Right Hand Magic Read Online Free

it!” Since I didn’t have anything to throw except my cell phone, I had to be satisfied with hopping up and down in a rage. “That no-good, lousy, stinkin’ son-of-a-bitch ...!”
    “Hey! What’s going on in here? The chandelier downstairs is swinging like a pendulum.”
    I looked up to see Hexe standing in the open door of my very empty apartment, watching me with a bemused look on his face.
    “I’m sorry,” I replied sheepishly. “I didn’t mean to jump that hard. It’s just—damn it! The movers are holding everything I own hostage. My bed, my clothes, the tools I use in my work— everything! They’re holding my entire life for ransom!”
    Hexe raised a purple eyebrow. “Who did you use?”
    “Triple A . . . ”
    “Let me guess the rest of the sentence—Aardvark Moving?”
    “You know about them?”
    “Yeah, I know about them,” he replied sourly. “They’re ‘number one in the book.’ They’re also notorious rip-off artists. They pull the same crap on everyone who moves to Golgotham. You didn’t pay them up front, did you?”
    “I gave them half. They were to get the rest after they delivered my belongings.”
    A thoughtful look crossed Hexe’s face. “I know a fellow in the moving business who can help you. He’s very good at what he does, but I warn you—he’s not cheap.”
    I sat down on the window seat in my room to ponder the options open to me: either resign myself to being screwed over, talk to my landlord’s friend in the moving business, or call Daddy’s law firm and have them sue Vinnie’s back brace off.
    But as rewarding as that latter option sounded, I couldn’t bring myself to go through with it. I was determined to strike out on my own, without relying on the family name and connections. And doing something like that would definitely be cheating.
    “I’ll pay whatever it takes to get my stuff back.” I sighed. Since this move was already costing me more than expected, I decided I might as well see what Hexe’s friend could do. “Those douche bags are holding my sculptures hostage.”
    “Then grab your coat. You’ll have to meet with him face-to-face.”
    “Where are we going?” I asked as I slid into my jacket.
    “You moved here to experience Golgotham’s unique atmosphere, right? Well, I’m taking you to the Rookery. It doesn’t get more atmospheric than that.”

Chapter 4
    With its narrow, twisting streets and alleyways, Golgotham was a world apart from the orderly grid-pattern and towering glass skyscrapers that made up the rest of Manhattan. Most of the buildings that lined the streets were tenements that dated back at least a century, the ground floors of which housed various commercial businesses. While the corner markets were no different from ones found in the rest of the city, the herbalists and alchemical supply stores clearly catered to the neighborhood’s unique inhabitants.
    Hexe wound his way through the crowded sidewalks of Golgotham with the speed and certainty of someone who knew the route by heart. I followed in his wake, trying not to stare as we passed a trio of leprechauns sitting at a sidewalk patio. While the little men were all dressed in green, the clothes they wore were designer labels, and each had the latest Bluetooth headset affixed to his pointed ears.
    One of the leprechauns noticed me looking in their direction and gave me the finger. I blushed and hurried to catch up with my native guide.
    “When we first met, you said something about being a lifter—what is that, exactly?” I asked.
    “A lifter removes curses for a living.”
    “But I thought Kymerans only laid curses?”
    Hexe shot me a sharp look from the corner of his golden eyes. “Not all of us. I don’t inflict curses on people. I refuse to practice Left Hand magic.”
    “I’m sorry if I offended you. I didn’t mean—”
    “I know you didn’t,” he said, waving away my apology. “Some of us work only Left Hand disciplines, and some work only the Right