Deception of the Magician (Waldgrave Book 2) Read Online Free PDF Page A

Lena stood up and paced to the window. She turned and leaned against it, facing Hesper, who was still looking very amused at her friend’s frustration.
    “I wish they’d just give him to me. I’d take him.” Hesper smiled. She closed her cell phone and put it away.
    “Ha! Doubt it!”
    “Well, who knows…I mean, they might vote to just dispose the Corbett house from the Council this year now that there aren’t really any of us left. God knows where our servants are, even. I’d be truly surprised if Griffin gets them to put a hold on it until the kid’s sixteen.”
    It was true, but Lena gave the Corbett name a better chance than Hesper did. Griffin had mentioned something about Master Daray wanting to keep the Corbetts on the Council because they had always voted in his favor. And if he got to raise another child under this roof, it was ensuring yet another generation of protection for the Daray family. History had proven that Daray held enough sway on the Council to enforce his will when he needed to.
    The clock on the wall caught her eye. She only had an hour and a half before Mrs. Corbett’s lunch was due, and she still hadn’t showered or eaten breakfast. Turkey on…something. Lena excused herself to go upstairs and shower, kicking herself for forgetting the order. When she came back down to the kitchen she made three sandwiches, hoping one of the guesses would be correct, and drudged back up to the fourth floor.
    She knocked. Three minutes later, when no one had answered, she knocked again. Her second attempt went unrewarded. Slightly perturbed because the weight of the tray was starting to cut into her arm, she cracked the door and peered inside. Mrs. Corbett was seated at her table, with the baby in her arms, apparently unable to be bothered by getting up to answer the doors or even call a simple, ‘Enter!’
    Lena walked in and set the tray on the table. Mrs. Corbett held the baby out towards her, and Lena froze. She didn’t want to hold him. Mrs. Corbett turned and glared at her.
    “Don’t be unnatural, take the baby!”
    Their eyes met, and Lena quickly looked away. She reached out and took the baby; he was heavier than she had expected, and never having held a baby for longer than a few minutes, she wasn’t quite sure what to do. Darius was heavier than Maren, and he wiggled far too much. She tried holding him the way she had seen Hesper hold Maren, but it didn’t work—he immediately started squirming and whining, arched his back, and Lena almost dropped him. Mrs. Corbett was on her feet immediately, grabbing the child back from her.
    “Oh, for goodness sake! A girl your age should have more experience!” She glared at Lena as she swayed on her feet, clutching Darius close to her chest. “You’ve never held a baby before? Never?”       
    Annoyed and embarrassed, Lena lashed out. “Only your daughter’s! I’m sorry, but I’ve been too busy doing more important things to have done much more than that!”
    “So you’ve made clear to the world.” Mrs. Corbett said disapprovingly. “Put your arms out.”
    Lena gaped at her. “What? I don’t want to hold him!”
    “This isn’t about what you want. This is about you being here to help me, and you’re going to hold him.” She once again held Darius out and away from her.
    Lena gave an exasperated sigh, looked longingly at the door, and then put her arms out in front of her. Mrs. Corbett carefully handed Darius back to her.
    “You’re going to have to hold him closer.” She directed. “There. Now, if he starts to fuss you need to move by walking or swaying.”
    She sat back down and started eating a sandwich. Lena was terribly uncomfortable; he was heavy, and he kept looking at her like he knew she was a novice. He stared for a good ten minutes before he started turning his head to look around the rest of the room; his eyes landed on Mrs. Corbett and he arched his back again. Lena struggled to keep him from pitching himself