Page 56 of A House of Gold
He’s quiet for a long moment. Then: “Every single day. But I’d make it again. That’s the real curse.” He looks at me, and there’s something raw in his expression. “You’ll understandeventually. When you’re deep enough in, when you’ve absorbed enough sins and seen enough of what these angels actually are. The worst part isn’t the suffering. It’s knowing you’d do it all again because the alternative was worse.”
I think about Luna. About her bright voice on the phone, talking about trail cleanups and chemistry labs and all the mundane, beautiful details of a normal life. About how I’d sign a hundred contracts, serve a thousand years, if it meant keeping her safe.
“Yeah, I think I already understand.”
Nat’s expression softens slightly. “You’re here for someone. I can see it, not hidden, just...central. Everything you do orbits around protecting them.”
“My sister. Luna.” I don’t know why I’m telling him this. Maybe because he can see the truth anyway. Maybe after days and days of navigating Croesus’s games and the house’s shifting reality, it’s a relief to just be honest with someone. “She’s nineteen. In college. Studying environmental science.” I smile despite myself. “She has no idea any of this exists. I’ve kept her completely separate from magic, from angels, from all of it. That’s the deal I made with Croesus: I serve my time, and he leaves her alone.”
“Does he know you’d burn this place to the ground if he touched her?”
“I think he’s figuring it out.”
“Good.” Nat leans back, studying me. “Croesus respects very few things. Fear isn’t one of them. But absolute conviction? Love that would raze kingdoms?” He nods slowly. “That he understands. That he’ll honor. Mostly because he’s never felt it himself and finds it fascinating.”
“You know him well.”
“A century gives you time to figure people out. Even immortal ones.” He gestures around the library. “So what are you looking for? Besides escape and quiet?”
I hesitate, but if he can see lies, there’s no point in being evasive. “My grandmother, Meredith Vesper. She served two years here before she died. I want to know what she was doing. What she was researching. Why she made the deal in the first place.”
“Meredith Vesper.” He says her name like he’s tasting it. Testing it for truth. “Yeah, I remember her. Cold woman. Brilliant, but cold. She spent most of her time in the forbidden section.”
My pulse kicks up. “The section we’re not supposed to go near.”
“The very same.” He stands, stretches. “Look, won’t help you break in there. That’s a line I won’t cross, Croesus would know, and he’d make the rest of my contract very unpleasant. But,” He pauses. “I can tell you what’s not in the forbidden section. Regular history. Contracts from the last few centuries. Records of deals made and debts paid.”
“Where would those be?”
He points to a section in the middle of the library. “Third row, fifth shelf, leather-bound ledgers. Chronological. If your grandmother made a deal, it’ll be recorded there. Names, terms, duration. Croesus is meticulous about his collection.”
“Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me yet. You might not like what you find.” He stands and starts to walk away, then pauses. “Be careful. Your grandmother was looking for something. Something important enough that she risked everything, including you, to find it. If you go down that same path...” He meets my eyes. “Make sure you’re ready for what’s at the end.”
He leaves before I can respond.
I sit there for a while, staring at the section he indicated. Third row, fifth shelf.
I should wait. Should think this through. Should probably ask Croesus’s permission before I dig through his files.
But I’ve never been good at waiting.
I cross to the indicated section, find the ledgers exactly where Nat said they’d be. They’re massive, each one easily three inches thick, bound in black leather that’s softened with age. Gold lettering on the spines shows date ranges. I pull the one marked 1980-2025 and carry it to a nearby table, and open it.
The pages are filled with Croesus’ elegant script. Each entry is formatted the same way:
Name:[Full legal name]
Date of Contract: [Day/Month/Year]
Terms: [What they wanted]
Payment: [What they gave]
Duration: [How long they serve]
Status: [Active/Completed/Deceased]
