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

I’m going to finish it with them. If I can heal here, I can heal at home,” he said firmly. It was something he had been thinking about the night before, as he’d drifted off to sleep. What difference did it make, if he was here or back at home in Middledale? As long as Ceres told him what he had to do, he was confident he could get better.

Ceres shook her head. “It doesn’t work that way—because you are of magical, or anti-magical, origin, you can only heal those injuries within this realm. The exercises required for you to get better are magical exercises—if you try to do them out in the real world, they won’t work, and you won’t heal. It requires the sewing up of all the gaps the torn essence left, through prolonged magical therapy of the mind and body that need to be guided by someone like me. Like any new skill, it needs to be taught. Or, in your case, relearned. Plus, you have to consume a lot of medicine, and the potions that will heal you are only beneficial when consumed in this realm.”

“I need to go with them, Ceres,” he replied, adamant now. “You can either help me get to Spellshadow, or you can step out of my way, and I’ll go there anyway, with my friends.”

Ceres sighed deeply. “Fine, but you’ll be setting yourself back by doing this.”

“Then I’ll just work harder to fix whatever else I’ve managed to break,” he insisted.

“Are you sure you should be pushing yourself, in your state?” Aamir chimed in, a worried expression furrowing his brow.

Frustration prickled at Alex’s nerves. He wasn’t an invalid; he was just exhausted after the events of the past few days. Yes, he’d lost half of his soul, but he was still Alex. He was still strong enough to see the journey through to the conclusion they’d all agreed upon.

“I know my limits,” he said slowly, trying not to snap. “I’ll be fine.”

Aamir left a short while later, with a promise to come back for Alex when the time came for them to return to Spellshadow. It left him alone with Ceres, who continued to insist he should rethink the matter, while forcing pieces of buttered toast and endless cups of herbal tea into his hands. Alex tuned out her sage words, knowing there was no pain on earth that could prevent him from going with his friends. They had waited too long for this moment, and he wasn’t going to be the one absent from the pack when it came to closing the circle of their path together.

Around midday, the quartet of friends arrived at the entrance to Alex’s new abode. Helena still wasn’t with them, nor had he seen her the day before. It was strange not to see the silver-haired girl standing beside them; she had become such an integral part of the group that her absence was almost jarring.

“No Helena?” Alex asked.

Natalie shook her head. “She has returned to Stillwater House, to see what she can salvage,” she explained. “She left after Venus freed us. I’m sure she would have come if she’d known you were still alive.”

“How is your romance blossoming, anyway?” Alex wondered, flashing Jari a knowing glance.

To his surprise, Jari gave a casual shrug. “A man like me can’t settle for just one dame, dude. I’ve got to see what’s out there, you know?”

Natalie giggled. “What Jari is trying to say is, things did not exactly work out. I believe Helena just wants to be friends, correct?” she teased.

“Yeah, something like that,” Jari muttered. “Ah well, plenty more fish in the sea, right?”

“I’m sure there’ll be someone out there who can deal with you and your outlandish displays of love, Jari Petra,” Ellabell chimed in, an amused smile on her face.

He winked. “Yeah, we can’t all be like you two.”

Rolling her eyes at the blond-haired boy, Ellabell walked up to where Alex was sitting and helped him to his feet. Aamir moved around to his other side, pulling his arm around his neck. With their support, he hobbled over to the tent’s entrance, and stepped out into the bright sunlight. The scent of bonfire rippled through the air, reminding Alex of Halloween and summertime campfires by the river. Many of the Starcross inhabitants were still milling about their makeshift homes, but a notable number were elsewhere.

As they moved toward the edge of the encampment, Alex saw where they had gone. Standing in the field just beyond the perimeter, a swarm of people were chattering and laughing, slinging bags over their shoulders and clutching their limited belongings to their chests. Alex felt his own chest swell with pride; these people were going home today. He noticed there were a few older individuals in the crowd, the years having flown by for them. They weren’t royal or elite; they were ordinary mages, whose lives had not been extended by their magical ability. Instead, they had grown old in the usual way, the years graying their hair and lining their faces, all of it exacerbated by the loss of half their life essence. In his mind, they were the bravest souls, choosing to return even though the outside world had changed immeasurably since they were last there.

A few cheered as Alex approached, the news having spread that the Great Evil had been vanquished because of what he had done. Virgil was already there, passing a conspiratorial nod in his direction, but Alex almost didn’t recognize the sunken-faced man. If he hadn’t been standing next to Ceres, he would have missed him entirely. The Head was no longer dressed in the hooded robe Alex had always seen him in. Instead, he wore a smart suit with a high collar, the fabric flowing smoothly over his thin form.

“Right, everyone keep it friendly—no pushing, no shoving,” Ceres bellowed, jumping up onto the back of her Kelpie.

“Come on, hop up,” said a familiar voice, as hooves trotted up behind