Page 96 of Prince of Shadow and Ash

The doors to the foyer swung inward and Regulus turned. Magnus stepped in front of him with a low growl. Steward Preston led Adelaide, Gaius, and Minerva into the castle. His anxiety melted away as she smiled. “They’re friends, Magnus.”

Magnus looked back at him, his tongue hanging out of what looked like a grin.

Adelaide knelt in front of Magnus. “Hello, Magnus.” He panted as she scratched beneath his chin. “Aren’t you a handsome big boy. Regulus told me all about you.” Magnus licked her bare forearm—she wore a sleeveless dress today. She laughed.

“First your horse, now your dog,” Dresden said. “Maybe she wants to steal your animals, not your heart.”

Adelaide stood and crossed her arms, but he caught the slight blush in her cheeks. She cocked an eyebrow. “Really, Dresden,” her tone was teasing. “If you put as much effort into your manners as you did into maintaining your beard, you’d have a wife by now.”

“All right, all right.” Dresden laughed. “The lady knows how to spar. I humbly fold.”

Regulus held out his arm. “Shall we head in?”

Adelaide took his arm and they entered the hall. Magnus pushed between them, rubbing against their legs. He looked from one to the other, whimpering for attention. They moved to their seats as the rest of his knights arrived to join them for supper. Perceval’s wife Sarah and Jerrick’s wife Leonora joined as well. Adelaide sat in the chair to the right of the head of the table, Gaius in the chair to the left. Regulus pushed in her seat and sat down. Magnus laid between his and Adelaide’s feet.

Contrary to his fears, supper progressed wonderfully. Gaius seemed relaxed and Minerva was as sassy as she was sweet. Adelaide’s laugh made his heart soar. The warm chatter that echoed down the long table filled his soul. This was all he ever wanted. To be surrounded by people he cared about and who cared for him in return. To see the joy on their faces.

Halfway through supper, Estevan regaled them with a story about the time Perceval stepped in a hunter’s snare and refused help for an entire hour while he kept trying to cut himself down, all while hanging upside down. Regulus reached for his goblet, watching Adelaide’s eyes sparkle with mirth. Searing pain sliced up his arm. His hand jerked, and he knocked over his goblet with a clatter. Wine spilled over the table. He clenched his teeth against the stabbing, burning sensation covering his right forearm. The mark had never hurt like this when the sorcerer summoned him before.

Estevan stopped mid-sentence. All eyes turned toward him.

“Regulus? What’s wrong?” Alarm rang in Adelaide’s tone.

“Nothing.” Another stab of pain. He gripped the edge of the table. “An old injury acting up. Excuse me for a moment.” He left the table, their stares clinging to him.

Magnus followed, but he shook his head. “You stay here, boy.” Magnus cocked his head, and Regulus pointed back toward the table. The dog padded back and laid down at Adelaide’s feet. It pleased him Magnus liked her, but the searing pain commanded his attention.

Dresden cleared his throat. “You haven’t gotten to the best part yet, man! Keep going.”

Good old Drez.

The pain kept increasing, spreading from his arm to his shoulder to his chest. Regulus raced up the stairs, stumbling as his ribs ached. He threw open his door and slammed it behind him. He fumbled with the key, his hand shaking from the pain that wasn’t abating despite his obedience. It seemed to take forever to lock the door.I’m coming!He cursed.

He struggled again with the lock on the chest. What in creation was the sorcerer’s problem? He yanked out the mirror and the pain eased. “I’m here.” He hung the mirror on the wall and stepped back.

The mirror shimmered and the sorcerer appeared, an ecstatic grin on his face. The pain vanished.

“Yes, my lord?” Regulus said, not hiding the irritation in his voice. “What’s with the...urgency? What if I had been out?”

“I knew you weren’t,” he said, as if this were obvious. “I’ve found what I’m looking for.”

Regulus sighed. “Which is?”

“You see,” the sorcerer bobbed up and down, as if rocking back and forth onto his toes, “some twenty or so years ago, I lose count, I tracked down and killed—or rather, had killed, mostly—every mage in Monparth. Every sniveling idiot with pure magic in their veins.”

“You...” Regulus’ jaw dropped.Of course. Idiot.Of course the self-proclaimed Prince of Shadow and AshwasThe Shadow that had caused the extinction of mages in Monparth. His thoughts turned to Adelaide downstairs.Almost extinction.Panic surged, but he snapped his jaw closed.

“Yes, that was me. Who else could have that much power?” The sorcerer paused, but Regulus didn’t know how to respond, so the sorcerer continued. “The trouble is, the final relic I need is hidden behind an enchanted wall. It’s like a gigantic lock. And only amage,” he snarled, “can open it. It repels sorcery.”

“So you used those ingredients to find mages again,” Regulus guessed, his spirit sinking.

“What do you know. You’re not a complete idiot.”

Regulus tried to keep his voice from shaking. To look indifferent and uninterested. “Did you find any, my lord?”

“Oh, yes.” A sickening grin spread over the sorcerer’s face. “Would you believe a mage is downstairs, in your home, this very moment?”

No. No, no, no.“Downstairs?” The word came out choked.Etiros, please, no!

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