Read Online The Secret of Dreadwillow Carse by Brian Farrey - Free Book Online

Carse’s secrets, Jeniah watched as a whole new mystery blossomed before her like a dark flower. Sending an emissary to explore the marsh had been an easy solution. Her new problem wouldn’t be so quickly solved.
    Jeniah had listened carefully as Aon explained how her father had been taken by the Crimson Hoods. Certainly the queen hadn’t known she would be orphaning Aon by taking her father into the queen’s service to live in a special tower. So maybe the queen could see fit to select someone else and return Aon’s father to Emberfell.
    Jeniah had assured the girl it could be done. She’d agreed to it as the reward for Aon’s help. Aon would send regular reports on what she found in Dreadwillow Carse, and Jeniah would send the girl’s father home.
    But it was a lie.
    Jeniah knew nothing of the tower where special servants of the queen lived.
    Jeniah had never before heard of the Crimson Hoods.
    At the time, the lie had felt justified. There were many things, Jeniah had reasoned, of which she had not yet been made aware. She’d never been inside her mother’s court where they likely discussed such matters. The queen had many agents who performed her bidding throughout the land. Perhaps the existence of the Crimson Hoods would be revealed to Jeniah when Skonas got around to teaching her the other lessons he’d promised.
    But . . .
    The way Aon had described the Crimson Hoods—mysterious messengers who appeared at the turn of every season—didn’t seem right to Jeniah. There was something . . . sinister about it. When Jeniah retired for the evening, she had a new mission: learning about the Crimson Hoods as soon as possible.
    The next morning, Jeniah went to her mother’s bedchambers to ask what the queen knew about her alleged secret servants. She was greeted outside the door by the Chief Healer. “The queen must not be disturbed, Your Highness,” he said gently. “I have given her an elixir to ease the pain that kept her awake during the night. She will sleep for hours.” Jeniah tried to insist on waiting at her mother’s bedside. But the Chief Healer assured Jeniah that what the queen needed most was solitude.
    To distract herself, Jeniah went to her daily appointment with Skonas. When her tutor arrived at the library, humming to his falcon that strange tune he always hummed, she sat across from him and asked, “What can you tell me about the Crimson Hoods?”
    Skonas stopped humming and yelped. His eyes widened, whether in shock or fear she couldn’t tell. She suspected it was a little of each. The old man lifted his palms to the ceiling and made a circular gesture while muttering under his breath. Startled, Gerheart squawked and retreated to the top of the bookcases.
    â€œWhat
are
you doing?” the princess asked.
    â€œAn ancient ritual,” Skonas rasped, “to ward off misfortune. Where did you hear about . . .
them
?”
    â€œI’ve heard they are secret servants of the monarch,” she said. “If I’m to be queen, I should know more about them.”
    Skonas folded his hands and regarded her closely. “Yes. Yes, I think you’re right. It’s only fair. As queen, you must know what you’re up against.”
    Jeniah’s toes curled in anticipation. This sounded more grave than she’d imagined.
    Skonas leaned in and spoke in hushed tones. “Servants of the monarch? Far from it. The Crimson Hoods stalk the silent places of the night, preying on the innocent. They were forged in the shadows cast by the dawn of time. And since the evil beings first walked, they’ve dedicated themselves to a single purpose: the destruction of the Monarchy.”
    Jeniah nodded, fighting all the while to hide her shock. Evil? There had never been, to her knowledge, anything in the Monarchy that could be described as “evil.” The word had practically no meaning here. This didn’t