Spell Fade

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Book: Read Spell Fade for Free Online
Authors: J. Daniel Layfield
ready, because it means leaving all of this behind.”
    Was he comfortable here? Had he ever felt like there should be something more for him? He thought back to the conversation with Alain, and the answer was the same. No, he had never felt special. He was lucky to have all he did.
    “I’ve never wanted more than we had,” Dartan said. “It was always enough.” Mother smiled, squeezed his arm again, and turned back to the wagon.
    “Perhaps you are ready after all,” she said softly. Then, too quiet for Dartan to hear, “At least I certainly hope you are. For all our sakes.”
    “Well, if you don’t know what Alain wants with me, do you have any idea who is coming for me, or why?” He sensed she was nearing ready to leave, but he wasn’t ready to let her go yet.
    “I suspect it has something to do with your birth mother,” she answered without turning. “And before you even ask, it is not my place to tell you about her.” Mother climbed into the front of the wagon and took the reins in her hands.
    “Who can I ask about her?” Dartan moved beside her, and looking up he felt like a small child again. It was probably at the same height difference as was between them now since the last time he had asked about her, but he still remembered the look. It was love and sadness in equal measures, just as it was now. This time though, she could do more than silently shake her head.
    “Ask the wizard,” she said with a small sigh. “He’s the one who insisted on all the secrecy. It’s about time he started answering some of your questions.” She reached down and ruffled his hair, something she had not done since he was a boy. “Go and get your things ready. It won’t be long now.”
    “Am I supposed to just sit here, by myself, until he decides to show up?” A whinny echoed from the barn. “Sorry, Josie!” he called back. “Are we supposed to just sit around, waiting for him to show up?”
    “Don’t worry,” she whispered, “you won’t be waiting by yourself.” She gave him a wink then snapped the reins and said, “Get going, Horace.”
    Now what did she mean by that, he wondered, but it was too late to ask. The wagon was moving and she wasn’t looking back. She slowed slightly, steering towards the right side of the path, revealing a figure in the road. Aliet.
    “Morning, Ms. Marion.” Dartan heard her voice faintly. The wagon slowed a bit more, but didn’t stop.
    “Morning,” Mother answered back. She shot a quick glance back at Dartan before adding, “Go easy on him, dear. It’s been an interesting couple of days for him.” Aliet fixed her gaze on Dartan and he actually felt the anger hit him in the chest. So much for ‘taking it easy’.
    Mother snapped the reigns and gave one last parting good-bye. “Take care of him for me!” The anger in Aliet’s eyes gave way to confusion. She turned to question Mother about the comment, but she had already given Horace a bit of encouragement, and was well out of earshot by then. When Aliet turned back, Dartan could clearly see his fate. The flushed cheeks, narrowed eyes, thin lips, set jaw, and hands clenched into fists – she was certainly going to ‘take care of him’. Probably not the best choice of phrase Mother could have picked, he thought as she stomped towards him, raising small puffs of dust with every step. Dartan braced himself.
    “Three days!” she punctuated with a two-handed shove to Dartan’s chest. He took a few steps back to keep his balance, and she followed, keeping her face in his, which was no small feat considering she was nearly a foot shorter than him. “Three days, Dartan,” she repeated, this time replacing the shove with three fingers in his face for emphasis. Dartan flinched involuntarily, which made Aliet stop. She took a deep breath and stepped back, giving him some space. The anger was still there when she spoke, but it was under more control now.
    “We’ve seen each other every day since we first met.”

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