Read Online Modern Sorcery: A Jonathan Shade Novel by Gary Jonas - Free Book Online Page A

She cast a disapproving glance at Cantrell then moved off.
     
    “You ain’t gonna kill me, are you?” he said when the waitress was out of hearing range.
     
    “Give me a good reason not to.”
     
    “I got tickets to see Kenny Chesney.”
     
    “Who’s opening for him?”
     
    I cut them off.   “So, Cantrell, let’s say I believe you and nobody’s going to be joining us.   I’m not convinced but we’ll let that slide for now.   I want you to tell us everything you know about the crystal.”
     
    “Can she take the pig-sticker outta my neck?”
     
    Kelly looked at me and I nodded.
     
    She pulled the toothpick out and stuck the bloody end into her mouth.   I tried not to be grossed out, and I think I managed to keep it to a slight grimace.
     
    “Wizard blood,” Kelly said.   “It does a body good.”
     
    Cantrell held a napkin to his throat.   “Gal, you’re a mite on the psycho side.”
     
    Kelly just smiled and licked the toothpick.
     
    “The crystal,” I said.
     
    “I ain’t got all the details.”
     
    Kelly pulled out the toothpick again.
     
    “But I’ll tell you what I know.”
     
    “We’re listening,” I said.
     
    “Can she move back to the chair?”
     
    “I just want to be close to you, baby.”
     
    The waitress returned with our drinks.   “Ready to order?” she asked as she set the drinks in front of us with practiced ease.
     
    “A few more minutes, please,” I said.
     
    She sighed and moved off.
     
    “Talk,” I said.
     
    Cantrell pulled the napkin away from his throat and glanced at the crimson stain.   “The folks down at DGI have been busting their asses to try and bring magic back to its former glory.”
     
    “Yeah, yeah.   Get to the point.”
     
    “You ever hear of Blake Ravenwood?”
     
    “That’s a stupid name,” Kelly said.
     
    “Drawing a blank here,” I said.
     
    “He was an evil sorcerer,” Naomi said.   “He’s the boogeyman parents in the magical community use to scare the kids.   Be good or Blake Ravenwood is going to get you.”
     
    “Bingo,” Cantrell said.
     
    “But he’s been dead for centuries.”
     
    “Not exactly.”
     
    “He was slain by the Seven,” Naomi said.   She turned to me.   “The Seven was a group of seven powerful wizards who acted as a police force among the magical communities back in the 1600s.”
     
    “That’s just the crap we put into the history books,” Cantrell said.   “Ravenwood killed four of the Seven in the final battle before the remaining three captured his soul in a crystal.   They broke the crystal into three pieces.   The Alyshian, Byzantine, and the Corathian.”
     
    “A, B, and C,” I said.
     
    Cantrell nodded.   “Ravenwood’s body was burned to a crisp, but his soul was still alive in those three crystals and kept separate so he could never escape.   The crystals were passed down as family heirlooms through the centuries and kept in different parts of the world.”
     
    “You’re a liar,” Kelly said.
     
    “No, they’re always kept in separate countries.”
     
    “Not that.”   Kelly nodded toward the parking lot.   “Al Davidson is here.”
     
    “I didn’t call him.”
     
    “Maybe you used the Bat Signal,” I said.   “Regardless, you let him know he needed to be here.”
     
    “I did no such thing,” Cantrell said.   “But I eat here every day, so maybe he’s just dropping by to chat.”
     
    “Come on.”
     
    “He does that a lot.”
     
    “That’s true,” Naomi said.   “I’ve eaten here with Frank a few times when Al just showed up.”
     
    “Fine,” I said.   “Continue.”
     
    Cantrell looked at Naomi.   “Your dad had the Alyshian Crystal.   He inherited it from his grandma when his folks passed.   Normally it would be passed on to you, but that ain’t gonna happen this time.”
     
    “Let me guess,” I said.   “The clowns at DGI thought they could bring back some magic by putting the three crystals