Believe Read Free Page A

this picture? It was the most stunning illustration yet.
    A knight knelt in prayer before an altar, his hands clasped, his gaze turned toward the heavens. He wore some kind of tunic, with a massive sword in a scabbard at his waist. A red jewel glittered in a ring on his little finger. A single shaft of light from a window that was little more than a slit in the wall illuminated his upturned face. His hair was dark, nearly black, the color of night. His profile was classic: a straight, noble nose, lips firm and full, a touch of defiance in the set of his chin, eyes deep and lit with a burning passion. She couldn’t really tell from the picture but somehow sheknew his eyes were blue and nearly as dark as his hair. He seemed to fill the tiny chapel with his presence. Strapping. That’s what he was. Strapping. She drew a shaky breath. Wow. What a hunk. And what a shame he belonged in the one legend she didn’t particularly like. Of course, somebody like this could change her mind. She grinned. “Too bad he isn’t real.”
    Reluctantly she turned a page. Strange. This had to be the fourth or fifth, or maybe the fiftieth, time she’d gone through the book today. Yet, she seemed to see something new each time she leafed through it. Like the picture of Sir Hunk. She laughed, the sound unnaturally loud in the quiet of the stacks. He really wasn’t her type, anyway. Now if he were a Greek god…
    She flipped back to the beginning of the volume. She’d already tried and failed to find a single page with any kind of copyright date or publishing information. Maybe she’d just missed it. She seemed to be overlooking quite a bit in this little book.
    The title page opened before her and again she read:
     
    My Life and Times
    The True Story of Merlin
    Wizard Extraordinaire and Counselor to Kings
     
    Nothing there. She turned the page and her hand froze.
     
    The True Story of Merlin
     
    She flipped back and stared. There it was. It did say True .
    “I must be getting tired,” she muttered. “I could swear that word wasn’t there before.” She rubbed her eyes and turned the page. Again, she stared in disbelief.
    Here was another picture she’d obviously skipped right over. Although how anyone could was amazing. Piercing, imperious, black eyes stared out at her from beneath a blue wizard’s conical hat. White hair curled around his head and a long beard lay in waves on his chest. His robes matched his hat, a deep royal color with gold planets and stars dancing across the fabric. She glanced at the caption at the bottom of the page: Merlin, Wizard Extraordinaire and Counselor to Kings .
    “And modest too, eh pal? But what do you expect from a myth?” Tessa laughed softly and bent forward for a better look. The eyes of the image drew her closer. A glimmer of amusement lingered there. Funny. Her initial impression had been one of hauteur not humor. The old guy kind of looked like someone she knew, too. Short of Santa Claus, she didn’t know anybody who even vaguely resembled this guy. Her gaze drifted down the page to the caption at the bottom: I am not a myth .
    Tessa gasped, jerked her gaze away and bolted upright in her chair. “I didn’t see that.”
    She tried to fight it but couldn’t resist the compulsion for another quick peek.
    You did too.
    “Whoa!” Tessa slammed the book shut and jumped from her chair. Panic surged through her and she struggled to stay calm. She drew three deep breaths. “Okay, relax. There’s no problem. I’m just tired, that’sall. I’ve been here way too long, staring at small, tight print, in bad light, and my eyes are going.” She glared at the innocent looking volume. “Or my mind.”
    Tessa quickly gathered up the research materials scattered across the table. “I’ll turn these in, go home and relax. Yeah, that’s the ticket.”
    By the time she’d finished methodically stacking and restacking the library’s reference books, the beat of her heart and pace of her breathing