The next day, Gertal came to her bedside bearing books. A whole stack of them, in fact.
“Oh, Gertal,” Lyria exclaimed when she saw him carrying them toward her, “thank you so much!”
She extended her arms out to take them from him, peering excitedly at the titles. “Wolf and Wisdom, Evening Shift, I Heard the Midnight Howl,” she recited. “I haven’t read any of these!”
“I asked around for some recommendations,” Gertal said, looking pleased by her enthusiasm.
“Did you ask Ms. Lyenna?” she asked, a teasing lilt to her voice. Lyria fluttered her eyelashes in an exaggerated gesture, causing Gertal to chuckle.
“I did,” he admitted. “She was excited to be of assistance, though I couldn’t tell her who the recommendations were for.”
“A little mystery, all the better,” Lyria said.
“This one,” G
