Magus of Stonewylde Book One by Kit Berry Read Free Book Online

aura of energy pulsed around himand she felt drawn to him, as a pin to a magnet. She found it a very odd sensation.
    They stopped in a small clearing just as she was beginning to tire. The dappled sunlight played upon the ground, still littered with dark leaves from last year but bristling with spiky green shoots that would later flower into bluebells. Birds flitted around in the branches and the woodland was alive with light, movement and the music of nature.
    Sylvie fished in her pocket and drew out her inhaler, but Magus shook his head and smiled.
    ‘Just breathe deeply, Sylvie,’ he said softly, aware of her fatigue. ‘Slow deep breaths. Can you feel how pure and fresh that is?’
    She nodded, but still felt the tightness in her chest.
    ‘You really don’t need that artificial stuff, Sylvie. Feel the air going down, deep into your lungs, then flowing into every part of your body.’
    She stood motionless, the light filtering onto her upturned face. She closed her eyes and drank the air.
    ‘That’s better – good girl. What does it feel like?’
    ‘It feels like I’m tasting heaven,’ she whispered.
    Opening her eyes, she found him watching her intently. He spoke gently.
    ‘Then that’s just what it is. You must draw that heaven deep into your body; dissolve all the chemicals and toxins, the drugs and the poisons they’ve pumped into you. You need to get Stonewylde into your veins. Can you breathe easier now?’
    ‘Yes, I can. You’re right, I don’t need this.’ She put the inhaler away and he smiled at her, his eyes dancing and bright.
    ‘I want you to go walking every day, Sylvie, whatever the weather. Drink in the fresh air and get your limbs moving. You’re very weak and you’ve wasted away to nothing. Walk a bit further each day and work up a good appetite.’
    ‘Yes I will – I know it’s what I need. But what about school? Will I have to start soon?’
    ‘We need to get you well first. We have different prioritieshere, remember. Plenty of time for school once you’re fit and healthy.’
    She felt relieved at this, not ready yet to face a whole new regime of schoolwork, teachers and students. She smiled at Magus; he instinctively seemed to understand her fears and needs.
    ‘Yes,’ he murmured. ‘School can wait. I want you to be cured. I want to help you.’
    He gazed down at her, the dark fire burning in his eyes, mesmerising her. She couldn’t look away and he reached and took her hands. She flinched as their skin touched, feeling a tingle in her fingertips which spread throughout her body. She gasped and almost stopped breathing, for the sensation was so strange. She was scared but he smiled, his face shimmering before her in the sunlight.
    ‘Don’t be frightened,’ he said softly. ‘I can help you. Take what I’m giving you, Sylvie. Take the energy and use it to heal yourself. Let it flow into you and don’t fight it. Trust me, Sylvie. Trust me and open yourself up to me.’
    She stood absolutely still, trying to be calm, trying not to wheeze. Then suddenly she felt it; a flood of power that washed through her into every cell, every pore. Magus’ deep brown eyes gleamed, holding her in their thrall, piercing her soul with their intensity. Her thin body vibrated with the rush of energy surging out of him and into her. He released her hands and brushed her face with his fingertips, tracing the eczema that crusted her skin. His fingers lingered gently on her eyelids, cheekbones and jaw. Her skin prickled beneath his feathery touch.
    ‘You will be beautiful again, Sylvie. The Earth Magic of Stonewylde is in your soul now and your body will be healed and whole.’
    He stepped back and she opened her eyes. She gazed up at him in bewilderment. Then to her embarrassment, she started to cry.
    Further up the path Yul was tucked away behind a smooth beech trunk, sitting amongst the green dog’s mercury and whitewood anemones. He was wolfing down a hunk of bread, grabbed as he left the