MAEVE'S POV
While Ivan had been occupied with council business, I had out the absence of his presence to good use.
Already, I had mapped out a bunch of areas that were the most promising to ransack. I had it all laid out on a scrap of paper.
There were the back end shelves, organized in uniform rows, with barely any space between them.
There was also the locker behind the study table. It was mostly hidden away from view and seemed like the perfect spot to hide something as shady as the black book.
Lastly was the drawer atop the fireplace. The drawer was usually locked. But from the years in which I had worked here as a maid bride, I knew that the key was stowed away next to the fireplace's grater.
As I ran my fingers through the surface of the grater, I was pleased to know that even after five years, the key was still being kept there.
I pulled the key out and went about trying to get the drawer to open up.
