The Keep (The Secret of Spellshadow Manor #4)(44)

This time, there was no reprieve. Gripping the laughing man by the neck, Julius pressed his hand against the man’s face and unleashed a wave of bright bronze magic that crackled through the air like a lightning storm. It poured down the man’s throat, crawled through his skin. The prisoner’s laughter turned to a heart-rending scream, and he clawed at his own flesh, trying to rake off the magic that oozed through him, burning everything up. Alex could see it slithering under the man’s skin, dissolving his insides.

Alex wanted to turn away, but he was frozen to the spot.

The screaming and clawing seemed to go on forever, but finally, the prisoner made a gurgling sound and collapsed in a heap, the life gone from his eyes. His skin sagged inward, leaving him in a ghastly puddle, as if there was nothing left within to hold up the fleshy outer husk.

Julius turned sharply, a delighted look upon his cold face. His gold eyes connected with Alex’s, and Alex didn’t know whether to turn away or keep looking. The king stepped closer, until he and Alex were almost nose-to-nose.

“And I don’t want to hear so much as a whimper from you,” the king whispered with a smirk. He turned and stepped out of the dank cell. Alex thought his lungs might explode, he had been holding his breath for so long. Pressing his ear to the grate, not daring to move back around, he listened to what Julius had to say to Lintz and Demeter.

“That laugh! I couldn’t have borne it a moment longer. A waste of perfectly good essence—but you two should know by now, I don’t have patience for disobedience. Speaking of which, what has occurred here?” the king asked, threat dripping from his words.

“Your Highness, I believe there has been a fault with the barrier,” explained Demeter, his voice surprisingly calm.

“Well, clearly. That doesn’t take a genius to see. Have any prisoners escaped?”

“Not to our knowledge, Your Highness. We have everything under control now,” Demeter replied.

“Where’s that delinquent brother of mine?” Julius asked.

“Not here, Your Highness.”

Julius gave an irritated sigh. “Another observant remark, guard. Well done,” he mocked. “Have you seen him? Is he aware that his prison is in utter disarray? Is the old goat even still breathing?”

An anxious silence stretched between Julius and the guards. Alex desperately wanted one of them to speak, in case they ended up like his cellmate.

“Speak up! Or would you rather I make you speak?” Julius demanded coldly.

Lintz was the one to respond. “I believe he has gone on some errands, and will shortly return. He is aware of the mishap, and… yes, I believe he is still breathing.”

“That’s a shame.” Julius laughed spitefully. “I’m presuming this ‘mishap,’ as you call it, happened because he’s too incompetent to perform basic maintenance. Please inform my dear brother that, if this happens again, and if matters do not improve, I will return. And I will not be so forgiving next time. Show him my new friend Floppy if he needs some extra encouragement,” he sneered, giving a sharp, jarring snort. “I trust you’re capable of passing on a simple message, yes?”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Demeter replied.

“You might also mention that I need him to start shouldering his share of responsibility when it comes to essence. Too long these prisoners have gotten away with the bare minimum, and I won’t see it continue. Is that clear?” the king added icily.

It made Alex furious to hear Julius alluding to more essence-extraction, especially after displaying such a blasé attitude toward the murder of the laughing prisoner. Alex could tell Julius was exactly the sort of person who would waste essence, only to insist upon someone else extracting more for him moments later. He didn’t seem to be the kind of king who worried much about the fate of his subjects, or troubled himself with the dirty work. With that in mind, Alex couldn’t help but wonder if the king’s request had something to do with the lack of magical children being born, increasing the royal need for essence. It certainly sounded like it.

“Clear as crystal, Your Highness,” Lintz replied.

“And one other thing,” he added sharply. “I’ve been hearing rumors I don’t much like the sound of. By all accounts, my dear daughter is having some sort of squabble with my brother, though she refuses to tell me what it’s about, and while I have very little interest in her petty feuds, I want to see it resolved… and quickly. They can kill one another if they so please, but it is tedious and inconvenient to find replacements to extract essence. You can tell Caius that he is to make peace with my daughter at the earliest possible opportunity. This has gone on long enough… It’s unseemly for royals to act this way. Do you understand what I say?”

“Perfectly,” said Demeter. “Message received, and will be duly passed on, Your Highness.”

Alex smiled wryly—it seemed very few royals were fond of their brothers.

“Excellent. Well, that was somewhat rejuvenating. I shall be returning now, but if I hear that you haven’t passed on my messages, or if I am forced to return, you shall receive the same punishment as my brother. I can’t abide slack staff,” Julius remarked. “I suppose you’ll be wanting me to put this barrier back up before I go?” the king sighed.

At the unmistakable crackle of the king’s magic, Alex took his chances and peered around the cell door. Bronze light flowed wildly and effortlessly from the man’s deft hands as he pressed his palms against the wall. A spider web of luminescent power branched through the masonry, rushing into the nearest golden cylinder. With an almost imperceptible whir of clockwork, the module burst back into life. Alex wasn’t sure how Julius had done it, what with how the mechanisms had exploded so violently—yet the king had managed the impossible. Julius’s magic had pieced everything back together in moments, leaving the clockwork clunking louder than before, and Alex knew what that meant.