Crystal Keepers Read Free

position as a slave at a confidence lounge, where she helped create illusionary disguises so people could exchange secrets anonymously.
    There were still so many people to find! He worried most about Jenna, his friend who had also been his secret crush for years. When they were separated, he had promised to find her but hadn’t uncovered any clues yet. Would he finally track her down in Zeropolis?
    â€œWho goes there?” Jace shouted.
    Turning, Cole saw a form racing toward their camp. Though it was hard to catch all the details in the mellow orange moonlight, the shape of a man glided hurriedly forward, his feet a few inches off the ground.
    Drawing his Jumping Sword, Cole raced back toward the center of camp, where the ghostly figure was heading. Onefoot got caught against a stone, and he went down badly, twisting away from his blade to avoid slashing himself.
    By the time Cole was back on his feet, the figure had come to a stop before Skye. Dressed in a dark suit, the balding man stood with stiff posture. Cole trotted toward them with Mira a step behind.
    â€œJepson?” Skye exclaimed.
    â€œThe very same,” the butler replied, smoothing a hand down the front of his jacket. “Your mother sent me to you.”
    Cole halted not far from Skye. Though Jepson appeared tangible and solid, Cole knew he had no substance—he was a figment, a living illusion created by an enchanter. The stuffy man served Skye’s wealthy mother. Joe, Jace, and Dalton joined Cole and Mira.
    â€œHow’d he find you?” Cole asked Skye.
    â€œHe’s bound to mother and the person who will inherit him,” Skye said. “He could find either of us anywhere.”
    Jepson gave Cole a superior glance then faced Skye. “Do you wish to converse in front of these . . . people?”
    â€œAbsolutely,” Skye said. “Is mother all right?”
    The butler’s brow crinkled, and his lips quivered. He used a long sniff to collect himself. “Sadly, she is not.” His eyes squinted shut, and he shook with sobs. It took a moment before he straightened up and continued. “You must help her. Lady Madeline has been abducted by a vile ruffian called the Hunter.”
    Skye gasped, putting both hands over her mouth. “No!”
    Cole had never met the Hunter but knew about him—an Enforcer who had been chasing them since Sambria. In hispursuit of Mira, the Hunter had captured the slavers Ansel and Secha back in Carthage to wring information from them. The Hunter had a scary reputation. Evidently the trail had led him to Skye’s home.
    â€œYour mother ordered me to find you,” Jepson said.
    Skye dropped her hands. “Before or after the Hunter seized her?”
    â€œAfter,” Jepson said. “The Hunter would gladly exchange your mother for a child called Mira. An escaped slave, it seems.”
    Skye’s gaze took in the moonlit landscape. “Were you followed?”
    â€œNot to my knowledge,” Jepson said. His distress won out again as he wrung his hands, tears glistening in his eyes. “There is no time to waste. What do you know of this Mira?”
    â€œHe was followed,” Joe said, gripping the hilt of his sword.
    â€œYou see something?” Dalton asked.
    â€œThe Hunter wouldn’t miss such a golden opportunity,” Joe said. “If he sent a homing pigeon, it didn’t come alone.”
    Rattled, Cole squinted into the moonlit dimness beyond their encampment. He saw the shapes of trees and shrubs and the empty expanse of a brushy field, but no movement.
    â€œIs there any chance you were followed?” Skye asked the butler heatedly.
    â€œI suppose,” Jepson replied. “I had no orders to take precautions against such measures. My concern is the safety of Lady Madeline.”
    â€œGet to the horses,” Joe said, hurrying away from the conversation. “Saddle up. We may already be too late.”
    They scattered.