Scholar of Magic (Art of the Adept #3) - Michael G. Manning Page 0,56

with desperate urgency.

He closed his eyes again, burying his face in her hair. As always, he loved her scent, though it was different now. Gone was the lavender, replaced with a faint impression of pine and some sort of spice he didn’t recognize. It reminded him of the mountains for some reason. Is Aislinn keeping her in some remote mountainous area of Faerie?

“I’ve missed you terribly,” she whispered into his neck. “You have no idea what it’s been like for me.”

Will relaxed his arms and pushed her back just far enough to bring their lips into line for a kiss. It only lasted a moment, then he squeezed her close again. “Arrogan was her student once. He told me she was meaner than him, and he was pretty awful to me.”

“She isn’t teaching me, Will. It’s just torture. I haven’t learned a thing.”

“It seems like that at first.”

“No, I’m not exaggerating. There’s no training. Nothing. I’m a glorified servant—no, that’s not right either. I’m a humiliated servant. I do nothing but clean and work for—” She stopped suddenly.

“What?” he asked.

She squeezed him tighter. “I’m sorry. She forbade me from telling you certain things that might give away where I’ve been staying, so I can’t say who I’m working for.”

“You aren’t working for her?”

She shook her head. “I only see her once a day, and that’s only so she can insult me. I’d go insane if it weren’t for—for my friend. He’s the only one who treats me like a human being.”

He? Will felt a sudden surge of irrational jealousy. “You can’t tell me his name?”

“The name would give away certain things.”

If it was Edward or Tom it wouldn’t tell me much, so it must be a foreign name, he mused. Swallowing his jealousy, he tried to reassure her. “At least you have a friend.”

She nodded. “Just one. The others—they see us almost as animals. I’m just a slave to them.”

“The fae?” he asked, but she didn’t answer. If it was the fae, wouldn’t she have just admitted it? Does that mean she’s somewhere else? He couldn’t decide.

“Enough about me,” she responded. “I’m disgusted by what that man did to you!”

“Your father?”

“I don’t want to think of him as my father anymore. He’s a monster. What you did was admirable but please don’t do it again. I love Laina, but I can’t bear to think of you being hurt for my sake. Whatever that man does isn’t your fault.”

He pushed her back so he could look at her, trying to memorize her features so they wouldn’t fade during their next long separation. “I didn’t do it for you. She’s my sister.”

“Then next time remember how important you are to me. Put your safety first.” Her expression was so emphatic that Will found himself captured by the movement of her lips. They drew him in, and their second kiss was longer than the first.

He broke away at last. There was much more he needed to tell her. “As for your training, if it’s like mine was, then you mustn’t give up hope.”

“She isn’t teaching me anything!”

“There’s nothing to be taught; she’s waiting for you to be ready.”

Her reply was saturated with frustration. “Ready for what?”

Will shrugged. “I don’t know how to explain it. Heck, maybe that’s why Arrogan never explained it to me, because he knew I’d ask endless questions that he didn’t have answers for.”

“It still doesn’t make sense.”

“Grandfather once told me that it was easier to teach someone who hadn’t learned to use magic yet. I think she’s trying to help you get used to being without magic before she tries the next step.”

“With as much time as I’m wasting, it would be better to just start and deal with the problems as they come.”

He shook his head. “No. The next step is dangerous. You could die if you aren’t ready for it.”

Selene stared at him thoughtfully. “I remember you saying that once before, but I figured you were just