Page 27 of Enchanted Shadows
Yeah, that would be unnerving. I left them to their own devices for one afternoon, and Theon’s magic was seen?
I needed to get back over to the barracks to talk to the team. I needed to brief with the people who had seen the black magic. And note the areas it was seen. See if there was a pattern of any sort.
Miles took a deep breath. “So it goes without saying, the only question here is: how the hell is Theon Valanova’s magic back?”
CHAPTER 9
For two weeks we sent guards out to comb through the forest looking for another glimpse of Theon Valanova’s magic. No one had seen it again.
I would think it was all just a misunderstanding had Molly not been one of the ones to see it. Yes, she read a lot of books, so her imagination was better than most. But she was also reliable. She wouldn’t make it up. She wouldn’t cause an unnecessary stir. That wasn’t Molly.
Team One stayed on the wall when Team Two was on forest duty, and then they swapped. Both were constantly on high alert for any more black magic. But despite four times the normal number of eyes on the forest, no one had seen a thing.
The part in all of this I found most odd was that the wolves were carrying on as usual. They were unbothered. And we weren’t talking about ordinary wolves, we were talking about wolves who had helped us kill Theon. So if Theon had somehow managed to haunt us from the grave, wouldn’t the wolves be all over that?
I let out a long sigh, shoulders heavy from another week of training. Normally at this point in training, I turned the trainingring into an obstacle course. That was the next thing they had to pass, their next trial, and they’d have two weeks to do it. There would be things to lift, places to jump across, a rope to climb, and swinging objects, not to mention all the orbs of my magic I added in.
It was usually my favorite part. But I was behind in putting it together, so Miles and a few others were going to help me tonight after lights out. It’d be a late night, but hopefully by morning we’d be done.
“I have to go check in on the team before we get going,” I told Miles, Allen, and Stoll. “You know where everything is stored. So why don’t you guys get started dragging it all out.”
“Will do.” Miles tossed me a flask. “Came from Krew. Says you’re stressed and needed this.”
I smirked. “Whiskey and obstacle courses. What could possibly go wrong?”
“Want it the same as last year?” Miles asked.
I gave him a nod. “Any obstacle course at this point is better than none.”
“Go on,” Miles shooed me with a hand. “We’ve got it.”
Whiskey still in one hand, I headed to the barracks, giving my usual double knock which let them know it was me. I had been checking in on them every night since Theon’s magic was spotted.
I opened the door to find a few of them around a table playing cards, a few reading, and one had already gone to bed despite the fact that the sun was still setting. Though it did set late this time of year. “Everyone good?”
“Yep,” Sam said while not even looking up.
“We are great,” Wren offered cheerfully. Too cheerfully.
Molly elbowed her. As if to shut her up.
I looked at Molly. “I don’t care if you have a drink or two after training.”
“It’s not that,” Molly said with an innocent smile. “But thank you for your permission, General Raikes.”
I squinted my eyes at her. “What is it then?”
The six of them around the table looked to one another suspiciously.
I leaned against the door frame, crossing my feet at the ankles. “I’m not leaving until someone tells me what is going on.”
“Dammit,” Wren muttered.
I looked to Molly, maintaining eye contact. She’d cave and tell me. She didn’t have a dishonest bone in her body.
But it was Vivian who blurted out, “It’s Zara. She’s not back from the lake yet.”
“What?”I snapped. “I thought the deal was to go in groups of threes?” With that I was off and moving.
