The Breaker (The Secret of Spellshadow Manor #2)(29)

They dropped down into the subterranean cavern, quickly lighting the lamps, which cast a warm glow around the room. A few scorch marks remained from the last time they had been in there, with Aamir, and Jari stared at them uncomfortably. Shaking his head, he went off in search of bottles.

“So do you think the Head has actually gone, then?” Jari asked, reappearing with two dusty magnums in his hands.

“What?” Alex turned, puzzled.

“Do you think he has actually gone?” Jari repeated. “Or do you think he’s just playing tricks, tightening his hold on the school?”

“I’m not sure,” Alex admitted. “But he must know Finder is dead by now. When the board said both Heads, I knew that was a message. It would only make sense to those who know Finder is gone.”

Jari nodded. “I thought that too. So you think he has gone and taken Aamir with him?”

Alex shrugged. “Maybe the Head wants more students. And with Finder gone, that means he has to go out and get them himself, or find someone to take Finder’s place. Maybe he wants Aamir to do it, or something. I don’t know. The wall seems a bit like overkill if the Head hasn’t left the manor, don’t you think?”

“The wall is a weird move,” Jari agreed, drawing a star shape in one of the dust-blanketed bottles. “Maybe he just wants to frighten us.”

“Or maybe we have spooked him by killing Finder, no?” Natalie said evenly, her expression thoughtful as she leaned back against the earthen wall of the cellar.

“You think so?” Jari asked.

“I believe it is possible, yes,” Natalie continued. “He perhaps felt as if he had lost some control, and so he has chosen to reclaim his control with these new rules.”

“I don’t think he’d need a wall if he wanted to leave, either,” Alex began. “He’s a majorly powerful wizard. I’m sure he has other ways… secret ways.” He felt the pointed edge of the paper in his pocket, recalling the last time they had been in the cellar, and how he had wanted to tell his friends about the note Elias had given him.

“What kind of secret ways?” Jari asked, sounding intrigued.

Alex took a deep breath. “See, the thing is… a while ago, I found this note in between the pages of a book. An old thing full of pretty dull histories, but this bit of paper came tumbling out of it,” he started, expecting his friends to assume he’d found the book in the library. He wanted to leave out Elias’s role in delivering the message. The moment he even thought about saying the name, he felt a creeping sensation prickle at the back of his neck, the invisible gag keeping him silent on the subject of the shadow-man.

“And?” Natalie encouraged.

“Well, it said something about there being nine havens, and that wizards were to find these havens and lock themselves in there, away from some evil. It didn’t really go into detail, but it said there were four havens left,” Alex said.

“Havens?” Jari frowned.

Alex nodded. “Yeah, they’re schools, like this one. The havens are the schools, and there are four left… or there were when the note was written. Do you remember the Head talking about that Blaine kid being sent to Stillwater House? You know, when he got caught and… and he just never came back?”

The other two nodded.

“Well, Stillwater House is one of the havens. It’s on the paper I found, along with two others: Falleaf House and Kingstone Keep. Altogether, four. I’ve been trying to find information on them, but I keep hitting a brick wall. There are entries in the Index where the books should be, but the books themselves are missing from the shelves,” he continued, feeling the intensity of their eyes on him as he talked. “So there must be other schools. The Head mentioned Stillwater specifically, so I was thinking, maybe, at least that school still exists, and the Head has some sort of dealings with them. So if he wanted to go anywhere, or needed something, surely he’d just go to them for help.”

“Other schools?” whispered Natalie.

“I’m thinking that’s where the Head might’ve gone. Stillwater,” Alex repeated.

“You think there might be a way to travel there?” Natalie bristled with excitement.

Alex shrugged. “I think there’s a chance. It’s like everyone was saying at breakfast—nobody has ever really seen or heard of the Head going out on the grounds, so I think that’s it. I think he travels there using some special kind of magic.”

Alex could feel Jari’s glare from across the room. Alex couldn’t be certain, but he felt a strange energy coming from the blond-haired boy. He was narrowing his eyes as he scrutinized Alex. Shifting uncomfortably, Alex turned back to Natalie, who seemed far more excited, her dark eyes alert with curiosity.

“You really believe there might be a way to travel to these places?” She clasped her hands together.

“I think it’s possible,” said Alex.

“Why would you want to, if it’s like this place?” Jari said, his face still sour.

“There might not be so many barriers on the other places, or there might be a way to reach one that isn’t in use anymore. A stepping stone to getting out,” Alex replied, frowning at his friend.

“Do you think the other schools might help us?” asked Natalie.

“I couldn’t say. You know as much as I know, now.” Alex shrugged apologetically, cracking the knuckles of his right hand beneath his palm as he tried to ignore the displeasure on Jari’s face.