Read Online The Scofflaw Magician (The Artifactor Book 3) by Honor Raconteur - Free Book Online

then scanned the area with a quick sweep of his
head. A silence descended immediately upon his entrance as every man there
recognized him. If it wasn’t for the traffic on the street pouring through the
open doorway, it would have been a graveyard silence.
    Xald pointed an
imperative finger. “Gautum.”
    A thin looking
man in his forties leapt to his feet and bolted for the back. Swearing, Xald
took off in high pursuit. Sevana, startled by this immediate scene of chase,
was two beats behind. Unfortunately it put her at a severe disadvantage as both
men were faster runners than she was and it proved impossible to catch up. By
the time she slapped through the back door and into the alley, they were at the
mouth of the alley and turning into the street.
    Well, if Xald
thought that she would just run after him all day thief catching, he could
think again. He might want her to think like a thief-catcher, but she was an
Artifactor, and if there was no reason to do things the hard way, she wouldn’t.
Pulling out a wand, she cast a levitation spell on herself and floated up above
the rooftops. From that vantage, she could easily see where the men were
running, and she flew their direction, looking about for a good place to land.
Levitation spells were taxing and she didn’t want to do it for long.
    Ah, there. That
rooftop was nice and flat. She landed without even a bump and ended the spell.
In the next moment, she cast it again, neatly ensnaring the thief who was
running vigorously for the bridge. His feet lifted into the air, but he kept
moving arms and legs, windmilling in place as if sheer effort could propel him
forward.
    “They always do
that,” she noted to herself, amused. “I wonder why.”
    Below the
building, Xald skidded to a halt, eyes bugging out of his head to see his
quarry hovering in mid-air. Then he must have realized who was responsible as
his head came around, searching for her.
    “Up here!” she
called down to him.
    Xald’s head
jerked up, following the sound of her voice. “Artifactor! You’re doing this?”
    That was rather
obvious, so she ignored the question. “Get a firm grip on him. I’ll release the
spell after you do.”
    Flicking a hand
up in acknowledgement, Xald moved forward and grabbed both of Gautam’s arms.
Secured, Sevana let the spell end and watched as Xald promptly threw the man
onto the ground and wrenched his arms behind his back, ensuring he couldn’t
somehow wiggle free.
    Sevana cast the
levitation spell on herself again just long enough to get her feet back on the
street. Then she strolled casually to the two men. “For your information, I do
not run after criminals.”
    “I’m no
criminal!” Gautum whined into the pavement. He was stoutly ignored.
    “I see that,”
Xald acknowledged, amused. He shifted both of Gautum’s arms to a one-handed
grip so he could grab a length of twine out of a pocket, and then started tying
the man securely. “But Artifactor, I have to say, if you ever tire of your
profession you’d make a marvelous thief-taker.”
    “I’ll pass.”
She took it as a compliment that he said so and grinned regardless.
    Xald hauled the
man to his feet and roughly searched his pockets. On the inside of his vest,
two leather purses came out, both of them fairly fat and jingly. “Gautum, I
rather doubt these are yours.”
    “They were lent
to me!” Gautum protested, eyes darting about nervously. “For a business
venture.”
    “I’ll make sure
to talk to those partners of yours later. But for now, we have some questions
to ask you about the day you were in the courtyard outside of the Small Court.”
    This statement
terrified the thief and he scrambled to get away. But his sandals found no
purchase on the paving stones, and Xald was strong enough that he could brace
himself and hold the man’s arms. Neither man moved an inch.
    Tiring of this,
Sevana moved to face the man. “I am Artifactor Sevana Warran. I have questions
about the day you were in