Fathomless by Anne M. Pillsworth Read Free Book Online Page A

Still, nice of Daniel to give him the benefit of the doubt. “We went to Tumblebee’s. The pharmacy looked closed, but he let us see him when we were leaving. So we wouldn’t worry he’d kicked or something.”
    Daniel shelved his pack and rested his hands on his knees. They did have scars, thin red lines on the inner sides of the fingers. “Mr. Geldman can’t, can he? Die, I mean.”
    â€œI don’t know. I think he’s super old, at least.”
    â€œLike Redemption Orne?”
    Hearing the name from someone who had no reason to know it made Sean kick the recliner leg rest down too hard, smack. “You’ve heard about him?”
    Daniel blinked. “A little, from Professor Marvell.”
    Heard about Orne and how he’d gone after Sean? But chill: After all, Helen had told him and Eddy personal stuff about Daniel. “Orne’s been around for three hundred thirty-eight years. Maybe Geldman’s been around even longer, if you can believe it.”
    â€œI can believe a lot more than I used to.” Daniel took a deep breath. “What Professor Marvell said about Orne wanting you for an apprentice and sending you that spell? I was like, this Sean guy’s incredible, summoning a familiar the first magic he ever did. That’s major league.”
    Sean felt a cheeks-to-neck burn of gratification. “But, see, I summoned the wrong familiar.”
    â€œYou got rid of it, though.”
    Marvell must have left out all the shit that had gone down between the summoning and dismissing. Maybe sometime Sean would tell Daniel the whole cautionary tale. “Well, after a bunch of other people helped me. So. Anyway. What did you do to get here?”
    â€œNothing much. No real magic.”
    â€œThen why’s the Order think you’re magic-capable?”
    â€œMore because of my family. They say there’ve been a lot of magicians on my mother’s side. Including my mother.”
    â€œI get it from my mom, too! Not that I knew for sure until last year. Did you know about your mom all along?”
    â€œNo, not really.” Daniel went to the door. “Eddy’s calling us.”
    The guy had good ears—Sean heard her only when he followed Daniel into the hall, and by the time he’d grabbed a hoodie from his room, Daniel was swinging around the second-floor newel post and onto the last flight down.

 
    4
    Helen drove them to Mama Jo’s in Kingsport, Sean’s favorite pizza joint east of Providence. Afterwards they hung out in the common room, where Helen and Sean played cutthroat Scrabble and goofed on how Eddy and Daniel, busy at the shelves, kept discovering they’d read the same book.
    With so little sleep the night before, Sean crashed early, and if any ghosts visited him, he slept through the electromagnetic field fluctuation. He’d have slept through breakfast if Eddy hadn’t pounded on his door. Daniel, on the other hand, had been up long enough to make a mushroom frittata. Seriously, a mushroom frittata, plus home fries. Helen and Eddy had brunchgasms, and Sean had to admit that the guy could cook. Nobody was going to be impressed on Sean’s days to fix breakfast, but at least Daniel wasn’t all Iron Chef about it. Helen’s compliments turned his face tomato red, and he snuck apologetic glances at Sean like, Dude, did I overdo it?
    Yeah, but chowing on his third slice of frittata, Sean could forgive him. Besides, he was too stoked about the meeting with Helen and Marvell to work up a good surge of resentment. Pretty soon he’d know who his mentor was (had to be Geldman). Maybe the mentor (Geldman) would even pop in. Plus Helen would reveal what she’d told Dad on the phone, which wasn’t that Sean was getting expelled before he started, so how bad could her big secret be?
    Marvell arrived as they came up from the kitchen. Eddy immediately went fan girl on him: “Whoa, Professor!