was that they were a couple but looking at them together now he knew that could hardly be the case. Even if it was, he didn't care to ask. Mostly because he was afraid.

"It's here." The young man swiped the letter on the counter and passed it to the woman.

"Ah. There it is." The woman cast the letter in a small pouch at her breast.

"May I know your names?" Edmond asked.

"No, you may not," the young man said. He turned to the woman. "Find your stupid book and let us fly home. I will be waiting outside."

"Fly?" Edmond asked, then suddenly remembered the mysterious sight he saw moments before.

The woman chuckled. "By flying he means running."

"Oh," Edmond said, rolling his tongue in his cheek.

####

"We never really have educated women in this city," Edmond said. "Most of them are house wives or training to be one."

"I prefer education," the woman said, tracing her finger over the old leather bounds in awe. "These books are the rarest I have seen. It is a shame your business is dying down."

Edmond smiled. "With your money, it shall be saved."

"Ah," she turned to him grinning. "I get the book I want and save your noble enterprise. Ha! Now that's called killing two birds with one stone, or two pigeons if you want to be precise."

Edmond bowed gratefully. "Thank you my lady. My wife and sons will be pleased. The gods are certainly merciful."

"Yes…" the woman's smile turned to a frown and she started looking around for something.

"Have you lost something my lady?"

"Um…" She looked up causing Edmond to do the same. "I am not sure yet. I hope not. I cannot live without it."

"Oh…" Edmond said, escorting her further down the hall. "I will help you find it."

She laughed. "It will find me."

Inside Edmond grumbled. There is no point making sense of all this. Just focus on the book.

He stopped in front a glass case at the very end of the hall illuminated under a golden light. "This," Edmond said, pointing at the case, "is the most valuable book I have."

"Show me!" the woman said enthusiastically.

He took the book out of the glass case that had strange scratches on the front that formed an odd 'S'. "I found this at Illirea on one of my expeditions," Edmond said. "The language in it is unusual. I suspect Galbatorix might have written it himself."

"That is quite the story," the woman said. "I'm hoping it is even more interesting than that."

"What could be more interesting than a dead man's secret?"

She grinned taking the book from him. Her eyes sparkled as she studied the front cover. "Secrets of someone still alive."

Then out of nowhere a cat jumped on the woman's shoulders. "Ah, there you are," the woman said. "I knew you would find me."