Legend of the Sorcerer Read Free

longstanding disagreement over the latter’s use of a straight razor. It was a battle that, as of yet, Cai hadn’t managed to win. A neck undotted with bandages and Kleenex blots was a good sign, but it was the eyes that were the true gauge. They were as clear a turquoise blue as the water that surrounded their home on Crystal Key.
    He’d have to be on his toes. No way was Alfred seeing the e-mail. Not after what had happened last time.
    “Any good reviews in today’s mail?”
    “Just fans and the occasional advertisement.”
    For the most part, Alfred left Cai alone to his work, because he felt that what was in a man’s heart and soul was his to transform to the written word alone. But he did enjoy the critical reviews. Cai had caught him snooping through his mail more than once. As any proud grandparent would, he’d say when caught. But Cai knew differently.
    Alfred had had a long, and at times outspoken, history with various literary reviewers such as Isolde Morgan. His public battles with her were notorious, and they had cleverly engendered only further review and attention to his work. But while Alfred was still widely considered the definitive Arthurian scholar of the modern era, he’d chosen not to publish anything in the last ten years. He’d said all he had to, was his reasoning for retiring. But Cai knew it was his failing mental faculties that had forced him to end his career.
    Alfred had adjusted surprisingly well to his retirement. Of course, it helped that he still spent hours a day holed upwriting. He told Cai they were his memoirs and he’d let him in on them when he was good and ready.
    Alfred’s eyes sparkled. “Any more mail from that Candy’s Playhouse website?”
    Cai scowled. “No.” For a man who resented most things modern, Alfred had taken a perverse shine to certain aspects of the Internet that Cai would just as soon he not know about. “I delete that stuff.”
    “Of course, but before or after you peruse them?”
    “Very funny.”
    “Just trying to improve your social life.” Alfred stepped into the room and Cai shifted to block his computer screen. Alfred’s eyesight would do a buzzard proud.
    “Trust me, I’ll never be that desperate for companionship.”
    Alfred looked down his narrow nose. “It
has
been a while.”
    “Why don’t we leave that dead horse in the grave today, okay?” When Alfred merely nodded in too-easy acceptance, Cai frowned. “Okay, what’s up? When you give me that look I know you’ve got something up your sleeve.”
    “I have nothing in my sleeves but my arms.” Alfred sniffed indignantly as only a Welshman could.
    “Fine. But if Dilys comes home with anything more than boxes of groceries, we’re going to have another little chat about blind dates. Understand?” He remembered the blonde lifeguard who’d mysteriously popped up one day during his morning swim to “save him.” Alfred had looked so innocent, but Cai hadn’t missed the startling resemblance the woman had to Pamela Anderson Lee, nor had he forgotten Alfred’s recent fixation with
Baywatch
. Of late, he’d become quite engaged by
Xena, Warrior Princess
. Cai shuddered at the possibilities.
    Alfred picked imaginary lint off his pristine white duck shorts saying, “I have had no dealings with Dilys in regardsto your dismal social calendar, dear boy.” Leaning on his gold griffin-headed cane, Alfred lowered himself to the seat in the corner and elegantly crossed his legs. “Now, why don’t we dispense with all this diversionary verbal byplay and you tell me what it is that has you upset. Is it a bad review?”
    Cai thought about going with that, but Alfred knew he was rarely put out by negative reviews. “No, nothing like that.”
    “Eileen?” Alfred said, referring to Cai’s editor. “She’s not tampering with that bit about the dragon in Book Two, is she? She needs to trust your inner voice.” There was only one thing that got Alfred’s back up besides “sadly