"Jenny Nimmo - Red King 01 - Midnight for Charly" - читать интересную книгу автора (Nimmo Jenny)

v

PROLOGUE

Long, long ago a king arrived in the North. They called him the Red King
because he wore a scarlet cloak and his shield was emblazoned with a
burning sun. It was said that he came out of Africa. This king was also
a marvelous magician and each of his ten children inherited a small part
of his power. But when the king's wife died, five of his children turned
to wickedness and the other five, seeking to escape the corruption that
surrounded their evil siblings, left their father's castle forever.

Brokenhearted, the Red King vanished into the

vi forests that covered the kingdoms of the North. He did not go alone,
however, for he was followed by his three faithful cats -leopards to be
precise. We must never forget the cats!
The manifold and fabulous powers of the Red King were passed down
through his descendants, often turning up quite unexpectedly in someone
who had no idea where they came from. This is what happened to Charlie
Bone and to some of the children he met behind the grim, gray walls of
Bloor's Academy

vii

1

CHARLIE HEARS VOICES

On a Thursday afternoon, just after tea, Charlie Bone saw smoke. He
happened to be looking out of his window when a dark cloud lifted above
the autumn trees. The wind blew it south and it moved through the sky
like a great, floating whale.

Somewhere, on the other side of the city there was a fire. Charlie could
hear a fire engine racing toward it. He had no idea that in mysterious
and unexpected ways he was connected to it and would soon be drawn to
the place where it had begun.

Charlie slept well, got up the next morning, and went to school. After
school, Charlie and his friend, Benjamin Brown, walked home together, as
usual. The cloud of smoke had gone, but the sky was stormy and dark. A
fierce wind sent red and gold leaves racing down Filbert Street.

Benjamin crossed the road to number twelve, while Charlie stopped at
number nine. Most of the

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