Read Online Guardians of the Boundary (The Conjurors Series Book 3) by Kristen Pham - Free Book Online Page A

of his mouth, as if he was enjoying prolonging the
mystery.
    “As long we don’t have to take
the rollercoasters,” Kanti muttered.
    Gideon led the group deeper into
Arden’s woods than Valerie had ever been on foot. After several hours of hiking,
Gideon stopped in front of the biggest tree she had ever seen in her life. It
reminded her of the redwood forest she had been to on a field trip on Earth.
The trunk was as wide around as a car and stood so high that she couldn’t see
the top of the tree through the branches.
    “Now we climb,” Gideon said.
“Chrome will keep guard on the ground and alert us if anyone has followed.”
    Gideon reached up to a branch
above his head and quickly hauled himself up.
    “Not to be a wimp, but isn’t
this a bit dangerous?” Kanti said, squinting up at the branches towering above
them.
    Gideon leaned down and held out
a hand to her. “The tree is spelled. If you come with peaceful intentions you
will not fall.”
    Kanti wiped her hands on her
jeans and then reached up. Soon they were all climbing, following Gideon’s path
up the tree branch by branch. Leaves brushed Valerie’s cheek, and she shrank
away. The touch was unnatural, like cool fingers against her face. Above her,
Cyrus cringed as well, and she saw the leaves curl away after they brushed
against him. It was like the tree could tell by touch whether they were allowed
to climb safely.
    Valerie noticed a pleasant ache
in her limbs from the unusual exercise when Gideon disappeared into a cluster of
leaves. Kanti stopped short.
    “Where’d our faithful guide go?”
she asked.
    Valerie quickly climbed up,
moving around Cyrus and Kanti. “I’ll go first, to make sure it’s safe.”
    Kanti let out a relieved breath,
but Cyrus shook his head. “Let me go. I’m an ambassador for my Guild. People
love me.”
    Valerie didn’t want to argue, so
instead, she pushed her way through the thicket of leaves without another word.
When she emerged, she was standing on one of the wooden platforms that formed
the floor of a great city in the trees.
    All of the branches
interconnected, forming streets and bridges. Flowers grew in little nooks, and
everything was alive and blooming. It even seemed easier to breathe up here.
    All around her, the People of
the Woods bustled, going about their daily activities. In the treetops, Valerie
saw little homes and shops, just like on the ground below.
    She poked her head back through
the leaves and reached down to Kanti. “It’s safe.”
    Valerie helped Kanti up, but
when she tried to give Cyrus a hand, he pushed her away, annoyed.
    “You don’t always have to be the
one to throw yourself into danger,” he muttered. “You can let me protect you
sometimes.”
    She moved to squeeze his hand,
but he pulled away. She couldn’t say what he wanted to hear, that she’d let him
take risks in her place. If she lost Cyrus, she’d lose herself, too. And
reminding him that she was a stronger, better fighter was probably not a good
idea, either.
    Gideon spoke as the three
friends brushed bits of leaves and twigs from their clothes. “Welcome to Arbor
Aurum. To the People of the Woods, it is the capital of the Globe.”
    Kanti and Cyrus stared and
stared, reminding Valerie of her own first glimpse of this green and gold city
in the trees.
    “How will we find Elden?”
Valerie asked.
    “He will come to us. The People
of the Woods all know we are here now. The tree warned them of our approach,”
Gideon explained.
    Valerie saw a tall, dark man
with skin that had a tint of gold, purposefully striding over to them. Though
all of the People of the Woods moved gracefully, Elden stood out, like an
acrobat navigating an invisible tightrope.
    Elden’s face was serious, but
his eyes held a welcome that Valerie hadn’t seen the last time she’d met him.
After greeting everyone in the group, he immediately turned to her.
    “I can see in your bearing that
you begin to be ready for what is to come,” Elden