Crimson Wind Read Online Free PDF Page A

the stairs.
    He landed in a crouch, one hand on the floor. He scanned the room. The vault was a round room cut into the heart of the mountain. Veins of crystal, gems, and metals streaked across the polished floor and walls. A shimmering barrier of magic hung across the middle, cutting the room in half and separating the stairway from a dilapidated door on the other side of the stone room. It appeared to be made of scraps of wood, as if a mild breeze would blow it to pieces. Alexander knew better. That door was made of magic and opened only when its maker—the extraordinarily powerful creature Max had mockingly dubbed Scooter—chose to allow it.
    He stood and turned to the wall beside the stairs, where a yellow starburst of quartz gleamed brightly on the wall. He slapped his hand against it and the ward within deactivated. The curtain vanished. The smell of Divine magic permeated the air—at once acrid and warmly mellow. He started across the room, jerking to a halt when Niko grabbed his arm and spun him around. He had been so intent on his purpose that he had not heard the other man arrive.
    Niko flinched from the animal rage in Alexander’s eyes but did not let go.
    “Wait for the others,” he said, then carefully lifted his hand. “I’m not your enemy. Not at the moment, anyway.”
    Alexander’s lip curled. “If you keep me from helping Max, then you sure as hell are.”
    “She didn’t invite any of us to her party.”
    Alexander stared. This was not like Niko. “Does she ever invite you to the bad ones?” His attention moved inexorably back to the door. “She does what she has to to keep you safe, even if it means walking into a death trap. She is in trouble.”
    “She’s in trouble a lot. She can handle it.” But Niko did not sound convinced.
    “You are stalling.”
    The other man winced. “I’m being smart. We can’t do this alone. I’m hoping a little help will show up.”
    Alexander’s mouth flattened. As powerful a creature as Scooter was, he did not know if a hundred Blades could help Max. His jaw tightened. You are the gift and the answer. I will wait for your return, and we will walk the web roads together. Those had been Scooter’s last words to Max four weeks ago. Alexander remembered them vividly. Her expression when she heard the words had been fatalistic and annoyed, as if she did not entirely know what they meant, but she was willing to pay any price, since it meant protecting Horngate. At the time, she had no doubt been certain of dying in battle, and she had probably figured the point hardly worth considering. But she had survived, and now—what gift and answer was Scooter expecting Max to be?
    You will be Prime.
    His stomach churned, and he ground his teeth together, feeling them crack, the momentary flicker of pain flashing through his jaws. I have to get her back. The need was raw, like a bloody wound, and astonishing in its intensity.
    A soft metallic sound made them both jerk around. Behind them, Tutresiel seemed to emerge from nowhere. The angel flexed his silver wings, the knife-edged feathers gleaming.
    “Where did you come from?” Niko demanded.
    “I’ve been here since before you arrived.”
    “I didn’t see you.”
    Tutresiel smiled thinly. “I didn’t choose for you to
do so.”
    Niko’s mouth twisted and he looked as if he dearly wanted to put his fist through the angel’s face. Alexander agreed wholeheartedly. Unlike Xaphan, Tutresiel made a point of being rude and abrasive.
    “What are you doing here?” he asked.
    Tutresiel shifted his red gaze to Alexander. “Waiting. Witnessing.”
    “Max told you to come?” Niko’s lip curled and his face flushed hot. If there was one creature he liked less than Alexander, it was Tutresiel.
    Not that Alexander could disagree, at least with the sentiment. Why call the angel? Tutresiel did not give a damn about her. Why not call one of her Blades? Or him?
    The memory of the two kisses they had shared flooded his mind,