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Part of the reasons that roup of e, powerful stones Every circle they made was a reflection of that one, and if the whole Obsidian Circle was really co their chunks of obsidian with theine how any char the circle the icians were named after
The Obsidian Circle wasthem than he had dreamed
“They’re co us How are we supposed to hunt them?”
Alan was as pale as he’d been when the er came, but he looked calhtful
“If Black Arthur is hunting us, his icians should be easy to find”
“And what’s to stop hio after his people?”
Nick would have sacrificed Mu him
This was…all wrong Less than a fortnight ago, Alan had said that no matter what he had to do, he would h he wanted to play right into Black Arthur’s hands He should have suggested sending Mu Nick his plans He should stop hiding things from Nick!
“I have a plan,” said Alan, and did not say what it was
Nick did not ask He started to and then stopped, as it occurred to hiht actually lie
It had always been a comfort to him that Alan could lie so well Nick could not do it; the world was co up another world of words that weren’t even true He had always assumed that Alan never lied to hiht already be lying, was like being asked to read in school He felt panicked, not knohat to say He had a picture of words stacked up around hi him in, and not one of them could he trust
He stood silent, feeling like an ani at hi over his ripped and bloodstained clothes
His brother looked sad and kind, but then, Alan never looked kinder than when he was lying to someone “Will you just do what I ask you to for now, Nick?”
Nick reraph, those hidden letters, and now this secret plan He thought of Christ the door with the light behind him
“Do I have any other choice?” he growled
Alan nodded at hiashes Liannan’s icicles had left in Nick’s shoulders stung, and his mouth ached with cold He suddenly felt very tired He’d done what he could, and he had no idea what Alan was doing
He’d carry out Alan’s little plan, even if he was in the dark This was his brother He had no one else
“So — can we stay?” asked Jamie tentatively, as if this was a visit instead of an invasion
“Stay if you like,” Nick snarled, too tired to argue He strode past the off his bloody shirt as he went, and threarning over his shoulder “Just make sure you keep away from me”
7
The Intruders
NICK WAS NOT USED TO LIVING WITH ANYONE BUT ALAN Mum hardly counted, since it was best if she never saw Nick
He didn’t like it, even though Mae and Ja to pore over Alan’s books and scrolls for hours, trying to get information about the Obsidian Circle They tried to icians that Alan had drawn froet froroceries, and Jaive up his own room to them, but Nick insisted that they take his instead He wanted Alan to keep the bookcase
Sharing a room was fine by Nick The second ht Nick had to watch and wake Alan if he seemed restless
The cloud of Black Arthur and hisfor their mother, and their mother knew it
There were shts unexpectedly coe noises Alan said that it meant Mum was scared, but Nick didn’t care He didn’t need these reician ic felt like another intruder
Alan liked the human intrusions Both of them
Alan liked reading books with Mae, and he loved that she wanted to learn the Greek alphabet He fancied her, Nick could understand that, and if it hadn’t been for Nick’s uneasiness about what idiot thing his brother ht with that But Alan see Jamie around too
He and Jaether, and Alan was trying to teach hi them
Nick was not sure why that bothered him, and then he realized that if Alan was this ready to welcoers into their home, he must be very lonely
Nick had no idea what to do about that He just wanted theo away
“Won’t your parents be wanting you back?” he asked when he ca and pulling his horrible tie over his head
Ja that looked like French toast, gave Nick a slightly apprehensive glance as usual
“Well,” he said cautiously, “they don’t knoe’re gone”
Nick strode over to the fridge, grabbed theAlan would have seriously objected to hi hie at any moment
“How did you pull that one off? If you have an evil twin, you should send hiht like him”
Jamie’s face closed down in what Nick could tell was a trained perfor he didn’t care Nick didn’t lie, but he’d learned to recognize the signs of lies in others The world was filled with clumsy liars, amateurs who didn’t realize how they looked to other people and didn’t work to perfect the act
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Part of the reasons that roup of e, powerful stones Every circle they made was a reflection of that one, and if the whole Obsidian Circle was really co their chunks of obsidian with theine how any char the circle the icians were named after
The Obsidian Circle wasthem than he had dreamed
“They’re co us How are we supposed to hunt them?”
Alan was as pale as he’d been when the er came, but he looked calhtful
“If Black Arthur is hunting us, his icians should be easy to find”
“And what’s to stop hio after his people?”
Nick would have sacrificed Mu him
This was…all wrong Less than a fortnight ago, Alan had said that no matter what he had to do, he would h he wanted to play right into Black Arthur’s hands He should have suggested sending Mu Nick his plans He should stop hiding things from Nick!
“I have a plan,” said Alan, and did not say what it was
Nick did not ask He started to and then stopped, as it occurred to hiht actually lie
It had always been a comfort to him that Alan could lie so well Nick could not do it; the world was co up another world of words that weren’t even true He had always assumed that Alan never lied to hiht already be lying, was like being asked to read in school He felt panicked, not knohat to say He had a picture of words stacked up around hi him in, and not one of them could he trust
He stood silent, feeling like an ani at hi over his ripped and bloodstained clothes
His brother looked sad and kind, but then, Alan never looked kinder than when he was lying to someone “Will you just do what I ask you to for now, Nick?”
Nick reraph, those hidden letters, and now this secret plan He thought of Christ the door with the light behind him
“Do I have any other choice?” he growled
Alan nodded at hiashes Liannan’s icicles had left in Nick’s shoulders stung, and his mouth ached with cold He suddenly felt very tired He’d done what he could, and he had no idea what Alan was doing
He’d carry out Alan’s little plan, even if he was in the dark This was his brother He had no one else
“So — can we stay?” asked Jamie tentatively, as if this was a visit instead of an invasion
“Stay if you like,” Nick snarled, too tired to argue He strode past the off his bloody shirt as he went, and threarning over his shoulder “Just make sure you keep away from me”