The Wizard Returns: Book Three of the Wizard Born Series

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons (living or dead), events or locations is entirely coincidental.

Copyright © 2013 by Geof Johnson

Cover Art by Dan Johnson

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in a review.

Thanks to Valerie Johnson for her helpful suggestions and editing expertise.

ISBN: 9781483511245

Chapter 1

The demon slowed as he lumbered down the hot, vaporous tunnel. Up ahead, there was a sliver of light where one shouldn’t be, a thin vertical gash in the curved, rocky wall. He approached it curiously.

Daylight poured through the long crack, and when he sniffed it with his broad, flat nose, he smelled fresh air beyond. He placed one red eye up to the opening, but the brilliant blues and greens beyond were too dazzling for him to make out any detail.

He slipped his clawed hands into the fissure, one on either edge, set his wide, clawed feet firmly beneath him, and heaved with all his strength, the muscles on his broad chest and shoulders bulging mightily.

The gash held.

He stepped back, panting from the exertion, studying the opening with increased determination. He placed his hands back into the fissure as he had before, set his feet on the dusty, rocky floor, and gathered his will. He took a deep breath and heaved, pulling with Herculean strength and calling up all the magical resources he could bring to bear.

The gash held for a moment, and then, with a terrible, wrenching groan, it gave way and widened. He only hesitated a moment before turning his body sideways and slipping through. As his trailing foot cleared the gap, it snapped closed, leaving only a smooth rock face where the crack had been.

He placed one leathery hand on the now-flawless wall of stone behind him and grunted, then turned to survey his new surroundings. He stood on a winding trail that followed the same general direction as the tunnel he’d just exited. The narrow ridge that supported the trail fell away to a wooded valley that was framed by mountains.

Mountains, as far as he could see, fading to a pale blue in the distance.

He heard a shrieking cry above, and looked to see a bird of prey, circling overhead. The raptor cried again as if issuing a challenge, and the demon threw back his head and roared a terrifying response. The feathered creature flapped its wings and retreated hastily.

Then the demon dropped to all fours and loped away down the narrow path.

Uh!
Jamie Sikes felt the wrenching twinge deep inside his gut.
Something just happened
. Then a hand nudged his left shoulder and he looked up to see Fred standing beside him.

“Get up, Jamie,” she said, clapping and smiling. “Everybody’s cheering for the team.” The gymnasium at North Henderson High was warm and loud, packed for the Friday night basketball game against East Henderson, and Jamie was the only one not on his feet. She eyed him carefully and her smile vanished. “Are you okay?”

“I just felt something.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Are you gonna be sick?”

He motioned for her to come closer and she sat down, worry lining her face.

“I felt some
magic
,” he said in a low voice.

“You always feel that when you come to the basketball games with me.”

“Not the tingle, something else. Something....” He shook his head. “I don’t know...like somebody just did a major spell.”

“That can’t be good.” They locked eyes while the kids around them remained on their feet, cheering. “You haven’t felt anything like that in a long time.”

“Not since Renn died.” An image of the psychotic, purple-cloaked sorcerer popped into his mind, Renn in Jamie’s family room, threatening to kill him and his parents.

“Was it strong?”

“It was serious magic.”

The fans around them took their seats and Bryce, who was sitting on Fred’s left, pointed at the North Henderson bench. “Hey look, Rollie’s going in. He’s pulling off his sweats.” Then he seemed to notice the concern on Fred and Jamie’s faces. “Is something wrong?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Jamie said. “We’ll tell you later.”

Bryce regarded him for a moment, a concerned look in his brown eyes, then he shrugged. “Okay, but Rollie’s goin’ in the game. There are two minutes left, and we’re up by fifteen.”

Fred cupped her hands to her mouth and shouted at their caramel-skinned friend, “Go, Rollie!”

Bryce gestured with one finger at the scoreboard. “He said he might get to play if we had a big enough lead.” He cupped his hands and shouted, too, “Get ’em, Rollie!”

Rollie glanced up at them and grinned, then stepped onto the court as their starting guard, A.J. Wells, headed for the bench.

The other team inbounded the ball, their guard dribbling to half court before Rollie applied pressure. The other player tried to blow past Rollie down the side line, but Rollie was too quick for him, and he was forced to pick up his dribble and look for an open man. Rollie’s teammates stepped up their pressure, too, and the East Henderson guard panicked as the time clock ran down, throwing a desperation pass that went out of bounds.

“Attaboy, Rollie,” Bryce cheered as North Henderson inbounded the ball. Bryce said to Jamie, “He’s
so
quick. Too bad he doesn’t get to play more.”

“If A.J. wasn’t six-two, maybe Rollie would. Plus, A.J.’s been starting for two years.”

“Well, Rollie may be only five-seven, but he’s wicked fast.”

Rollie dribbled to the top of the key and zipped a pass to his center in the low post. Unfortunately, the other team’s guard anticipated that and made a break on the ball, tipping it toward his own goal and breaking down court for what looked like an easy breakaway score.

“Darn it!” Jamie smacked his hands together.

“Look!” Bryce said, and they watched Rollie take off after the runaway player. Rollie was a speeding blur, making up the distance in spectacular, jaw-dropping fashion. Rollie caught up with him at the other foul line, zipped around him and knocked the ball away. It bounced toward the back wall, seemingly headed out of bounds. Rollie accelerated, caught up to it at the last moment, and planted one foot just inside the back line. He leaped and spun in the air, flinging the ball toward his own goal.

One of Rollie’s teammates, Terrence, who was trailing on the play, caught it and looked down court. He saw his center standing alone near their goal, and Terrence fired the ball to him. The center took three long strides to the hoop and slammed it home, turned and wagged a finger appreciatively at Rollie.

The crowd loved it.

“Rol-lie, Rol-lie, Rol-lie,” Bryce and Fred chanted together. Fred elbowed Jamie. “Come on, say it with us.”

Jamie clapped but didn’t chant. Bryce reached across Fred and poked Jamie on the shoulder. “I told you he was quick!”

“I don’t remember him being
that
quick.”

“You’re just jealous ’cause he’s faster than you.”

“He’s always been faster than me, except at distance running, but that last play...that was
really
fast.” Then Jamie realized that he was feeling the magic tingle again. He leaned closer to Fred. “Do you feel that?”

“Of course. I always feel it with you at Rollie’s games.”

“But we’re not kissing, or even holding hands.”

Fred kissed him hard on the cheek and wiggled her eyebrows. “You mean, like that?”

Jamie chuckled. “Yeah...well, it’s more like when we do the chant.”

Fred turned back toward the gym floor, cupped her hand to her mouth and yelled, “We’re the Crew, we can’t be beat —” Bryce and Melanie joined her for the finish, “Everybody smell our feet!”

Jamie didn’t join them. He was too busy studying Rollie.

Lanny’s Pizza was packed full of rowdy North Henderson High fans after the game, and the air hummed with the sound of teenagers at full throttle. Jamie, Fred, Bryce, and Melanie waited in the big corner booth for Rollie and Tanisha, and when they finally arrived, Jamie and his friends cheered loudly for Rollie. Rollie’s famous grin was as wide as the horizon.

Bryce slapped hands with Rollie as he slid into the booth with Tanisha. “You were awesome, dude!”

“I was, wasn’t I?” Rollie blew on the fingernails of his right hand and polished them on his purple North Henderson Knights sweat shirt.

Melanie and Tanisha still wore their cheerleader uniforms. Melanie reached over and patted Rollie’s arm. “That was very exciting. You always liven up the game when you play.”

“Coach said he might let me play more in the next couple of games, ’cause we’re playing weak teams. He thinks I still have a shot at a scholarship. Probably not at a Division One school, but maybe Division Two.”

“D-One schools probably already have all their commitments,” Bryce said.

“But not all the D-Two schools. Coach said he’ll make some calls and see if he can help me out. He’s gonna help me put together a highlight video to send to some coaches.”

“That’s great,” Jamie said. “Maybe you won’t have to go to the community college after all.”

“He’s my superstar.” Tanisha squeezed Rollie’s arm and stood. “Now, if you’ll excuse me for a sec, I’m gonna say hello to the other girls before the pizza gets here.”

“But you just spent the whole game cheering with them,” Fred said.

Tanisha shrugged and walked toward a booth on the far side of the restaurant, jammed full of cheerleaders and friends.

They watched her go, and when she was out of earshot, Bryce said, “Jamie, what was going on with you at the game?”

Jamie glanced around the room before leaning over the table and saying in a low voice, “I felt something...a magical event.”

Bryce gave his head a quick shake and blinked hard. “A
what?
”

“Somebody did some magic,” Fred said quietly. “That’s what he means.”

Rollie leaned closer, too. “What kind of magic?”

“I’m not sure,” Jamie said. “But it was significant.”

Melanie wrinkled her brow. “Is it something to worry about?”

Jamie nodded. “Now I’ll be looking over my shoulder every five seconds, expecting another psycho wizard to materialize out of nowhere to try to kill me.”

“Have you felt anything else since then?”

“Just the tingle that I always feel with Fred.”

“Maybe it was a just a freak thing, then.”

“I hope so.”

“Speaking of magic,” Fred said, “who’s coming with me tomorrow to Rita and Cassandra’s old house?”

“Not me,” Rollie said. “Gotta work at the vet. Are you workin’, Jamie?”

“I already worked three days after school. Besides, Fred will kill me if I don’t go with her.”

“That’s right.” Fred patted Jamie on top of his curly blond head. “Somebody’s gotta make the magic doorway to Thibodaux. Louisiana’s
far
away.”

“Well, Bryce and I are going,” Melanie said. “I want to see the house where those two witches held you captive. What time are we leaving?”

“As soon as I finish teaching my dance class.”

“What exactly are we gonna do, Fred?” Bryce said.

“We’re gonna take all of their spell books and any herbs and stuff that we can find lying around. Rita and Cassandra won’t be using them anymore.”

“Jamie,” Bryce said, “do you ever feel bad about banishing those witches to that other world?”

“Nope. They deserved it. They deserved worse, actually.”

“I wanted him to blast them into little piles of slag,” Fred said.

Rollie twisted his mouth sideways as he regarded Fred. “How did you finally talk your parents into letting you get the spell books? It’s been almost six weeks now since you got rescued.”

“Persistence, persistence. Plus, every time either of them gets a little cut or something, I put my special healing jelly on it and they realize how helpful my magic can be.”

“I keep the tube you gave me in my purse all the time,” Melanie said. “It works so well...it’s amazing!”