The Secret of Spellshadow Manor 6 by Bella Forrest (books for men to read .TXT) 📕

portal. He pocketed the king’s letter. His reply seemed polite enough, though he hadn’t been able to help himself from putting a few sly remarks in there, hidden among the propriety. Julius probably abhorred rudeness, but Alex had a feeling he could get away with sarcasm, at least when it came to a man who took himself so seriously.

With the box set back down, Alex took off across the fields, racing for the camp. The sun was getting higher in the sky overhead, and he knew the others would be rising soon, if they had not done so already.

All around him, birds began to sing, harmonizing in a late dawn chorus, and the chirp of grasshoppers could be heard in the long grass that grew among the wildflowers. This place was a true sanctuary, and he wanted to protect it. No matter what happened, he wouldn’t give the secret of this realm away, not even on pain of death. He owed the survivors that much.

Slowing his pace, he walked across the last of the fields until he could see the camp emerging in the near distance. Smoke was rising from a few of the structures, with breakfast underway for many of the encampment dwellers.

Unseen, he moved around the perimeter, keeping to the edges until he saw the familiar sight of the willow trees, with Storm resting underneath. He wandered up to her, and her bright eyes gazed up at him. She chirped loudly in welcome, and he stayed with her awhile, sitting up against the soft feathers of her wings, contemplating the steps that had brought him here. His old life seemed to belong to someone else, and, not for the first time, he wondered what he would even do if he managed to get home. How could someone continue with normality after going through so much?

“No use in thinking about that just yet,” he said, patting Storm’s neck.

She gave a low coo that sounded almost sympathetic. He smiled, still in awe of this beautiful beast, who had put her trust in him and allowed him to become a part of her world. It was like Ceres had said—Storm was a wild animal, never destined to be tamed, but their bond was undeniable. He thought about Leander Wyvern, and how he must have felt about his own Thunderbird, Tempest. Had they shared moments like this, man and beast, once upon a time?

Brushing himself off, he walked over to the gap between the two tents where his friends were, and slipped into the narrow passageway. Ellabell was already up and about, boiling something in a pot dangling over the fire they’d used last night. She was crouched low on the ground, blowing into the embers, trying to get the flames to rise, although she didn’t seem to have the natural chef’s talent Aamir possessed.

“Don’t you have a spell for that?” Alex asked, amused.

Ellabell turned in surprise. “There you are, Alex! When I woke up, you weren’t in your bed—everything okay?”

“You went into the boys’ tent to check on me?” Alex asked, a quirk of a smile upon his lips.

Ellabell flushed a little, the pink highlighting the freckles around her nose. “I was about to make some breakfast, and wanted to see if you’d like some,” she mumbled. Alex stepped forward, and she put her arms around his waist, the action as natural as a sigh. “You didn’t answer my question, Alex.”

He nuzzled her hair, which somehow smelled of wildflowers. “I think it’ll be okay.”

“What do you mean?” she pressed, leaning away from him, a peculiar, worried expression passing over her face.

“Let’s get everyone out here,” said Alex solemnly. “I have something I need to tell you all.”

Chapter 9

With everyone gathered, Alex settled down to tell them the plan. Jari rubbed his eyes sleepily, having been rudely awoken, but the girls looked remarkably fresh-faced. They sat around the fire, clutching cups of coffee flavored with cinnamon—another of Aamir’s unexpected culinary delights. As Alex began, an anxious air fell across the group.

“When Hadrian arrived here yesterday, I asked him to do something for me,” said Alex. “I asked him to send a message to Julius so that we could arrange a meeting and negotiate terms. Julius sent a letter back this morning, agreeing to meet with me, and I plan to go ahead with it.”

A gasp rose from the group.

“Do you have a death wish?” Helena spoke first, shaking her head in disbelief. “That man is insane. He’ll kill you as soon as you’re near him.”

Alex smiled. “He won’t. I’m too valuable, and what I have to offer will be too tempting for him not to hear me out.”

“That is a bold assertion, Alex,” Aamir remarked. “You know Julius’s mind doesn’t work like other people’s. He might not care what you are, or what you can do. I hope you considered that fact.”

Alex nodded. “I’ve thought of every possible scenario.”

“Yeah, and each one ends up with you dead, dude,” Jari said, looking equally incredulous.

“I really don’t think so,” Alex replied. “He might be angry about Venus, but, at the end of the day, he wants what we want. As long as the Great Evil is around and the magical realm is having fewer magical children, his kingship is in jeopardy. Who wants to be king over nothing? Or, worse, who wants to be king over a sea of corpses, once the mist gets loose because there’s no more essence to feed the Great Evil?”

“I think Julius just might prefer the latter,” Ellabell said, a stern look on her face. Alex could understand her sudden shift in mood; he hadn’t spoken to anyone about what he planned to do. Heck, he hadn’t really spoken with himself about what he planned to do—it had been impulsive, but it felt like the right path.

Alex looked down into his empty coffee mug. “I think this is the only option we have. We know now that the blood was the problem with the first spell attempt,