An Apprentice Without Magic Read online

  Magic Missing

  Book Two

  By

  Guy Antibes

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Chapter Forty

  Chapter Forty-One

  Chapter Forty-Two - Epilogue

  Magic Missing Character List

  Excerpt from A Voyager Without Magic

  Copyright Page

  Author’s Note

  A Bit About Guy

  Books by Guy Antibes

  Copyright ©2018 Guy Antibes. All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced without the permission of the author.

  ~

  This is a work of fiction. There are no real locations used in the book; the people, settings, and specific places are a product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblances to actual persons, locations, or places are purely coincidental.

  Published by CasiePress LLC in Salt Lake City, UT, October 2018.

  www.casiepress.com

  Cover Design: www.ebooklaunch.com

  Book Design: Kenneth Cassell

  ~

  AUTHOR’S NOTE

  ~

  My second book in the Magic Missing series took me a while to complete. I ended up buying a house and moving right after A Boy Without Magic was released. That process ended up consuming my mental and physical time for a few months. Eventually, I got back into my normal writing groove and I was very happy to finish An Apprentice Without Magic. I’m happy to say, I’m back at work on the next book in the series, A Voyager Without Magic, and my release schedule has returned to normal.

  As usual my small team of editors, artists, and readers have done a great job of keeping my writing readable. Thank you Judy, Bev, and Ken. And my thanks to the people at EbookLaunch for the quick turnaround on a new cover for the second book in the series.

  — Guy Antibes

  ~

  Chapter One

  ~

  S am’s eyes followed the contours of the countryside Gone were the gentle hills and dales surrounding Cherryton, his former home. The carriage he was sharing with Chief Constable Bentwick and two constables transferring to the Royal Constabulary headquarters carried them to Baskin, the capital of the kingdom of Toraltia.

  After a few days of rolling farmland, he wondered if he had made the right decision to join the constabulary as an apprentice. At least he’d eventually be sharing a house with Tru Smith, his oldest brother. He looked up at the ceiling wondering how Emmy, his Great Sanchian hunting dog, endured riding on the top of the carriage.

  “We will sleep in Baskin tonight,” Bentwick said. He smiled at Sam, who had turned his head from the view.

  “Will we see the ocean?” Sam asked.

  He had never had the opportunity to spend any time on the eastern coast of Toraltia. Since he had grown up inland, his only real travel was the past summer on a tour of the mountain villages even farther to the northwest of Cherryton with Harrison Dimple, a healer and a spy for someone in Baskin. The man had always been vague about who he really worked for.

  “We will stop at Sharp’s Hill for dinner. From there, it’s an hour to Baskin. You’ll be able to see the edge of the sea,” one of the constables said.

  “Thank you,” Sam said.

  The confidence that he had felt after helping Harrison and Chief Constable Bentwick stop a rebellion in the mountainous northwest of the country seemed to have gone stale. Even if Sam had wanted to, he wouldn’t be able to return to Cherryton. His family had cast him out, as had much of the rest of the town, anything to get rid of a boy who couldn’t see or make anything out of pollen, the magical material that permeated the world.

  Surviving a lightning strike when he was a five-year-old had scoured the ubiquitous ability from Sam. His plight hadn’t generated pity, but enmity from friends, family, and most of the town. His disability wasn’t contagious, but Sam felt that people treated him as if it was.

  During his healing tour with Harrison, Sam had been able to contribute to discovering the rebellion plot in large part because he couldn’t see pollen-made things. At least he had found a glassmaker who could coat glass with a wash of gold that enabled Sam to see pollen for the first time since his accident. Now as he ended his fourteenth year, he had found an apprenticeship when he had despaired of ever securing one.

  ~

  The two constables had generally ignored him on the journey from Cherryton, but then there was the age difference. Sam guessed that Tru wouldn’t have acted differently from the constables since he was nearly ten years older than Sam.

  Similar thoughts ran through Sam’s head as he gazed out at the thin line of the gray ocean in the distance, and then up at the city gates as they clattered through, and on Baskin’s cobblestone streets toward the Royal Constabulary.

  “What do you think of Baskin?” Bentwick asked as the carriage came to a stop in front of a large five-story building. Dark-blue uniformed constables walked up and down the steps, along with Baskin’s citizens.

  “Big. It’s bigger than anything we’ve driven through.”

  “That’s the capital for you,” one of the constables said. “It is twice as big as any city in Toraltia. Don’t get lost!” The two men laughed at the jibe.

  Sam looked at Bentwick. “You said I’d spend the next two weeks living here?”

  The Chief Constable nodded. “There is a dormitory section on the fifth floor for visiting constables and a large room for our apprentices, but once you find a house, you can move out after training. I’ll help you find something that will give Emmy some room to exercise,”

  The big dog jumped off the roof and patiently waited for Sam to leave the carriage.

  “I can take her to the dormitory with me?” he asked Bentwick.

  “Not up to the fifth story. We have a stable in the back. She will stay there. It will be your responsibility to make sure she is taken care of. I’m sure you can accomplish that.”

  Sam nodded.

  ~

  The six apprentice constables stood in a line in front of Bentwick, two other chief constables, and the Head Constable. Five wore uniforms, but Sam didn’t. He was the only apprentice attached to the Constabulary’s Investigative Division, and members of the unit were not required to wear uniforms except for special occasions. Apprentices were trained as groups. Sam was the last to join.

  “I brought you all together,” Bentwick said, “to introduce you to your newest member, Sam Smith. He comes to us from Cherryton. We’ve rarely ha
d an apprentice assigned to the Investigative Unit before, but Sam has proven himself up to the task during the recent rebellion in the mountains. I worked with him personally, and I think he will be an asset to the Royal Constabulary. Two others are newly arrived while I was gone on assignment. Please say your name, your assignment within the constabulary, your age, and where you are from.”

  Sam endured the introductions. None of the other boys seemed friendly, but Bentwick had warned him to expect that. There was a reason constables had to earn a place in the Investigative Unit. He had assured Sam that his apprenticeship was earned, but Sam wouldn’t be telling the others that, so he had to endure their stares.

  Later, after making sure Emmy had a straw bed in a corner of the stable, Sam trudged with his bags up the five floors to the apprentice dormitory at the top. The only apprentice in the room pointed to a bed with an empty closet. A trunk sat at the foot of each bed. Sam put his spectacles on to observe that the three trunks at the end of the other beds were secured with pollen locks.

  “Why are you wearing spectacles? Aren’t they something for old men who can’t read?” the boy, Mark Leadback, said.

  “I have focus problems when it comes to pollen,” Sam said, skirting his disability. “I thought I saw pollen locks on a few trunks, but I prefer iron. I’ll have to buy one.”

  Mark narrowed his eyes, but then raised his eyebrows as if it really didn’t matter. “I think they have plenty of locks downstairs in the supply room. That is where you’ll be measured for your uniform.”

  Sam nodded and put his bags in the trunk anyway. “How long have you been an apprentice?”

  “I was the first to arrive, at the beginning of summer. Some of the others are older. The formal training has already started.”

  “How did you become an apprentice?” Sam asked.

  “My uncle is a constable. Most of the others have constabulary relatives. It seems you are a special case.”

  Sam pursed his lips. He’d have to talk about his issues at some point, so he sat on his bed and told Mark about himself and his adventures.

  “You really fought in the rebellion?”

  Sam nodded. “I learned just enough swordsmanship not to get killed, but I have a few scars.” He showed Mark his still-healing hand. “I have one like that on my stomach.”

  “I heard you brought a big dog with you.”

  “Emmy is her name. She is a Great Sanchian hunting dog. Chief Constable Bentwick said I could board her at the constabulary until I get a house. I’ll be living outside the constabulary.”

  Mark nodded. “Two of us do that. There are only three that live in the apprentice dorm.” Mark smiled. “I can sleep in longer living here.” His face turned dour. “You’ll have to watch yourself. Constables like to play tricks on the apprentices, so be careful. It is not unknown for apprentices to do the same to the new arrivals, and that includes me.”

  “I understand. I’m used to ‘tricks,’ as you call them.”

  Mark nodded his head. “I suppose you are. Do you have any questions for me?”

  Sam made sure he knew what time things started and ended, including when and where meals were served. Since Mark had warned him about pranks, Sam would get confirmation of what the apprentice had told him. He hoped the constable-apprentice Mark would be nicer than Sam’s brother Mark.

  Sam walked down to the second floor and was ushered into Bentwick’s office. A few of the scheduled times Mark had given him were an hour off, such as when work started and when dinner was generally served. That was a mild prank in Sam’s mind.

  “I’m assigning you to an experienced investigator,” Bentwick said. “He is my best and has an unusual background, but quite different from yours. I think he’ll be a good match for you. I’ll get him in here.”

  The Chief Constable left the office and returned with a tall, lanky man in his mid-thirties, Sam thought.

  “Sam, this is Dickey Nail,” Bentwick said, turning to Sam. “Investigators are at least equivalent to officers in the constabulary, but they don’t usually supervise. That is my job. Dickey will be your partner as you start your apprenticeship.”

  Sam bowed his head towards Dickey. “I am honored to be your partner.”

  The man grunted. He had dark thatch-like hair and a sharp nose. With a more careful gaze, he looked to be less than thirty-years-old. “You can save that honor stuff until we’ve been on the job for a few months. I don’t suffer fools, and I’m no nursemaid. Understand?”

  “I do,” Sam said. “I am here to learn and to help.”

  Bentwick cleared his throat. “Sam can tell you how he helped Harrison Dimple in the field. I fought with Sam in the rebellion, and he is plucky enough for his age.”

  “The elusive Harrison Dimple,” Dickey said.

  Bentwick shook his head. “Not elusive. He was banished from Baskin, but not from Toraltia. He has taken on the role of healer and occasionally works in the villages northwest of Cherryton, where he lives.”

  Dickey looked at Sam. “I suppose if you are good enough to work with Dimple, you are good enough to work with me, but I won’t put up with teenage mischief.”

  “You will have to put up with my dog, Emmy,” Sam said.

  The investigator looked at Bentwick. “A boy with a dog?” He looked exasperated.

  “He owns a Great Sanchian. Sam thinks of Emmy as a hunting dog, but, yes, she has also proven herself in battle,” Bentwick said.

  Dickey winced. “I don’t like dogs.”

  “She doesn’t have to come with us everywhere we go,” Sam said.

  The man nodded. “Good, that means the mutt won’t be laying a track of drool through Baskin.”

  Sam nodded. “She does drool,” he said playfully, trying to tease out Dickey’s sense of humor.

  Dickey smirked. “Not with me, she won’t.”

  Bentwick looked at Dickey with narrowed eyes. “You are Sam’s supervisor. It is your call if you choose to use Emmy or not.” Bentwick took a breath. “Where does Sam show up tomorrow?”

  “I can eat breakfast here at the constabulary tomorrow morning.” Dickey looked at Bentwick, then at Sam. “You’ll need a house to keep the dog, right?”

  Sam nodded.

  “I know just the place, though it’s a little expensive for an apprentice.”

  “I’m going to live with my brother. He’s a journeyman smith making decorative iron.”

  “Like window grills?” Dickey asked.

  Sam nodded, yet again.

  “Good. Make sure he pays his fair share. Apprentices don’t make much money.” Dickey looked at Bentwick. “Is that all, for now, sir?”

  Bentwick flicked his wrist. “He will start tomorrow. If you have a line on a house, why don’t you take Sam to see it after you’ve met Emmy? Otherwise, I know of a few others that might work for him.”

  “I’ll meet the mutt soon enough. No need to do that today. I’ll arrange a visit to the townhouse tomorrow.” Dickey gave Bentwick a little bow. “If we are done, sir?”

  “We are.”

  Dickey left the office without acknowledging Sam.

  Chapter Two

  ~

  S am waited for half-an-hour for Dickey to show at the constabulary commissary. The time gave him an opportunity to listen to the banter of the other constables. Four of the apprentices arrived at the same time Sam did, but they ignored him and sat at another table. The place was gradually filling up.

  The city constables seemed more self-important than the men he had known in the mountain constabularies. Perhaps serving in the capital of Toraltia went to their heads. Sam looked at Baskin as another town, but much larger.

  “You actually waited for me before you got something to eat?” Dickey said as he stood at the table. “I’m hungry. Constabulary food isn’t too bad.”

  Sam followed his partner through the food line. They sat down at a different table, since other constables had seized Sam’s place. He would have to remember that. Dickey stuffed
half of his food into his stomach before he said another word.

  “Always get some food into you first. You never know when you are going to be called away.”

  Sam nodded. “I had to do that when we fought at Shovel Vale.”

  “The Chief wasn’t kidding when he said you went to battle at his side? I thought he made the stuff up to justify bringing you into the Investigative Unit.”

  Sam ate a few bites just to spite Dickey before he replied. “No kidding. I never fought anyone before I accompanied Harrison into the mountains. I can’t say that now.”

  “A fifteen-year-old with war stories,” Dickey smirked again. It seemed to be an oft-repeated characteristic. “We’ll have time enough to share a few. I fought in the army for six months after my schooling before I decided that I was better figuring things out than swinging at people, although I’ve done that often enough in this job.”

  Sam tried not to smile. Dickey had seemed to thaw a little during his introduction, but then he abruptly stood.

  “Time to show you your new dungeon.” He said it as if Sam wouldn’t have a choice in the matter.

  “You have to at least see my dog first.”

  Dickey shook his head. “Already done that. I rode in this morning. Big, dark-gray brute. She doesn’t seem to bark as much as growl at people. It is an intimidating experience. My cats would quickly disappear should your pooch show up on my doorstep.”

  Sam stood. “Then show me to my new rooms,” he said, even though he wouldn’t make a decision without consulting Tru, whom he would try to find later in the day.

  They walked out onto the city street. Sam was surprised at how many people were about. Baskin might be more than a larger Cherryton, after all.

  The constabulary was on a busy thoroughfare. Because Sam had never been outside the constabulary since he arrived, he had no idea where they were in Baskin. A few streets to the south, Dickey stopped in front of a modest townhouse in a presentable neighborhood.

  “A friend of mine used to live here, but he transferred out with his business. He said I could rent it out or find someone to take it over. It doesn’t look too derelict.”