Veilspeaker (Pharim War Book 2) by Gama Ray Martinez Read Free Book Online Page B

hum in the air and
glanced at Sharim. The other boy had his eyes closed and was saying something
under his breath.
    “Well?” the guard said from the doorway.
    “We’re coming,” Jez said, but he didn’t move.
    Sharim let out a breath, and Jez’s sense of protection
magic flared to life. There was powerful ward in this room, one of a complexity
he could scarcely imagine. A circle of yellow light came into being and runes
appeared in the air. They only lasted a second before fading. The guards said
something, but Jez wasn’t listening. He grabbed Sharim by the wrist and tugged
him out of the room. They had left the hall and were nearing Jez’s room before
Sharim managed to pull his arm free.
    “What’s going on?”
    “Didn’t you see the runes in the air?”
    “Yes, but I didn’t recognize them.”
    “I did,” Jez said. “They were the same kind Dusan used
when he was trying to summon a nightmare demon.”

CHAPTER 14
    Jez spent a few minutes telling Osmund
what had happened. The other boy was doing much better, and the healers said
his strength should return by morning. He was still having trouble staying awake,
but he made Jez promise to be careful before leaving. As soon as he stood to
leave, Paleel went to Osmund’s side to see if he needed anything. Jez nodded to
her and walked out. Villia was waiting for him when he came out of the sick
chambers.
    “Do you have any idea how dangerous that was?”
    Jez looked over his shoulder at the door to the sick
chambers. He turned back to Villia and cocked his head.
    “Talking to Osmund? He’s not contagious or anything.”
    Villia narrowed her eyes. “That stunt you pulled in Lord
Varin’s room.”
    “He didn’t see us.”
    “No, but his guards did. More than that, by leaving a
blank paper, you ensured he would come looking for me wanting to know what it
was about.”
    “Did he?”
    “Yes. He was quite angry I had sent you into his
rooms.”
    Jez tried to force down the lump that had formed in
his throat. “I guess we didn’t think that all the way through.”
    “No, you didn’t.”
    “What did you tell him?”
    “I told him it was a test for my apprentice and
apologized for not letting him know ahead of time.”
    “He believed that?”
    Villia shrugged. “Probably not, but he won’t call me a
liar to my face. My position is too secure. Now, tell me what you saw.”
    Jez turned away. “Nothing.”
    “Don’t give me that, boy.” Villia’s voice came from
everywhere at once, and it echoed in the long corridor. Even an empty suit of
armor seemed to be speaking. Jez jumped and looked back at her. “Sharim told me
about the circle, but he didn’t know what he was looking at. He said you
mentioned Dusan.”
    Jez hesitated for a second before nodding. “I saw some
of the same symbols Dusan used.”
    “Then you did see his lair before the king’s mages got
to it?”
    “Yes.”
    “What was he doing?”
    Jez looked around. Villia pursed her lips but nodded
after a few seconds. She motioned for him to follow, and they went to her
workshop. She waved a hand, and when she spoke, her voice came out sounding
flat. The sounds drifting in from outside became a muted buzz.
    “I’m shielding us from sound. Even if anyone would
dare to try to listen in, they wouldn’t be able to hear us. Now, tell me about
Dusan.”
    Jez nodded and briefly related how Dusan had
eventually summoned the demon lord Marrowit, only to have it destroy him. Jez
had followed the demon into the dream world and defeated it in its place of
power and thus utterly destroying it. The only thing he left out was the truth
about his own past, letting Villia believe he was a limaph.
    “The runes that appeared in the air in Varin’s
quarters,” Jez said. “They were the same ones Dusan used.”
    “You think he’s trying to summon this Marrowit?”
    “Maybe. He would have no way of knowing Marrowit was
destroyed.”
    Villia looked at him for several seconds before
nodding. “All