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“But you’re finding good stuff—I mean, other than things that are too dangerous to share, right? This is worthwhile work?”

“I think so.” He paused, then gave me a crooked grin. “And I’m about to get a lecture on obsession.”Advertisement

“A lecture? From me? Never. But tell me this: Do you know what day it is?”

He got a horrified deer-in-the-headlights look in his dark blue eyes. “Wait a second … I know it’s not your birthday because that was in May. It’s September, so it’s not a major gift-giving holiday I’ve missed. I haven’t forgotten anything special, have I? That’s not what this is about, is it?” He indicated the breakfast.

I took pity on him. “No, that’s not what this is about. I was just seeing if you knew it was Thursday, though I’d also have accepted a calendar date. The breakfast was because I thought if I caught you before work, I’d stand a better chance of seeing you before you fell into that manuscript.” I frowned at him in sudden concern. “You haven’t been taken over by the manuscript, have you? Your powers aren’t coming back without you realizing, so the evil thing can suck you in?”

With a laugh, he said, “No, nothing like that.”

“So this is just normal obsession?”

“I’m not acting obsessed, am I?”

“Either that, or you’ve turned into a vampire, and you’re just pretending to be obsessed so you’ll have an excuse not to go out in daylight. And I’d prefer the obsession because I’m not into vampires.”

“Okay, so I’m a little obsessed,” he said with a shrug. “But this is an exciting opportunity, and I don’t know how much time I’ve got. If my powers do come back, I won’t be able to continue, and I’d hate to have to stop halfway through the project. I’m trying to get as much as possible done, just in case.”

Owen was the only one who seemed to believe that his powers would come back, but I knew well enough to keep my mouth shut about that. If holding on to that hope helped keep him going, I didn’t want to take it away from him. “That’s why I’m not complaining,” I said, reaching over to pat him on the knee. “I’m just checking on you.”

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“I do appreciate the company,” he said with a smile that made me melt. “I sometimes feel like I’m in exile down here.”

“Hey, I’m glad to do my part.” I glanced at my watch. “I can even stick around awhile, if you like. I’m still way too early for work, and this isn’t a busy day for me.” The truth was, ever since we’d defeated the evil wizards behind our only competitor, there wasn’t much for me to do as director of marketing for Magic, Spells, and Illusions, Inc. A trained monkey could market a near-monopoly. Heck, my ditzy assistant Perdita could probably do my job while filing her nails, chatting on the phone, and inventing new coffee concoctions.

He reached over to grab a container of wipes and cleaned his hands. “Sure, come on in and I’ll show you what I’ve been up to.” With another grin, he added, “I’ve got proof that I really haven’t been using this as an excuse to avoid you.”

I wiped my hands, too, knowing that bringing sugar or anything sticky into the manuscript room would be bad, then followed him back to his worktable. He pulled over a second chair so I could sit next to him, then sat down and put on the cotton gloves. He showed me a page covered in his textbook-perfect handwriting. “This is what I was working on yesterday.”

I leaned over and read all about the Eye of the Moon and what it could do. “Yikes, I agree, that needs to stay hidden, and it’s a good thing nobody with power can read this thing.”

“Oh, they could read it, but they’d probably go insane.”

“And is the whole thing written in verse like that?”

“Pretty much. It’s all riddles and metaphors. Once I have it transcribed and translated, it’ll probably take a committee of scholars years to figure it all out.”

“That’s if Merlin lets it go that far. What if it’s not just the manuscript itself that’s so dangerous? What if the magic on the manuscript is to protect the really dangerous information it contains?”

“That is a possibility. I suspect Merlin has a plan for what to do with my translation.”

“I hope the plan isn’t that anyone who knows what it contains has to be locked away for his own safety.” I squinted as I read the page. “‘Soaring while locked away in the clouds and under the narrow seat.’ Maybe it’s under a throne? One in a tower? No, that’s not vague at all.” pqdm.com