The Wizard's Mark by Janette Rallison

Author:Janette Rallison [Rallison, Janette]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-03-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 17

Ihesitated in the doorway, caught by indecision. Should I do something to silence Sciatheric—another stunning spell? His yelling had ruined my chances of taking another wizard’s mark tonight. Guards from the floor would be on their way to see why he had called out. The wizard at the end of the hallway had likely awakened, and if he wasn’t on his way to the hallway to offer assistance, he would at least be on alert for danger, his wand in his hand.

I had to consider how to best improve my odds of taking the rest of the marks tomorrow night. I needed to throw the wizards off my trail.

My gaze landed on Sciatheric’s moon pendant lying on the floor. In my hurry, I’d forgotten to put it back on his neck. It would do nicely as a false clue. I stepped back into the room and picked it up, making it vanish into my grasp.

Sciatheric knew what this meant. An invisible wizard was in his room. He lurched to his feet and hurled himself across the room at his bed. A moment later, he held his wand in front of him and furiously recited the words to a disclosing spell. It had no effect on me. He’d lost his magic.

I slipped out the door, shut it behind me, and hurried to Telarian’s doorway. By that time, Sciatheric had marched into the hallway, wand clutched in his hand. He arced it across the hallway, muttering a spell.

I opened Telarian’s door, paused for enough time that someone could have gone inside, then dropped the pendant in the room and closed the door again.

Sciatheric’s nostrils flared like a bull’s. “Telarian, you spider!” He stomped down the hallway. “What do you mean by sneaking into my room?”

A few moments later, Telarian’s door swung open and he stepped out, jabbing his wand in the air. “What game are you playing? It’s you who’s been in my room. Don’t deny it. I heard you leave just now. You knew I caught you and so now you’re putting on a show for the guards.”

I pressed against the wall to avoid any approaching soldiers and edged toward the stairwell. One guard strode over from the direction of the king’s chambers. A clatter from the stairs meant more men were on their way up.

I couldn’t go down the stairs while guards rushed up, especially not while carrying a bulky shield. I stayed flattened against the wall near the entrance to the hall, biting my lip and waiting for the men to pass by me.

Telarian held up the moon pendant, waving it like a flag before a battle. “This proves you trespassed in my room. You dropped it on the way out. The king will know of this.”

Sciatheric stormed over and yanked the necklace from his hand. “More webs you spin. What this proves is your thievery!” Sciatheric stepped away, lifted his wand dramatically, and boomed out an incantation of attack, one that called fire down upon an enemy.

Before

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.