Read Online SEARCH FOR THE LOST SOUL by Kattie McKinsey - Free Book Online Page B

able to find the
gregarious Leopold when he had accumulated another list of questions about the
wizard. After another short silence, he asked Leopold to give him a closer look
at the stalactites and stalagmites.
    Leopold was
more than happy to do so, stating that he never tired of looking at them as he
bounded out of his sitting position. For the next several hours the two of them
wandered through the caverns, stopping frequently to examine the formations
before they returned to the castle for lunch.
    Chris
breathed a sigh of relief when they entered the castle; although he wanted to
trust Leopold, the thoughts of getting lost in the caverns had never been far
from his mind.

CHAPTER 5
     
    Lunch was a
quiet affair with only Chris and Kelly at the table. When Chris questioned her
as to how her morning had gone she frowned and said that Loren had stayed with
her for only a short time before falling silent and leaving her alone in the
study. After she had been alone for quite some time, a young man who said that
his name was Dominic and claimed to be Loren’s apprentice had come in to talk
to her for a few minutes.
    Chris
frowned when she was reluctant to reveal what Dominic wanted to discuss with
her but when he pressed her she finally relented and said that he wanted to
know about all the traumatic things that had occurred in her life. She was
still upset over the feelings that recalling the memory of her parent’s death
had brought up. She fell silent after that and refused to talk for the
remainder of the meal, leaving as soon as she finished the small amount of food
that had she placed on her plate.
    Chris
watched her go before returning thoughtfully to his meal. Why, he wondered, had
the wizard sent his apprentice to learn about her most painful memories? The
more he thought about it the angrier he became. What right did Loren have to
upset her so? He decided that he would have a word with the wizard at the
earliest opportunity.
    Chris finished
his meal and pushed his chair away from the table, wondering if he should go in
search of Loren. He was still trying to decide whether he should ask one of the
servants if they knew where he could find Loren when a girl in a maid’s uniform
appeared in the doorway.
    “Are you
finished with your meal, sir?” she asked in a quiet voice.
    Chris smiled
up at her. “Yes.”
    She smiled
back. “In that case, Loren was wondering if you would join him in his private
study.”
    Chris rose.
“Gladly. If you can tell me where to go?”
    She dropped
her eyes. “It would be easier if I were to take you there.”
    “Fine.”
    She turned
and led him from the dining room and up to the second floor. Once there he was
grateful for her presence as she led him down a series of corridors with many
turns, stopping in front of a thick wooden door. She tapped lightly before
curtsying quickly to him and disappearing in the direction from which she had
come.
    Chris
entered when a voice from within, he couldn’t tell for sure whether it was
Loren or not, called for him to. He paused just inside the doorway to look
around, deciding instantly that he liked the comfortable room. It was wood
paneled with eight wingback chairs, three of which were pulled up to the
roaring fire.
    Although
several pictures hung on the wall, mostly seascapes, the majority of the wall
was covered with shelves that contained books that appeared ancient to Chris’
unlearned eye; most of them looked as if they would fall apart in your hands if
you tried to read them, not that he had such desires.
    Loren
cleared his throat, which brought Chris’ attention back to the fire and three
chairs. Loren silently indicated one of the chairs. Chris frowned as he crossed
to chair; Loren had indicated the one farthest from the fire.
    As he
settled himself into the chair he noticed that a small man who appeared to be
of Latin origin occupied the third chair; if he had been back home he would
have said the man was Mexican but here he had