Salamaine's Curse by V. L. Burgess Read Free Book Online Page A

you gained that pretty sword, yet it’s only just begun.” Thoroughly enjoying himself, he leaned forward, saying in a dramatic whisper, “A cursed sword. Such a shame. If only you’d known.”

    â€œThe blade still had the power to destroy you,” Porter shot back.
    â€œDestroy me?” Keegan’s dark brows shot upward. “My dear boy, do I look destroyed? All you’ve done is waste my time. An offense you’ll pay dearly for, I can assure you, but not until I’ve availed myself of you and your brother’s unique gift.”
    â€œWhat do you want, Keegan?” Umbrey said with a growl.
    Keegan shook his head, making a
tsk
ing sound with his tongue. “So righteous, all of you. Salamaine’s curse created the scavengers, yet here you are, coming to me to save you from them.” He rose and looked at Umbrey. “You brought the map?”
    Umbrey removed the rolled scroll from his coat.
    With a careless swipe of his arm, Keegan cleared the table, sending the china and crystal crashing to the floor. He grabbed the map of the Cursed Souls Sea and spread it across the newly vacant surface.
    â€œRead it,” Keegan commanded. “Show me the Black Book of Pernicus.”
    Not about to take orders from Keegan, Tom looked at Umbrey. He gave a curt nod. “Do it, lads.”
    Porter stationed himself at one end of the table. Tom wordlessly followed suit, taking the opposite end. Their eyes met, and together they placed their fingers on the edges of the map.
    Thick clouds of silver mist rose from the map. The sea began to froth and foam. Waves rose and crashed. Beneath the surface of the ocean, shadowy creatures slithered and writhed. Tom’s stomach clenched. He broke out in a fine sweat. Rather than the euphoria he normally felt when touching a map, he felt nauseous, dizzy. Seasick. As though the floor beneath him pitched and rolled.
    As he watched, a stark outcropping of rocks rose from the depths of the Cursed Souls Sea. The rocks shifted, growing larger and broader until they became a barren island. The scattered remains of an ancient city spread across the island. Dominating the northern end was a towering fortress surrounded by barrel-chested guards, all of whom brandished glistening scimitar swords.
    â€œArx,” Keegan breathed. “It does exist.”

    Within the fortress was a single black book, floating in mid-air. From the corner of his eye, Tom saw Keegan remove a gold key from his pocket and place it on the map. The pages of the book fluttered open.
    Next, Mudge lifted the Sword of Five Kingdoms and touched it to the map. A brilliant light shot from the book. Mudge cocked his head and moved closer to the map, studying it intently. His focus locked, he looked from the book, to Keegan’s key, to his sword, as though puzzling something out. Then the boy’s face changed. Before Tom could ask him what he saw, a high-pitched scream filled the room. Tom jerked back his hands and the spell was broken. The images of the island, the fortress, and the book all vanished. The map returned to its dry, flat state. But the terrified screams continued.
    He glanced at Porter. His brother had gone even paler than usual. So had Willa.
    Another scream echoed through the room. It took Tom a moment to realize the sounds weren’t coming from the map at all—or from anywhere in the basement cell. The panicked screams came from somewhere beyond the courthouse.
    Then he heard something else. Umbrey had told him he would know it when he heard it. He’d been right, for this was a sound he knew he would remember for the rest of his life. A low, steady, desperate moan. The sound of hunger and pain and rage all coiled into one. An animal-like howl with a human edge.
    Above their heads, the door to the courthouse crashed open—or possibly was knocked off its frame—impossible to tell which from where he stood. Tom’s gaze shot to the ceiling.