Tara Duncan and the Forbidden Book Read Online Free PDF Page A

only take me a minute.”
    Just to be on the safe side, Tara and Robin hid behind the suits of armor lining the castle’s black-and-white tiled entryway. Tara felt torn between a deep concern about Cal and regret at leaving her mother, with whom she had so recently been reunited. She didn’t like magic, which kept intruding in her life willy-nilly. She had no faith in OtherWorld justice and hated the idea of having to go back there. But to help Cal, she was prepared to confront all the demons of Limbo.
    Standing beside Tara and looking at her out of the corner of his eye, Robin felt awkward and agitated. He admired her long blond hair, with that distinctive white forelock, and her unusual deep blue eyes. She was so beautiful; it sometimes made him catch his breath.
    â€œWhat if this is all a trap?” he whispered. “Magister knows it’s hard to get to you on Earth. Suppose he’s concocted this whole business as a way of luring you to OtherWorld?”
    â€œI thought of that,” Tara somberly replied, absentmindedly grabbing her white strand and chewing on it. “But what choice do we have? Trap or no trap, we can’t leave Cal all alone.”
    â€œYou’re probably right. But let’s keep our eyes peeled.”
    While they were talking, Fabrice was upstairs on the third floor, sweating bullets. His plan had hit a snag.
    The spare keys were in his father’s office all right. The problem was, so was his father.
    Standing behind the half-open door, Fabrice took a deep breath and recited: “By Somnolus, please catch some z’s, so you won’t hear me take the keys.”
    Because magic is so much weaker on Earth, Fabrice’s father didn’t get sleepy right away. The boy waited, annoyed at the idea that he might have to ask his friends for help. But then his father’s eyelids began to droop. He rubbed his eyes, let his head slump, and started snoring.
    So far so good. Now Fabrice had to get the keys. How he wished Cal were with him. The little thief would have searched the room three times while Fabrice was mustering all his courage to take a single step.
    Tiptoeing as quietly as possible, he headed toward the desk. To his dismay, the drawer squeaked loudly enough to wake the dead.
    Forget it, he thought. I’ll leave the drawer open and just hold my breath and cross my fingers.
    Teeth clenched, Fabrice picked up the keys, silently cursing when they clinked. In two steps he was at the door, when he suddenly heard a loud voice behind him.
    â€œDon’t set the beam down over there! Put it here!”
    Fabrice whipped around, his heart in his mouth. His father’s eyes were still closed and he was waving his arms. He was dreaming.
    When a swarm of black butterflies started dancing in front of his eyes, Fabrice realized he was about to pass out. He took a deep breath and heaved a sigh of relief. Then he quietly closed the door and raced downstairs to his friends.
    â€œOkay, I got them. Let’s go!” he said.
    â€œYou’re white as a sheet,” remarked Robin tactlessly. “Is everything okay?”
    â€œOh yeah. Everything’s totally peachy spectacular!” he replied weakly. “I just cast a spell on my own father and nearly had a heart attack. Let’s hope he never finds out, otherwise I’m going to be grounded for the next fifty years!”
    It only took them a few minutes to climb the tower. The large Transfer Portal Room was empty, guarded only by the brightly colored tapestries that represented OtherWorld’s five races: human spellbinders, giants, elves, Lilliputian fairies, and unicorns.
    The kids and their familiars went to stand in the center of the room. Fabrice took the transfer scepter from an alcove and set it on the tapestry with the matching pattern, then joined his friends. The scepter hummed, and a bright white glow lit them up. Rays of blue, yellow, red, and green light shot from the other