The Glass Gargoyle (The Lost Ancients Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

and I had met when I first moved to Beccia fifteen years ago. I had recently lost my parents in a swamp boat accident, and had no other family. I knew no one in Beccia, or anywhere else really, I just knew I needed to get out of my home town, and wanted to be a digger. I had grown up wanting to look for the lost races. The sudden loss of my parents sent me south to find a way to do that. I was targeted by a pickpocket my first day in the city. Covey was on a lunch break in a nearby park, saw the whole thing, chased the bastard down, and got my wallet back. Simply because she wanted to see if she could catch him. Not that Covey wasn’t a great person, mind you, she was. But her primary motivation for doing anything was to see if she could.
    There weren’t many students on campus, this being the second week of their three-week winter break. I actually liked the university when the students weren’t there. They seemed to get in my way the rest of the time. As Covey was fond of pointing out whenever I’d start one of my anti-student tirades, without them there wouldn’t be a university. In theory anyway. I always pointed out that the university was into so many things by this point that did they really need rich kids cluttering up the halls?
    The outer corridors were darkened by the rich bastardization of an elven arch. That was one thing that annoyed me even more than the students, the liberty the architects took in some areas with the elven buildings. To make them seem more mysterious, they made many things dark and heavy. In reality, the structures I’d seen so far were graceful and light. I spared a glare for the fake elven work, then continued down to Covey’s office.
    I froze when I realized the door was ajar. This being winter, and Covey having an office that opened to an outer courtyard, an open door could only spell trouble. Like all reptilians, trellians had a fondness for warmth. I had picked this time of morning because she was usually in her office. Had she stepped out and someone broken in?
    From the doorway, I peeked in to see the big desk. Leaning a bit more forward brought me the view of her long skinny legs jutting out awkwardly on the floor behind the desk.
    They weren’t moving.
    I grabbed both my stun cuffs and my sting wand— I’m not licensed to carry more advanced magical weapons—and crept into the doorway. I wasn’t a fighter, but I couldn’t let my best friend lay there possibly bleeding to death.
    Covey still hadn’t moved, or at least her legs hadn’t since that was all I could see. I tried to see behind the door and still watch Covey at the same time.
    Didn’t work.
    A roughly man-shaped shadow rushed me as my glance lingered a bit too long on Covey’s still legs. Good thing the person only wanted out of the room and not something more. He knocked me down without a “by your leave” and vanished. I got to my feet, but there was no one down the hallway. I turned back to my friend and let out a sigh of relief when I saw no blood around her.
    “Covey? Wake up.”
    Once I got a good look at her I realized the intruder must have used a sleep spell on her. He’d wanted her out of the way but not permanently. The panicked feeling in my throat loosened a bit.
    I checked her pulse. Slow as slime falling off a toad, but steady. Whatever spell he’d used, it might take a while for her to wake up. I didn’t want to wait.
    I rummaged through the supplies in her desk but came up empty.
    “You should keep your anti-spell supplies more handy,” I told my unconscious friend as I ransacked a few more cabinets. Of course the neat little box with the anti-spell shots was in the last one I checked. Maybe the mess I made would convince her to store them where I could find them next time.
    Pulling her chair cushion down and under her head, I opened the spell wrapper and injected her.
    Her eyelids moved rapidly, as if fighting being taken out of her slumber. Eventually her long arms waved up and