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

“Which is why you’ll be pleased to know I’ve come to join the party,” he added, splaying out his arms while shaking his shadowy fingers—the weirdest jazz hands Alex had ever seen.

As much as he hated to admit it, Alex was pleased to see that Elias had returned. No matter how powerful his friends were, and how weak Virgil was in his current state, they all knew how unpredictable the Head could be. With Elias’s assistance, they stood a better chance of being able to keep the Head under control, at the very least.

“Do you think you’ll be able to manage him?” Alex smiled wryly, trying hard not to roll his eyes in the direction of the shadow-man.

Ellabell gave a short, sharp laugh. “If he tries anything, he’ll have me to answer to,” she muttered.

“And here I was thinking we were friends now,” Elias taunted, swooping close to Ellabell. The move was clearly intended to frighten her, but her face remained a stoic mask, her nerves unperturbed by the shadow-man. Whatever terror she had formerly felt in his company, it was clear it no longer had a hold over her.

“You and me?” Ellabell sniffed. “Never in a million years.”

Elias grinned. “Looks like we’ll be just fine.”

“Do you think Hadrian can fit all of us in the treehouses, maybe make it look like a new intake of students?” Aamir said.

Alex shook his head. “I’ve got a different idea in mind,” he admitted. “If I let these people stay here and join the Falleaf students, I’m just sending them into more of the same—more of what they’ve already been through. I won’t do that.”

“You want to send them through the cave?” Aamir pressed.

Alex nodded. The fifth haven was the only truly safe place he could think of, though he knew the suggestion wouldn’t go down well. It was going to be a tricky sell, especially as there were so many. Hadrian and Ceres were determined to protect the isolation of Starcross and the freedom of its inhabitants, but surely, Alex reasoned, these people deserved the same chance at freedom?

“I’d better get going,” said Alex solemnly. “Which way is it?”

Aamir smiled. “That way,” he said, pointing between two trees. “Keep going straight, and you’ll come to the clearing with the pagoda.”

With a brief farewell, Alex departed, darting through the deep forest, keeping his eyes and ears out for any buzzing sounds, or anything strange that lay in his path. As luck would have it, he had become somewhat adept at avoiding the Falleaf traps, and managed to weave through the trees and undergrowth with relative ease. It was almost a relief when he saw the glint of the pagoda’s top, and the water gardens surrounding the base of the striking building. However, having never approached the pagoda from this side before, Alex saw that the distance between the tree-line and the back of the pagoda was far wider than it had been on the other side, and there were two bands of soldiers standing between him and the hidden doorway that led into the structure.

Ducking down, he crept past the first group, freezing as a twig snapped underfoot. Fortunately, the soldiers were so engrossed in their own conversation that they didn’t seem to hear it. He paused for a second, to make sure they hadn’t heard, but they had descended into a conversation about one of their wives. Realizing it was safe to move, though he still didn’t dare to exhale, Alex carried on, scouring the space between the trees and the pagoda for a suitable spot to sprint across.

There was a slightly narrower passage just ahead, but a group of soldiers was standing too close by. Although they had their backs turned, that didn’t make it any less dangerous. Glancing between the two bands of soldiers, Alex took a deep breath and ran for it.

A shout went up, but he didn’t stop to see if it was him they were shouting after. Barreling toward the door at the back of the pagoda, the lock of which was still broken, he slipped into the cellar and ran up the dank steps, not pausing for anything. He tore past the kitchens, grabbing a scarlet uniform on the way and yanking the top half on, just in case he came across anyone unsavory. Up and up he went, ducking into doorways whenever a soldier turned in his direction, until he finally reached the top floor. To his relief, there were no soldiers standing guard at the door.

Catching his breath, he knocked, then stepped in and closed the door firmly behind him. Hadrian was standing by the window, talking with Vincent, but he turned sharply as Alex entered, a look of surprise on his face. Alex glanced at Vincent, wondering how the necromancer came to be there. The last time he’d seen him was at Spellshadow Manor, though he now realized he hadn’t seen the peculiar man amongst the student exodus. Somehow, the mysterious necromancer had slipped away, returning to Falleaf before any of them.

“Alex? What are you d-doing here?” he asked, his brow furrowed with anxiety.

“It’s a long story,” Alex gasped. “You might want to sit down.”

“Do you wish me to make myself scarce?” the necromancer asked, the black veins in his face pulsing slightly. “Or can I stay to hear about the shenanigans you’ve evidently managed to mix yourself up in? I must say, that absolutely has to be a record—I only saw you a mere handful of hours ago, yet here you are, plainly in some form of trouble?”

Alex shook his head. “No, you can stay. You might be able to help, actually,” he said, gesturing toward the central table. Even though he didn’t know how Vincent had arrived here, Alex was glad to see him—the necromancer was undeniably useful in all sorts of situations. The deep black of his veins had faded ever so slightly, and, by the looks of it, he and Hadrian had become firm friends in the brief time