Chapter 14 · The Archive Locks Them In

"Don't touch the door," Dorian said.

His hand closed around my wrist before my fingers reached the black iron latch. Heat pressed through his glove. His grip was hard enough to hurt, but not hard enough to stop me if I really fought him.

I looked at him. "You dragged me through half the city to get inside this archive. Now you're telling me not to open it?"

"I said don't touch it."

"That's not the same thing."

"With this place, it is."

Behind us, the tower passage groaned. A metal bell rang once, deep under the stone. Dust shook loose from the ceiling and slid down the collar of my coat.

Dorian released me and drew his short blade. His eyes stayed on the door.

The Northbreak archive had no handle, no lock, no keyhole. Just a slab of black iron stamped with the crown's old crest. The same crest that had appeared in the cracked seal from the tower.

The same seal that had pointed us here.

"Tell me what you're not saying," I said.

His jaw tightened. "The archive was sealed after the last royal interrogation. No one goes in."

"You knew this place existed.