The Chain (The Secret of Spellshadow Manor #3)

It was up to them to find it, but even that held a flicker of uncertainty for Alex.

What are we supposed to do when we do find it? he thought anxiously, staring out into the darkness that hid his goal from him. He thought again of Spellshadow, and wondered if they were simply out of the frying pan and into a much worse fire. At least at Spellshadow there had been glimpses of the real world, but this alien land did not feel like the real world at all. The magic that crackled in the air around him like static electricity reminded him of that fact. Yes, they had escaped Spellshadow, but not into the real, human, non-magical world he longed for.

Pushing away a looming sense of worry, Alex looked back at his friends in the clearing, who were resting easy because he had promised to watch over them. That promise, he knew, went beyond that night. It was his duty now. His stoic gaze rested on each one with fondness, despite any former misgivings, though it rested a little bit longer on the curled-up figure of Ellabell. There was a dogged determination within him to make good on his promises and his responsibilities.

Turning back to the distant, shadowed shore, somehow it no longer seemed quite as frightening. Instead of being filled with the unknown, Alex shifted his perspective, trying to see it instead as a land of untapped possibility. Beyond that darkened horizon was a way out. Alex didn’t know what form it would take, but he knew he had to find it, whether it be another portal to another land, leading them home, or a person or thing along the way that might help them, or a bargaining chip that would keep his friends safe and maybe, just maybe, lead them out of this magical realm and back into the real world.





Chapter 2





Alex turned sharply at the sound of a twig crunching underfoot, but it was only Jari, coming to relieve him of his watch. Looking up, Alex could see that it was almost dawn, the starry black of the night’s sky diluted to a hazy mauve.

“How did you sleep?” asked Alex.

Jari gave him a groggy thumbs-down. “Not good.”

“Go back to sleep if you want,” Alex said, but Jari shook his head.

“No, man, it’s your turn. You look like hell.” He grinned, plucking a stray leaf from Alex’s hair, which had taken on a mind of its own.

Alex grimaced and stretched out his arms, feeling the stiffness in his spine from staying in one spot for too long.

Jari sat down companionably beside him and gazed out at the lake.

“It’s beautiful, huh?”

Alex nodded stiffly. “It’s definitely something.”

“Weird that the Head had it there all along, though. He must have really liked the view,” mused Jari as he stretched out his limbs too.

“I suppose he must have,” replied Alex, trying to keep the bitterness out of his voice.

“Hey, I meant to thank you last night, for what you did for Aamir,” Jari said. “I was too beat to say it before.” He looked over his shoulder at the sleeping figure of Aamir.

“How is he?”

Jari shrugged. “Not good. I don’t know what that band did to him, but he’s in a bad way. He’s strong, though. He’s a fighter… He’ll pull through.”

Curious, Alex got up and walked over to where Aamir was lying on the ground, with Jari following close behind. Resting his hand against Aamir’s forehead, Alex was shocked by the blazing heat that came from his friend’s skin. He was burning up, and there was a sheen of sweat across his face, though his lips seemed to tremble as if he were cold.

Alex tore a strip from the bottom edge of his plain t-shirt and jogged to the edge of the lake to dip it in. As soon as his fingers made contact with the water, a ripple of ice-cold energy snaked up his arm, and, as he looked down, he noticed a pulse of silver seemed to glow beneath the skin. When he removed his fingers, the cloth thoroughly drenched, the glow ebbed as the water dried on his hands. Frowning but undeterred, he made his way back over to Aamir and placed the dampened compress on the young man’s forehead, letting the cooling water soothe the heat of the fever. It seemed to help, as the furrow of Aamir’s brow relaxed slightly.

Sitting nearby, careful to keep their voices low in respect for the other sleepers, Alex and Jari fell into easy conversation. There was plenty to talk about, after all, but one thing in particular seemed to be on Jari’s mind.

“So, what are we going to do next?”

“We find Stillwater House and see if we can get some help finding a way out or overthrowing the Head and rescuing those we left behind,” replied Alex, hoping Jari didn’t hear the big ifs in his plan.

Jari frowned. “Is there a Stillwater House?”

“It says so in that note I found, and the Head did mention it once.” Alex grimaced, realizing the basis of his evidence was somewhat fragile.

“What are these havens, anyway?”

By now, the words were etched in Alex’s brain. “Of our havens, nine remained. Of those nine, we now have four. If you are magical, seek these places. Kingstone Keep. Falleaf House. Stillwater House. Spellshadow Manor,” he recited.

“What the hell does that mean?” asked Jari, gawping at Alex in exasperation.

Alex tried not to laugh at the confused expression on Jari’s face. “They’re schools or places of magical relevance.”

“Meaning?”

“They’re full of mages and magic.”

“And?”

“And mages might be able to help us,” said Alex. “Or if there aren’t any people willing to help us, I’m sure there will be something we can use at Stillwater.”

Jari lapsed into a span of silence, mulling over Alex’s words.

“I’m gonna get some sleep,” Alex muttered.

He found the most comfortable-looking patch of grass he could and lay down in the shadow of hanging branches. He slept poorly, all the sounds and scents unfamiliar to him, keeping him on a high alert that woke him briefly every hour or less.

When he awoke to the sun higher in the sky, the warmth of it pleasant on his tired face, he gave up on the hope of more sleep and rose to find that everyone else was awake too, except for Aamir, who twisted and turned on the grass in the throes of a fitful slumber. His skin was glistening with sweat, but the compress had been changed, the material of the new one matching the shirt Jari wore.

Approaching the rest of the group, Alex could see that the night’s rest hadn’t removed the broken, exhausted look from their faces. They were still tired, hungry, and thirsty. He knew because it had been hours since they had last eaten or drunk anything, and his own stomach ached with emptiness, his throat dry.

One pleasant surprise was seeing Natalie awake, though she didn’t look much better.

“How are you feeling?” he asked as he sat down on the grass beside her.

She smiled weakly. “I am much better.”

Alex wasn’t convinced. “What did you do for us, back there?”