Free The Alchemists Academy: Stones to Ashes Book 1 by Kailin Gow Page B

wants to control them,” Alana suggested. “Presumably even he is a little worried about people running around with powerful magical artifacts. After all, they might get used on him.”
    Wirt could imagine that, but somehow, it didn’t feel like the whole story. Spencer coughed.
    “I think I might know what it is,” he said, “Did you know that the main reason this kingdom lets the school stay here is because of all the magical artifacts it houses? While I was pretending to be King Wilford, a couple of my advisors pointed out that if more artifacts got stolen, the benefits of having it here would be reduced dramatically.”
    “Oh yes,” Priscilla said. “Daddy is always going on about how having a magical arsenal like that around is better than a dozen armies.”
    “I guess,” Wirt interrupted, “it might make a kind of sense. After all, if it looked like the Headmaster were about to lose the school its place here, he might be in trouble.”
    “Almost certainly,” Alana said. “Besides, from what I heard, looking after those magical things is written into the school’s charter. Merlin and the people who founded the school wanted to look after them.”
    “Merlin?” Wirt asked. “Like, the Merlin?”
    “There has only been the one,” Spencer said. “Not that the school really runs the way he wanted it to. We don’t really mention it. It annoys the Headmaster, not to mention how much it upsets Ms. Lake.”
    Wirt’s brow furrowed. “Why would it upset her?”
    “Oh,” Priscilla said, “because she was the one who put him to sleep, silly.”
    “What?”
    The others looked uncomfortable for a moment. Apparently, what Priscilla had just said was another of those things you didn’t say. Wirt looked at them expectantly until they caved in.
    “Ms. Vivaine Lake started life as Vivaine, the lady in the lake,” Alana explained. “She put Merlin to sleep. Some say in an enchanted forest. Some say somewhere under a tree.” She gave the school building a pointed look. “Though if he is under there, he could be anywhere, what with all the pathways.”
    “Is under there?” Wirt echoed. “Wouldn’t that make him incredibly old? Actually, wouldn’t that make Ms. Lake incredibly old?”
    “I use a lot of moisturizer.” Wirt turned at the words with the speed of one caught, and found himself staring at Ms. Lake who was staring right back.
    “Transportation spells are useful, aren’t they?” she said, in answer to the unasked question of how she had shown up like that. Wirt expected her eyes to be roiling with anger, but in fact, she just looked sad.
    “You really put Merlin into an enchanted sleep?” Wirt asked, before he could stop himself. He had to know, if only because of what it would say about the teacher in front of him. Ms. Lake nodded.
    “Yes, and that’s all I’m prepared to say on the subject, so please don’t ask anything else. Priscilla, if you don’t run along right now, I’ll have you doing lengths of my lake until your fingers go wrinkly.”
    The princess scurried off. “So,” Ms. Lake asked, “what did you find out, while you were pretending to be members of staff?”
    “How did you guess?” Wirt asked.
    Ms. Lake smiled. “Who do you think gave Aloea and Gertrude the idea?”
    They recounted what they had heard, along with a brief version of Wirt’s adventure. Ms. Lake nodded.
    “Perhaps I was a little harsh on Priscilla then, if she helped. I will apologize the next time I see her. For now though, we have to think about whether all this brings us any closer to actually finding the chalice.”
    “I suppose,” Alana offered, “that it means we know of at least one group of people with motive to take it.”
    “That’s true, and I will keep my ears open for any news of one of them trying to sell something powerful.”
    “My money is on Ms. Preville,” Wirt said. Ms. Lake shrugged.
    “Maybe. We must continue to explore all options though. It might be that someone has