Now Hastings studied him with more interest than before. “I’ve heard of the Dragon, of course, although I’m new to the Wizard Council. The Dragon’s not actually on the council. He keeps his identity hidden, but has considerable influence. Why do you ask?”
“I want to find him. I have some information that could help him.” Seph meant to make Jason’s mission his own. Only, he was even younger than Jason, as Hastings immediately pointed out.
“You’re too young to get involved in wizard politics. It’s not a game for children. I already have the reputation of being careless with the lives of children,” Hastings added, rubbing his chin.
“I’m not a child,” Seph said hotly.
“I’m sure you are not. Not after a year at the Havens.” Hastings was about to say more, when there was a choking sound, like a gasp, from the doorway, and Seph realized they were no longer alone. They both looked up to see Linda Downey standing there.
“Lee! What are you doing here?” she demanded. She was looking from Seph to Hastings and back again.
Hastings rose easily to his feet. “It’s good to see you too, Linda.” He stepped forward, extending both hands, but she stepped back, so he let them drop after a moment. He towered over the enchanter, and the air shimmered between them like two weather fronts meeting. Seph filed the information away.
“I hadn’t heard you were coming,” Linda said finally. “What a surprise.” Her voice was flat.
Hastings nodded. “I didn’t know you would be here, either. I showed up unannounced, but Becka was kind enough to invite me to dinner. I was just getting to know Seph, here.”
“I thought you were at the beach,” she said to Seph, in a tone that made him wish he were.
“I came back early,” he explained hastily. “Jack should be home pretty soon.” As he spoke, they heard someone at the back door.
“Seph? You hiding out in here? I have five messages for you.” Jack was laughing as he came onto the porch. He stopped short when he saw Hastings. “Mr. Hastings! I didn’t realize you were here. I would have come home sooner.” This was one wizard he seemed pleased to see.
“Does Mom know you’re here?”
“I already saw her,” Hastings said. “I brought her some old books from the UK that I thought she might enjoy.”
Seph looked from Jack to Hastings to Linda Downey. He was already sure that dinner would be interesting.
Dinner was interesting. Becka put salmon into the smoker and there were grilled vegetables, warm bread from the bakery, and fresh sweet corn. She had bought raspberries and whipping cream, so Seph made crepes for dessert.
Aside from the food, dinner was a feast of secrets. And all of them revolved around Leander Hastings. Linda was brooding about something and had little to say to anyone. Seph realized quickly that Jack and Hastings had a history Becka knew nothing about. She and Hastings got into a spirited discussion about Celtic archaeology that lasted through most of the meal. Yet Becka seemed tentative, unsure of herself where the wizard was concerned. And Seph noticed Hastings looking at him intently several times.
If he was hoping for more private time with Hastings after dinner, he was disappointed. The adults sat on the porch, talking and drinking wine until late. Finally, Hastings thanked Becka for hosting him and said goodbye to Jack and Seph. When he came to Linda, he took both her hands firmly and lifted her to her feet. “Can you walk me out, Linda?” It was more a command than a request. Seph wondered what the wizard was up to.
Maybe he was going to tell Linda about Seph’s plans to find the Dragon.
He felt disappointed. He was convinced that Hastings knew where to find the Dragon, but obviously he wasn’t going to share that information with Seph.
The air outside was soft with the exhalation of the lake. When Linda and Hastings reached Hastings’s car, he opened the passenger-side door. “Get in,” he said, and walked around to the other side without waiting for a response.
Fine, she thought. It would give her a chance to speak her mind to Hastings. She got in.
Hastings climbed in the driver’s side, but he didn’t put the key into the ignition. “I want to talk to you about the boy,” he said.
“If you mean Seph, I have something to say to you, too.” She looked him in the eyes. “Stay away from him, Leander. Don’t get him involved in any of your schemes. Even if he wants to be. He’s already been hurt, and I don’t want to see him hurt any more.”
“My schemes?” Hastings raised an eyebrow. Linda glared at him, so he sighed and sat back in his seat, draping his arms across the steering wheel. “How well do you know him?” he asked.
“I’ve known Seph all his life,” Linda replied. “Why?”
“He says he just met you this summer,” Hastings said mildly. “And I’m wondering why I’ve never heard of him before.”
Linda hesitated. “Well, maybe our relationship has been a bit . . . one-sided.”
“So you know him but you’d never actually spoken to him?” Hastings rubbed his hand along his jaw.
“I’ve been his guardian since he was a baby,” Linda said sharply. “Why? What are you getting at?”
“If you’re his guardian, then how in bloody hell did the boy end up at the Havens?”
Linda shifted uncomfortably on the seat. “I . . . I didn’t arrange the placement. I never . . . I never made the connection. I didn’t realize he was in trouble until the end of the school year.” Guilt swept over her.
Hastings was blunt. “I don’t believe in coincidences. I know Gregory Leicester, and I know what he does to his students. If Seph McCauley spent a year there, then you have to assume Leicester has control of him now.”
“That’s impossible,” Linda said flatly. “He was a mess when I found him. It was all I could do to get him out of there. Leicester was ready to kill him. And then they tried to keep us from getting to Trinity.”
“How did you happen to take him out of school?” Hastings asked. He’d turned away from the light, and she couldn’t read his expression in the darkness.
“He sent out an e-mail asking for help.” Hastings was silent. “Come on, Leander. You don’t think this is some kind of trick, do you?”
“This might be just where Leicester wants him to be, right in the middle of the Sanctuary, right next to you, Nick, Jack, and Ellen: all the people who ruined their tournament last year and engineered the change in the rules.”
“How would they know he’d end up here? It’s like I told you. Seph didn’t even know about me until I showed up at school.”
“What did he tell you about school?”
“He . . . well . . . he wouldn’t tell me much. But you could tell from the way he looked that—”
“Don’t be naïve. Look, as soon as he met me, he was asking about the Dragon and where he could find him. Said he wanted to help him. The boy’s just a child, but he’s powerful. Powerful enough to overwhelm you. Don’t you see? It’s too risky to leave him here.”
Linda made an irritated sound. “You’re right about one thing. He is a child. He’s just an untrained boy who’s been through hell this past year. And now he needs to heal.”
Hastings turned and took Linda’s hands. She flinched and tried to withdraw them, but he held tight, exerting pressure of his own. “Let me take him with me. I promise I won’t hurt him. Given a little time, perhaps I can undo the damage. It might help us learn more about what Leicester is up to, and how to help his victims.”
“That’s what it’s all about, isn’t it?” she said bitterly. “You’re hoping to use Seph to help you win.”
“We have to win, Linda,” Hastings said softly, urgently, searching her eyes. “You know that as well as I do.”
She withdrew her hands. “Yes, we do,” she agreed. “But not over the body of this boy. I’m not letting him leave the Sanctuary.” When she saw his expression, she squared her shoulders and her chin came up. “Don’t try to bully me. And don’t try to go behind my back, either. If you lay a
finger on him, or talk him into anything, there will be a war between us, I promise you.”
She pushed open the car door and slipped out into the darkness.
The next morning, Seph was awakened by a tapping at his bedroom door. He pulled on his shorts and went to open it. It was Linda. “Let’s go get some breakfast,” she suggested.
Seph shrugged. “Okay.” She had dark circles under her eyes, as though she hadn’t slept well. He wondered why. He’d been sleeping better and better as the summer progressed and memories of the Havens faded.
He pulled his T-shirt over his head and picked up his flip-flops, padding downstairs barefoot. They slipped out of the back door, and he sat down on the stoop to put on his shoes. He could tell it was going to be another hot day, but the morning was still and cool and fragrant with the scent of the hydrangeas that crowded the foundation of the house.
They stopped at a coffee shop down by the university and picked up bagels, juice, and coffee, and then drove to the beach. It was nearly deserted, save a few early-morning walkers, and the snack bar sat silent at the top of the cliff. They picked their way down the ancient stairway to the sand and walked out to the end of the pier. There they sat down, took off their shoes, and dangled their feet over the water. Sea gulls wheeled over their heads, hoping for a handout. Way off to their right, the sun gleamed over the horizon, turning the tops of the waves to gold. The air carried with it the scent of Canada, fresh and clean, across the water.
He thought about Toronto, far to the north and east. He wondered who was living in his old house now, if they still took in guests, if they’d kept the big commercial range and the tiny-print wallpaper.
“How do you like it here in Trinity?” Linda said finally.
“Well,” Seph said. “I never thought I’d like living in a small town, but I do. Mercedes and Blaise and the other neighbors mind your business too much, but I like them. Jack and Ellen are really cool. They take me with them when they go out with their friends, and I’ve been meeting a lot of people. At the beach,” he added, thinking of Madison. “Nick is awesome.”
Linda gave a quick nod, as if satisfied. “I’m wondering about school in the fall.” She gazed down at the water percolating around the rocks.
“I’m sure I’ll be okay, wherever I go,” Seph said. “Now that I have more training.”
“Do you always have to be so damn agreeable about everything?”
Seph said nothing. He couldn’t recall anyone applying that particular term to him before.
“What would you think about going to school here in Trinity?”
He looked up, startled. “That’d be okay. Sure.” His only contacts with the Wizard Guild were Leander Hastings and Gregory Leicester. And his connection with Hastings ran right through Trinity. “But . . . how could I? I can’t stay with Becka forever.”
“You probably could. Becka is absolutely taken with you, Seph.” She paused. “I could get a house here, too. I can’t promise to spend all my time in Trinity, but you could stay with me when I’m here and with Becka when I’m not.”
Seph couldn’t hide his surprise. He’d had the impression Linda never stayed in one place for long, never even wanted to say how long she would stay when she visited. He’d been thinking she might be ready to get back to London, that only her concern for him was keeping her in Trinity.
“That’d work. Only . . .” He paused, and then rushed ahead. “I’m going to have to leave the Sanctuary one of these days. I like it here, but I don’t want to be a prisoner. I’m used to big cities, and I haven’t been anywhere all summer. Don’t you think it’s safe now?”
“I don’t know,” she said, looking out at the water as if she might find answers in the waves. “I’ll feel better when the year is over. Maybe you could go to school here this year, and then we’ll see.” She brushed bagel crumbs off her lap and clasped her hands together. “I’ve been wondering how you’re doing. I mean, if you’ve been able to . . . come to grips with what happened at school last year. If . . . you’d like to talk about it.”
He looked straight at Linda and said, “I’m doing the best I can.” And that was God’s truth.
She backed off. “Okay. I’ll register you at the high school and we’ll see how it goes.”
Seph smiled. He had never had the chance to participate in this kind of decision making before, and he liked it. “Fine with me,” he said.
“And, Seph, one more thing.” He looked up. “Be careful with Leander Hastings.”
“What do you mean?” He remembered Linda and Hastings walking out together the night before, and wondered what they’d talked about.
“He and his allies have done a lot to keep people like Gregory Leicester in check. He’s always focused on the big picture. But sometimes he runs over innocent people on his way.”
“He said he has the reputation of being careless with the lives of children,” Seph said. “What did he mean?”
“Oh, he told you that? But he didn’t explain it, of course. Last year, in the tournament, he was Jack’s sponsor in the Game.” Linda sipped at her coffee. “Leander talked him into fighting. In the end, it turned out well. But he’s a gambler. He takes chances with other people’s lives.” Linda put her hand under Seph’s chin and turned his face so she could look him in the eyes. “You could be next.”
“Oh, I don’t think so,” Seph said. “He didn’t seem too interested in me.”
Linda shook her head. “You’re wrong. You don’t know him like I do. Just remember what I said.”
Later, during his wizardry lesson, Seph had a question for Nick. “Why does Linda Downey dislike Leander Hastings so much?”
The wizard glanced up at him sharply. “What gives you that idea?” They were sitting in the kitchen of Nick’s apartment. A large floor fan whirred at their feet. “She warned me to watch out for him. She doesn’t trust him.”
Nick sighed. “Linda’s feelings for Leander are complex. She doesn’t entirely trust him, that is true.” He paused, as if considering how much to share. “Linda and Leander were—ah—involved years ago.”
“What?” Seph looked up at his teacher in surprise. “You wouldn’t know it.”
“Well, yes, Seph, you would know it, if you were older and just a bit wiser. Their past makes it difficult for them to deal with each other in the present.”
Seph remembered the tension between the wizard and the enchanter, the spark and energy. He thought about Linda’s warning. “Is Hastings a bad man?”
“No, I wouldn’t say he’s a bad man. He is one of those wizards who has improved with age. He was quite dangerous and impulsive when he was young. Still dangerous, I suppose.” Nick fell silent for a moment, frowning at some old memory. “Leander’s father was a wizard and his mother Anaweir. His older sister, Carrie, was a warrior. The family did its best to keep her out of the tournaments, but the Roses eventually tracked her down and she was killed. His father died defending her. His mother was never the same. Leander was ten at the time.
“By the time he was your age, he was already fighting a personal war against the wizard-dominated hierarchy and the tournament system. He has never been afraid of a fight. Never afraid of dying, either.”
“But . . . if Aunt Linda and Mr. Hastings agree about the tournaments and all?” Seph persisted, wanting to understand.
Nick smiled. “These are difficult times. Linda and Leander may agree about the ends, but often disagree about the means.” He put his hand on Seph’s shoulder. “They are both very powerful people in their own way. They will pull you, Seph, whether you like it or not. Eventually, you’ll have to decide for yourself.”
Chapter Thirteen
A Picnic on the River
Seph saw no more of Leander Hastings, reinforcing his belief that the wizard had no particular interest in him. The next day was Thursday, Madison’s day off; the day of the picnic. She said she knew of a good place, and she was the one with the car. She suggested he bring his swimming gear, so
he assumed it would be somewhere up on the lake.
The house had emptied out early. Jack had gone to play soccer with Will and Harmon, trying to beat the heat of the day. Becka was in court, and Linda was actually out looking at real estate.
Seph was just loading the cooler when Madison tapped on the screen door. “Come on in,” he said. “I’m just about ready.”
She wore a green tie-dyed sundress over her bathing suit, a wide-brimmed hat, and sandals. Her glittering hair was partly braided and beaded, partly hanging free, like rivulets down her back.
“This is a great neighborhood,” she said. “I’d like to paint this entire street. It’s like a whole shelf of wedding cakes, each fancier than the last.” She looked around the kitchen, at Seph’s bags and parcels. “Who else did you invite?” she asked in amazement.
She helped him carry it all out to her old pickup. They loaded the food into the back, under a tarp.
“Do you come from a big family, that you live in such a big house?” she asked.
He shook his head, sliding into the passenger side and buckling his seat belt. “There’s just me. Like I told you, that’s Becka’s house. I’m staying here for the summer, at least.”
She turned left on Jefferson, toward downtown, ramming up through the manual gears. Seph liked that she drove stick shift. “What are you, a senior?” she asked.
He nodded. “Will be. What about you?”
“I’ll be a senior, too. But I’m going to be taking classes at Trinity in the fall. At the Art Institute.” She ducked her head away as she said it, as if he might question her right to be there.
“Wow. Congratulations. I hear it’s hard to get in. But how do you take classes at the college if you’re still in high school?”
“I’ll be there as a post-secondary student. Here in Ohio, you can take college classes for free while you’re still in high school. The school district pays for it.” Madison’s cheeks went pink as she warmed to her subject. “My art teacher at Coal Grove High School set it up. She said I’d really improve with the right teacher, and I can get col-lege credit without having to pay for it. I’m going to be living with my cousin and working at the inn, so . . .” She shrugged self-consciously, and Seph realized she must be nervous about fitting in as a high school student at an elite private school like Trinity College.
The Heir Chronicles: Books I-III Page 56