Scholar of Magic (Art of the Adept #3) - Michael G. Manning Page 0,23

That was close to unbelievable. “Nothing?”

She nodded, then tapped her nose. “There wasn’t even a scent trail. Even creatures that can mask their turyn can’t do that.”

“Could they have slipped through a congruence? Or maybe they didn’t leave?”

“There were no congruences nearby, and if they’d stayed, I would have found them. I waited and kept an eye on the area for another hour before coming back here, just to see if they’d hidden somehow. If they were still there, they were more patient than I am.”

None of that made Will feel better. He started for the door.

“Don’t bother,” said Tailtiu. “You’ll only make matters worse.”

“I can’t just ignore this.”

“If the watcher does come back, you’ll be spotted immediately,” explained Tailtiu. “Without magic, you don’t have a chance in hell of remaining unobserved, and you’ve already discovered you’re no match for this one in hand-to-hand combat. I’ll watch the house until you’ve recovered.”

Although he felt relieved, Will couldn’t help but ask, “Doesn’t that conflict with your other promise?”

“It was decided that this was a reasonable exception.”

He stared at the fae woman with sudden interest. “You saw her? You spoke to her? What did she say? Is she well?”

His aunt laughed. “I spoke with Mother. I haven’t seen your lover any more recently than you have.”

Will frowned. “But isn’t she with Aislinn? I thought surely—”

Tailtiu cut him off, “I have no idea where she is. Mother doesn’t share all her secrets with me.”

“But…”

“Rest easy, nephew. Mother is no fool. Wherever she’s stashed your girl I’m sure she’s safe.”

Unless the king figured out that his daughter wasn’t where he thought she was. If he decided to, he could use the heart-stone enchantment to summon her back. Will worried about that possibility, and it was one reason he’d gone along with the plan to have Tailtiu impersonate Selene. So long as the king thought she was still within close reach, he seemed content to leave things be. Will ran a hand through his hair in frustration. As usual, the only thing he could do was nothing at all.

Chapter 6

The next morning Will noticed that he was once again collecting more stares from his fellow students. It was something he had gotten used to, both before and after his marriage to Selene, for various reasons. Lately the attention had died down some, but it appeared he had once again become an active topic of discussion.

He and Janice couldn’t really talk during class, so she held her questions until the lecture was over, but she was careful not to let him get out of sight as they exited. She caught his sleeve in the hall outside. “Don’t even think about trying to escape,” she warned him.

His expression was droll. “I knew better than to try.” Glancing around, he saw nearly everyone in their vicinity was watching them with interest. Some of them appeared ready to approach and try to start conversations. “Want to get some air?” he asked Janice.

She flashed a warm smile, which reminded him of why he liked her so much. Janice was probably his best friend at Wurthaven, and while they had had a few problems because of some romantic interest, she hadn’t let it interfere with their relationship as friends. “Let’s go,” she replied.

Outside, they were able to keep some distance from their fellow students, but only so long as they remained on the move. “Stephanie was telling some remarkable stories yesterday,” began Janice, “and for once you sounded like a hero rather than a villain.”

He shrugged modestly.

“I was tempted to disbelieve her tale, since it cast you in a positive light, until they took you out of class yesterday.”

Will frowned. “That was unkind.”

Janice grinned. “It’s not that I think poorly of you, you understand. It’s just hard to believe anyone else would think kindly of you.”

He snorted. “What did she say?”

“That you saved the work crew at the dam by keeping the entire thing from collapsing.”

“That doesn’t seem humanly possible.”

Janice nodded. “She said she