"Kerr,.Katharine.&.Martin.H.Greenberg.-.Enchanted.Forests.V2" - читать интересную книгу автора (Dragon Stories)

Well, at least I knew I had the right household. I asked for Mr.
Mendip, and was told that he had died in a car accident less than
a year ago. A drunk driver, you know. I expressed the proper
sympathy while thinking there went my lead.

Mrs. Hodgson asked me in, and naturally, I accepted.

By the time tea was served, Mrs. Mendip arrived home. On
the off chance that she might know something, I asked if she
knew of any rare books her husband had owned.

Turns out he had several. I explained that I'd been sent to find
one book in particular, as it was worth quite a bit both sentimen-
tally and in a monetary sense. She told me the special books
were kept in his study, and offered to show them to me.

The study was immediate confirmation that he was the wizard
I was searching for, in case there'd been any doubt. It wasn't a
matter of dead animals, or that sort of thing, just the general at-
mosphere. When you live as close to the Enchanted Forest as I
do, you develop a sensitivity to magic.

The books were in a cabinet behind his desk, and to Mrs.
Mendip's surprise, the lock had been jimmied. The doors opened
at a touch, showing an empty shelf.

Mrs. Mendip was horrified, and ready to call the police to re-
port a burglary when the skateboarder, Kevan, walked in. Mrs.
Mendip told him to get washed for dinner, but he ignored her. He
headed straight for me.

He demanded to know what I was doing there, what I wanted
with his father, and in the same breath cursed me more ways
than most of the witches know, for daring to enter his father's
study.

I carefully stayed out of reach as I explained that I was search-
ing for a particular book mat his father owned.

With great pride and belligerence, Kevan informed me that if
it was one of the books his dad kept in that cabinet, then he'd
burned them all.

My brain started making connections immediately, so I almost
missed what he addedЧthat the magic spells in them didn't
work anyway.

Now, you and I know that only wizards can read magic spells
in a Wizard's book. I looked at the boy more closely, the back
of my brain solving the arson case.