Jake's War, Book Two of Wizards Read Free Page B

she fled as if the hounds of hell were at her feet. Being a wizard does have some perks.
    I've tracked wizards through hop-space before. Wizards leave a trail of disturbed space around them. It's possible to cover your tracks if you know how. While Bronwyn knew I could track her she had no experience in covering her tracks. On the other hand, trails soon vanished as the mists shifted and it was over a day since she hopped. My chances of tracking her at this point were close to zero.
    I hopped across the court and left Salice behind.
     
    Hop-space is weird. Until recently I didn't even know it existed. I just went from here to there without seeing the space in-between. The only time I'd spent in it was when I was tracking someone.
    Think swirling mists from one of those old black and white movies of London smog. That's pretty much hop-space. I'd swear I could feel cobbles beneath my feet. There are impressions of colors though everything I could see was grey. When a wizard travels through hop-space they leave an emptier bit, a line of nothingness in the mists that begins to fill up again as soon as it forms.
    You can mess up the mists if you want. I learned to do that after an evil wizard tracked me to Earth. It's a bit like swirling your arms as you hop. I do it automatically when I hop these days, but Bronwyn hasn't had the time to learn. Not that it mattered this time as it had been so long since she hopped.
    There was nothing to indicate where she'd gone. When I stared harder into the mist I saw a million motes of light. Most looked unhealthy and I knew they were places unsafe for me to go. I found a light that looked pleasant and it grew out of the mist and enveloped me. I saw flashes of countryside around me. Mountains, rivers, caves and forests whizzed by so fast they were more impressions than real.
    A thin line of nothing led to somewhere and I followed it to materialize on a flat stony desert. A boy, no older than ten, stared at me with fear in his eyes. He hopped and jumped a couple of times across a crudely drawn hopscotch court and vanished. I didn't try and chase him as what would be the point? He was hardly going to lead me to Bronwyn.
     
    When I returned to our palace room I found Jenny and Esmeralda huddled together whispering on the bed. They turned to face me as I appeared, though I could have sworn I made no sound. Jenny saw the look on my face and frowned.
    “No sign of Bronwyn?”
    “None. I need something she's worn, something personal.”
    It was Esmeralda's turn to look unhappy. “I searched her room and everything has gone…”
    “I'll try her parent's house.”
    Esmeralda put a hand towards me. “Wait, Jake. There's something else.”
    I waited impatiently, but Esmeralda seemed reluctant to continue. Jenny put an arm across Esmeralda's shoulder and I was struck by how full of life they both looked. If there was ever such a thing as a healthy glow, those two had cornered the market.
    “He has to know,” Jenny said in a whisper.
    I felt something lumpy take shape in the depths of my stomach. The girls were about to tell me something I didn't want to know, I was certain of it.
    “Some of our books are missing,” Esmeralda blurted.
    The feeling of doom vanished and I grinned at them.
    “So what?”
    “Books from the Royal Collection … on magic.”
    I still couldn't get concerned. My grin must have got to Esmeralda because she turned to Jenny with her fists clenched.
    “You try,” she said through gritted teeth.
    “Jake, you're very powerful, but the books explain how to use magic effectively. Bronwyn may be able to beat you once she's studied them.”
    I felt a twinge of doubt, but dismissed it. Bronwyn would be dealt with long before she had the chance to do any significant learning.
    “I can handle her. When I catch her I'll block her from her magic and the problem will be over.”
    Esmeralda turned her back on me and Jenny stared at me open mouthed. I hopped to Bronwyn's parents’