Demon Hunter (The Collegium Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

problem.” She’d had practice.
    “Huh.” Jim snorted. He rummaged through a bread box and loaded a plate with an assortment of pastries and rolls. “Come and sit in the conservatory. You look like you need warming up.”
    “Like last night’s leftovers?”
    Jim grinned. “You’ll do.”
    The conservatory failed to live up to its grand name. It was a relaxed space off the kitchen. Someone had glassed in half the back veranda and filled it with potted ferns, orchids and white wicker furniture. Through the glass you could see a brilliant blue sky and closer at hand a backyard with a third of it graveled for parking and the rest divided into lawn and garden.
    Fay chose a chair in the sunlight and sunk into it gratefully. She concentrated on her coffee and the heat of the sun. The muscle-eating chill of the portal gradually eased, taking with it the distressing shudders of weakness.
    “Have a pastry.” Yolanthe pushed the plate towards Fay.
    “I’m sorry. How long have I…?” She’d been sitting in a daze, ignoring these two virtual strangers. She’d let them see her weakness.
    “About twenty minutes,” Yolanthe said.
    “I’m a boring guest.” Politeness slipped on like a distancing armor.
    Jim was having none of it. “You’re not a guest. You’re my stepdaughter. This is Yolly’s home, and yours.”
    The definite claiming was outside Fay’s experience. She stared at him.
    Yolanthe clasped his hand. “Thank you, darling.”
    “Only telling the truth,” he grumbled. But his eyes were bright as he returned Yolanthe’s clasp. “Piper Lodge is a boardinghouse, Faith. We have four lodgers, all magic users. Daniel’s away on field work, and who knows where Piotr is, but you’ll meet Linda and Esse at dinner, tonight. I’ve fixed up your room with clean sheets, but I know Yolly will want to add special touches to it and you’ll probably have your own ideas. It’s at the top of the stairs.” He scowled. “And you’re not to pay board. You’re family.”
    The avalanche of words stopped, and Fay was grateful for the break. “Thank you.” This alternate universe was confusing: no questions, no demands, just giving.
    Jim’s scowl relaxed. “Good girl.”
    Yolanthe punched his arm. “I told you I hate that phrase. It sounds like you’re talking to a dog.”
    Fay studied their relaxed interaction, felt excluded by it and reached for a pastry sticky with honey and hazelnuts. It was delicious.
    “A local bakery.” Yolanthe smiled at her. She seemed calmer and stronger in her own home. “Jim picks up a selection on his way home from his morning swim.”
    “Are you that close to the ocean?”
    “Almost on the beach,” he said.
    “But close enough to walk into town,” Yolanthe said. “Or—Jim, do you still have your scooter?”
    “The Wasp?” He grinned. “You wanted me to get rid of it.”
    “Well, the way you ride, I thought you’d kill yourself. But Faith’s more sensible.”
    “Ha,” he interrupted. “She arrived portal sick. That’s way more dangerous than my riding.”
    “I heard what Constable Harrington said to you when he gave you your third ticket.”
    Jim flushed and abandoned the argument.
    Yolanthe turned back to Fay. “If you need to get around, Jim’s scooter is in the shed. He’ll dust it off for you.”
    “Thank you, but—”
    Her mom hadn’t finished. “When he learns the reasons for you travelling portal sick, he’ll apologize.”
    “Reasons?” Jim sat forward.
    “Faith has fought with Richard, quit the Collegium and abandoned her lover.”
    “Holy cow,” he said reverently.
    “I didn’t abandon Steve.”
    “Is that his name?” Yolanthe was interested.
    “And we weren’t lovers.”
    “You are absolutely Yolly’s daughter.”
    “What?” The two women stared at him, baffled.
    “No half measures. It’s all or nothing. Life,” he said with satisfaction. “Is going to be interesting.”

Chapter 5
     
    “When I travelled to New York I hoped