The Thief (41 page)

I shoved a stack of books, and they crashed
to the floor. Gods help me, I wanted Jul to distract me. I was
alone, with nothing on the horizon. No way to tell north from
south. I’d had bearings, before. But what was the point?

Turning to the mirror behind me, I reached
out to trace the cracks with my fingers. I’d lost Jul. I’d lost the
Tower.

Because of that man... Lightning crackled
over the ocean. My teeth ground together, thinking of Simon Graham.
Maybe I couldn’t have Jul back, but I could avenge her. If I could
find a way to make my powers work here, outside the mirror, I could
destroy him. I’d lost the library in the Tower, but perhaps
something in this journal -

I heard a soft hiss, like papers rustling. I
looked around - there couldn’t be wind in my room.

“
...ss”

On edge, I spun, searching for the source.
“Who’s there?” I demanded.

“
...yss...”

I strained to listen, perfectly still.

“
Rhys?” the quiet voice
said. “Rhys, is that you?”

I stared wide-eyed at the broken mirror. The
cracks obscured it, but the face was unmistakable. Her perfect,
delicate face - her plush lips and her wide dark eyes, eyes I could
lose myself forever in.

“
Rhys, help me,” Jul begged,
her voice sounding hazy and far away. “You have to get me out of
here!”

There was a lighthouse, a beacon in the
distance. I could swim for it.

“
I will,” I told her. “I
will, I swear.”

To be continued...

the denizens of Havenwood will return in

The Dragon - Archetype Book 2

Special Thanks

to my parents - for cheering me on every
step of the way

to my brothers, Bill, David, and John - for
family games, LAN parties, and random events of great
importance

to Ashley, Ben, and Sam - for not strangling
me for talking about my stupid book all the time

to The Guys - for speaking my language

to my guildies at Runesong - for putting up
with your purplething’s extended leave of absence

and some extra thanks to a few people whose
creations never cease to inspire me:

Joss Whedon, Felicia Day, Wil Wheaton, Kim
Harrison, J.K. Rowling, Neil Gaiman, Jackson Publick and Doc
Hammer.

Please never stop making things.

and of course, to you, for reading this.
Thanks for vacationing in my world.

Aine Crabtree

is the creator / earth mother goddess of an
alternate universe, where the good are sacrificed upon the Altar of
Cliffhangers and the wicked flourish to prolong the dramatic
tension. She has spent most of her life waiting to be recruited by
the X-Men. Superpowers include uncanny recognition of voices,
perfect recall of every Venture Bros. episode, and the ability to
eat all of the sushi.

Aine lives in Huntsville, Alabama with
Spike, the world’s cutest kitten.

This is her first novel, and boy, did she
take her sweet time.

Follow along with the voices in her
head:

ainecrabtree.com

archetypeseries.com

@ainecrabtree

The
Thief and the Archetype series are copyright © 2013 by Aine
Crabtree.

Published by MJ Lane Publishing, LLC

Cover created by John Crabtree at
designbycrabtree.com

The Thief is a work of fiction and Havenwood
is not a real place. Any similarities in this book to persons or
locations fictional or living is unintentional, so please don’t
throw things at the author.