Prince of Magic by Linda Winstead Jones Read Free Book Online

use of potions and poultices. I understand that I have a gift for healing that goes beyond medicines that anyone can produce, but that gift simply
is
. I call on it when I can, but such a gift can't be taught or learned. What else is there to study?"
    "Much," he said softly. Sian preferred to keep his distance from women like this one, but if he was to do what needed to be done, he would have to touch her. He stood behind Ariana, reached around her slender body, and took her wrists in his hands. He forced her to turn those hands palms up. "Healing, like all magic, is rooted in manipulation of energy. Energy is everywhere. It's all around us. Bright, dark, weak, powerful. We all abound with energy. Most illness is an imbalance of that energy, and a true healer can bring those energies into alignment with the touch of a hand." He raked his thumb down the palm of Ariana's right hand, and as he did so, he shifted some of his own power into her. She felt it. He knew that to be true because her body twitched. "The gift that you say simply exists inside you can be practiced, enhanced, and ultimately vastly improved. Look around you, healer." Her hands were soft and small and gentle, but not without their own sort of power. "What do you see?"
    Ariana looked up first, and she gasped. "Oh, my. After all this time…"
    "What do you see?" he asked again.
    "My mother, I think. All around the repaired place in the ceiling is… warmth." Was it his imagination, or did Ariana suddenly grow warmer? The body close to his, the gentle healer's hands… yes, she did grow much warmer. "I see a yellow glow, like a softly glowing sun. Love."
    Which made it unlikely the darkness they sought had started in this room. Still, this was a good and powerful lesson, one Ariana needed. "And in the rest of the room? Tell me what you see. Concentrate."
    Ariana stood in his arms, relaxed and rejuvenated, more comfortable than she'd been when he'd first touched her. They were oddly and comfortably connected, their energies melding. "I see red. Passion. Yes, I think passion. There's also a dirty gray… hate. There's a knotted energy, muted colors tied up in a tight little ball. That's confusion, I believe, or maybe anger. I can't be sure. Oh, there's so much energy here."
    Sian could amplify her abilities with his touch, but he did not share them. He did not see what his pupil could see. "Is there blackness?"
    Ariana studied the room carefully. "I see some spots of black, but they're small and overpowered by the other energies. They hide from the yellow, and from the red, and from the white. Did I tell you there's white?"
    He released his hold on Ariana, and as he backed away, she spun to face him.
    "How did you do that?" Her green eyes were lively, her lips rosy and slightly parted. She was lovely, and he could not afford to notice that loveliness.
    "In time you will be able to see energy without my help."
    "You can teach me that?"
    "I hope so." If she could read energy, it would give her a decided edge. "In any case, this room is not the source of the darkness that threatens us. From what you described, there's more positive energy than negative, and if the darkness had begun here, then the spots of black you saw would either be gone or dominant. From your description, they were neither."
    "If not here, then where?"
    Sian crossed his arms and glared at his pupil. "You tell me, healer. You have seen many different types of energy, here in this room. We're looking for darkness. We're looking for a dominance of black. We're looking for an absence of love, hope, and passion. Where in this palace does the darkness reside?"
    Ariana closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She turned her hands over so the palms were up. She was a quick study.
    Sian wished he could believe that his interpretation of the prophesy was wrong. His grandfather had rambled, scribbling in the margins, quickly penning what he saw. What he knew. Some parts of the prophesy were unclear, but Sian