Sorceress' Blood Read Online Free PDF

when he opened it a raven
flew out and landed on the table by the candle. Nothing got a
response out of her and eventually Benjamin threw his hands up in
defeat. When he did, the candle melted back down to the way it was
when they first came into the room and the book he’d used leapt
up onto the table and snapped closed around the bird like a hungry
mouth. Benjamin didn’t say a word but sat back down in his
chair and started to read. The door creaked open by itself and
Rebecca got the message clearly.
    “Come on.” She held out her hand and Ashley took hold.
Benjamin looked up with surprise. He opened his mouth to ask a
question but Rebecca was already leading the girl back to her room.
His eyes narrowed and his lips curled into a smile. He watched them
until they were both out of sight and then he picked up a book, still
smiling, and waited.
    Back in the Oisin room, Ashley went over to her bed and sat down.
Rebecca sat in the chair next to the dresser and watched the girl.
    “So...” Rebecca said and then went silent. She hoped
she'd come up with something better to say when Lord Sebastian asked
about the test.
    “What happened to the bird?” Ashley's voice came as a
relief.
    “I don’t know.” Rebecca answered. “I guess it
went back into the book.”
    “Was it a real bird?”
    “I don’t know. I guess it was as real as a bird made with
magic can be.”
    “Can I really do something like that?”
    “Maybe. I don’t really know, Ashley. This is all as new
to me as it is to you.” There was silence again for a moment.
Rebecca thought Ashley looked a little sad and she felt bad. She
thought maybe she had spoken with a harsher tone than she meant to
and upset her. She did the only thing she could think to do when
she’d upset a small child. She tried to pretend it didn’t
happen and steer the conversation somewhere else. “Why don’t
you talk to anyone else?”
    “I don’t know. I just get scared whenever they’re
around.” Rebecca understood that. She had trouble trusting them
as well.
    “Do you want to go home?”
    “I don’t have a home.”
    “What about parents?”
    “I don’t have them either.”
    “Well where do you live?”
    “In a house.”
    “Who takes care of you?”
    “No one takes care of me. I live in a house and I take care of
myself.” Rebecca got the feeling that it was a sensitive
subject. She knew that it wasn’t as simple as what Ashley said
but she didn’t push the issue any further.
    “Are you scared of me?”
    “No.” Ashley paused a moment before explaining. “You
saved me.”
    “I think you should try and learn what Benjamin is trying to
teach you.”
    “Will I be able to make birds, like he did?”
    “I don’t see why there’s anything you can’t do. I don’t think we have to be afraid of these people.”
Hearing Ashley talk about how she was afraid and didn’t trust
anyone in Lord Sebastian’s castle made Rebecca look on the idea
from a different perspective. So far everyone had been hospitable and
helpful to them and Benjamin didn’t try to force Ashley into
doing anything. When she saw her own paranoia in Ashley, Rebecca
realised that it didn’t make as much sense as when they first
arrived. They hadn’t been given any reason to remain so
guarded. The two of them couldn’t leave but that was for their
own good. Once Lord Sebastian showed that he wasn’t lying about
magic, everything had changed.
    “Will you stay there with me?”
    “I will.” One thing didn’t change. Rebecca still
felt responsible for Ashley.
    “I don’t want to do it now.” Ashley said and
Rebecca nodded at her.
    The following day Rebecca and Ashley returned, without invitation, to
Benjamin’s study. The door opened for them on arrival and
Benjamin was more aware of their presence this time.
    “She wants to learn?” Benjamin asked when they walked in.
    “Yes.” Rebecca answered.
    “Lord Sebastian didn’t send you up here. In fact’
you haven’t even seen him