The Chain (The Secret of Spellshadow Manor #3)

“I’m very much looking forward to having a Spellbreaker here at our fine school,” she purred, something strange lurking behind her eyes.

“I look forward to learning here,” he replied bitterly, trying to feign enthusiasm, though he knew neither of them was buying it.

“Our history and that of your kind are so closely linked, it makes perfect sense.” She smiled, her delicate wrist gesturing out toward the glittering lake behind her.

Alex forced down the bile that threatened to rise up his throat as he watched the smug expression spread across her face. He didn’t trust himself to speak, but that didn’t mean Alypia wasn’t going to. It was clear she had something she wished to get off her chest. A look of delight flashed in her peculiar eyes as she opened her mouth to speak.

“Let’s not forget,” she whispered menacingly, as she turned to glance out toward the gleaming water, “the very foundation of Stillwater House is built upon the backs of Spellbreakers.”





Chapter 31





It didn’t take long for class schedules to arrive, though Alex suspected Alypia’s hand in the swiftness of their delivery; the sooner she could distract the five friends, the better. The others had all received theirs, but they were different from Alex’s, as he had known they would be.

His sessions, as promised, were to be with the Headmistress and one other teacher, named Master Demeter, one-on-one. Alex wasn’t sure how he felt about that, wondering if it was intentional to make him feel isolated from the others. At no point in the schedule did his educational path cross with those of his friends, not even for subjects such as Clockwork, which he didn’t think he needed to be segregated for. It confirmed Alex’s suspicions that he was being kept away from them as much as possible.

He wasn’t the only one with a differing schedule, however. On closer inspection, it appeared that Aamir’s was different too. Alex supposed it made sense, considering Aamir had been in his final year at Spellshadow. But the older boy’s skillset was not up to the standard of final-year Stillwater students, so it was revealed that he was to have private, one-on-one sessions also, to build him up to the same levels that were expected of a final-year Stillwater student. The two of them shared a curious look as they went over their schedules. Alex could tell Aamir was wondering why he had been segregated too, when he could just as easily have joined a year-group of a similar skill level. Alypia, it seemed, was still playing games with them, although to what end, Alex couldn’t be sure.

Natalie seemed excited about the prospect of learning again, especially from teachers who were so formidable and encouraging of their students. There was only so much that could be self-taught, as Alex knew too well, and all of them knew they were a touch rusty after so long without any real guidance.

“I wonder what we will learn?” Natalie squealed, a renewed vigor in her dark eyes as she looked over the lessons she would be attending. Alex peered over her shoulder at her schedule and spotted some unusual class titles, including Mechanoid Magic and Barrier Combat.

Ellabell seemed excited too, though she was less vocal about it. There was a nervous energy about her as her eyes scanned the schedule she had been given.

“Looks like we have most of our classes together!” she exclaimed to Natalie.

As the two girls went on speculating about what the classes would be like, Alex felt somewhat envious. He wished he could have the comfort of being with his friends throughout the day—and have every class with Ellabell. Still, he was glad she wouldn’t be on her own with a bunch of strangers who had still not made up their minds about the newcomers, thanks to Alex’s behavior in the arena. The Stillwater students showed a general wariness toward the group of them, guilty as they were by association with Alex. But Alex could see that his friends were eager to start classes. It was a routine they had all been lacking, of late, and one they knew they could slot easily back into. No matter whether it was magical or non-magical, school was school.

The only one who had yet to receive a schedule was Jari, who was still safely tucked away in the infirmary, enjoying the daily attentions of Helena. The young woman still felt responsible for not knowing what was going to happen to Jari in the arena, and she seemed to be seeking his forgiveness by spending as much time with him as he wished. It had all worked out unexpectedly well for the boy, who had even whispered a “thank you” to Alex, the last time he had been there, when he had caught sight of Helena coming into the room with a plateful of cakes, cookies, and drinks. Jari was living a life of luxury, and it made Alex smile—at least someone was benefitting from the danger of this place.

“Well, we’d better be off,” announced Ellabell, checking her schedule.

With that, the others departed to their various lessons. Aamir had a private tutorial at the same time, in the same wing, but Alex had a thirty-minute window before he was due at his first session with Master Demeter, on the other side of the villa. His lesson was to take place in a room just off the Queen’s Courtyard, giving Alex an idea as he set off toward it; with thirty minutes to kill, he had more than enough time to fetch the book he had stowed away, and now he had an excuse if anyone were to stop him.

Alex walked toward the wall, striding quickly across the empty courtyard, which wasn’t being used that morning. Reaching toward the stonework, he was just about to begin his upward climb when a trumpet blared loudly above his head, from somewhere farther up the battlements. Intrigue pulled Alex’s attention from his hidden book as he quickly scaled the wall and ducked down, sprinting as fast as he could in the direction of the sound, careful to skirt past the guard-posts as he did so, to avoid detection. Technically, he wasn’t going against the terms he had agreed to; he wasn’t outside the walls, he was merely on them. Still, he knew Alypia wasn’t a shades-of-gray kind of person. She was entirely black and white, and he didn’t want to test her patience so soon after their last meeting.

In the near distance, he saw people moving toward the villa.