Hunted Sorcery (Jon Oklar Book 2) by B.T. Narro (chapter books to read to 5 year olds .txt) 📕

the while feeling as though I was betraying my friends. I tried to improve my mood by telling myself they must’ve assumed I would be asked to share everything with the king, and it did help to remember that the king already knew of everyone’s past. I just wished it was someone else who the king could confide in besides me. Like Charlie, just for an evening. I needed a break.

After I was done, the king told me that I would be visiting The Pearl in the morning to speak with the same innkeeper who I’d met weeks ago. I had followed a dark mage into the large inn and watched this innkeeper give the dark mage a pouch of what I had assumed to be coins. After speaking with the scared man soon after, I found out this dark mage was extorting the innkeeper and that the head guard of the city was in on it.

It was this information that led the king to remove the head guard—a cousin of Kataleya’s—from the position, and replace him with Byron Lawson. I had been surprised that the king would do this just from what I had heard about the head guard, but he’d assured me at the time that this was not the first evidence they’d collected against the man.

Now I was to meet the innkeeper in The Pearl again to find out if dark mages had continued to extort him, something the king hoped to be true. He wanted me to find out when they tended to come in so we could prepare a trap. We needed to capture at least one other dark mage who plotted against us to find out about Cason’s new plan.

The king also assured me that he was worried about this innkeeper, though I wasn’t sure how much he really did fear for the man’s safety if he hadn’t told Byron to send protection. My concern was proven wrong, however, when Nykal said that they had found out this innkeeper’s name, Mathew Plumb, and that he’d been watched to see if he’d had more visitors. None had been seen, but Byron Lawson didn’t have enough guards available to watch all businesses all the time. It was likely that dark mages could be waiting until there were no guards around to extort Mathew Plumb.

I had promised Mathew that no one would find out he was the one who’d told me about the extortion. I had only spoken of it to the king, Barrett, and Leon. If something had happened to Mathew, it might be a sign that Barrett could be working against us.

Before sending me off, the king had handed me my new identification papers with an official signet near his signature. On my new papers was my name, birthdate, place of birth—everything that had been there before. But now a line had been added at the bottom saying that I was a sorcerer of the kingdom.

Nykal had explained that this permitted me to carry a weapon openly, to arrest anyone—even guards—and to enter private premises at will. Of course, he expected I wouldn’t abuse any of these new privileges, or he would take them away as quickly as he had granted them to me. I had assured him he had nothing to worry about in that regard.

The king was clearly taking more proactive measures to stop these dark mages than he had before. He’d said I would be leaving with a callring and even instructed me how to send different signals depending on how urgently I needed assistance and how much I might require. It wasn’t a very scientific method, for we didn’t have many ways to use the callring. The urgency simply depended on the speed and rate with which I used the ring.

Through numerous tests, the king had discovered that the most efficient way to send a vibration from one callring to another was by flicking it. It was an almost silly notion, desperately and rapidly flicking the ring on my finger if I came into trouble.

“Jon? Jon?”

I was startled as I realized I had fallen asleep while resting in the warm bathtub. Then I had a real scare as I realized that a woman’s voice was asking for me, right nearby.

My body was submerged under the water. My head had been resting against the top of the tub, just above the water. A curtain surrounded the tub and the small table nearby with my towel and clothes, painting the princess as a growing shadow against it as she edged closer.

“Jon?” she said again.

“Uh, yes, princess?”

“Oh, I was worried! Are you all right?”

“I am in the boys’ bathing quarters, right?” I had been so tired, I had to make sure.

“Yes, I know I’m not allowed in, but I was scared you might’ve fallen and hurt yourself or something of that nature. Everyone else has already bathed and finished eating, but I didn’t see you in the dining hall.”

“I’m fine. I just fell asleep.”

“All right, I’m leaving in just a moment. I only need to tell you that I’ll have supper recooked for you, but it’s too late to leave your plate in the hall outside your room. We can’t have rats, you know. You have to eat in the dining hall and put it in the washing tub in the kitchen when you’re done.” I could hear her walking out as she spoke. “That’s all. I’m glad you’re all right!”

It took a moment to realize how nice that was of her. Fortunately, I came to my senses just before she left.

“Wait, please!”

I didn’t hear anything.

“Callie?”

“I’m here.”

“Thank you so much,” I said, but I still didn’t feel like it was enough. She had always been so kind to me, and I was beginning to think that she now realized there would be no romance in our relationship, so it would be even easier to be her friend. “If there’s anything I can do for you, please let me know.”

“Oh, of course you don’t have