Chapter Six
Ashley opened her eyes and snuggled down deeper beneath her blankets. She looked toward her window and could see snowflakes falling outside. She sighed heavily, knowing it was going to be another cold day, and she would have to stay inside. Even here in her room, the cold penetrated. Listening closely, she could hear the wind howling outside and another, more comforting, noise. Her mother was up and already at work in the kitchen.
Throwing back the blankets, Ashley put her feet on the floor and instantly pulled them back. Even the floor was cold! Gritting her teeth, Ashley put her feet back on the floor and hastily began to get dressed. The last thing she did was throw on a heavy sweater to help combat the cold. Walking over to her mirror, she brushed her hair and then tied it back with a bright blue ribbon.
Making her way toward the kitchen, Ashley glanced into her brother’s room and saw that he was still sound asleep. She smiled to herself, shaking her head. Stephen had no problem sleeping in on these cold winter days. Reaching the kitchen, Ashley felt the sudden warmth from the large fireplace. She could also feel the comforting heat coming from the large wood cook stove that her mother was preparing breakfast on.
“Good morning, Ashley,” her mother said with a smile on her face. “I didn’t think you would be up this early. I’m sure your brother is still sound asleep.”
“It’s too cold to sleep,” complained Ashley, walking over to the fireplace and holding her hands out to the warming flames. “Where’s Dad?”
“He’s checking the livestock,” replied her mother, going over to the large kitchen window and gazing out toward the barn. Katrina had a pensive look on her face as she gazed outside.
She could barely see the barn. The snow was falling a lot heavier now than it had been earlier and the ground was already covered. It had been steadily getting worse for several hours now. Their horses, as well as some of the newly born calves with their mothers, were in the barn or in the large side lot next to it. Because the lot bordered the barn, the animals could find some protection from the cold wind. Katrina hoped the animals were okay, especially the babies.
Ashley walked over to the window and looked out. She shivered just looking at the heavy snow that was falling. Already, it was beginning to pile up into small drifts. “I wonder how long this storm is going to last?”
“Your father said several days at least. He used his sorcery and said the storm has stalled above us.” Katrina turned around and went back over to her cook stove. “Feel like some bacon and eggs for breakfast?”
“Sure,” responded Ashley, feeling familiar hunger pangs. A good hot breakfast was definitely in order on a cold snowy morning like today.
She was always hungry in the mornings recently, particularly if she had practiced her sorcery the night before. The sorcery book mentioned that it was a good idea to eat some fruit immediately after casting a spell, especially if you were young. As you got older, the effects of casting a spell were less demanding on your body, unless it was a truly powerful one.
-
Ashley was just finishing her breakfast when she heard her father out on the porch. Opening the door, he let in a cold draft of air as he finished brushing the snow off his heavy coat.
“Wow, it’s really cold out there!” he grumbled as he began removing his coat. He hung it on one of the hooks by the door.
“Stay by the door on the rug,” warned Katrina, frowning at the snow lying on the floor where her husband had brushed it off his coat. Men always seemed to make a mess. With the weather outside, she knew it was going to be a challenge to keep her kitchen floor clean. “I don’t want you tracking through the kitchen.”
Harmon looked sheepishly down at the snow on the small rug and wood floor, knowing he should have been more careful. A few quick gestures, the right words, and the snow vanished. He smiled back at his wife.
“Thanks, dear,” Katrina responded now that her floor was clean again. Harmon didn’t use his sorcery around her often but when he did, it was always something to please her. Katrina suspected that Harmon didn’t want to remind her that he had special abilities that she didn’t have. However, she had long since accepted his sorcery as being part of who he was. She was very proud of her husband and what he could do.
Ashley swallowed the last bite of her eggs and stood up from the table, picking up her plate. She went over to the kitchen sink and rinsed it off. There was a hand pump above the sink, which brought in water from outside. She was surprised it hadn’t frozen up yet.
“It’s really snowing out there now,” said Harmon, walking over to the large kitchen window. He stood watching the falling snow for several long moments. “We haven’t seen a storm like this in years. It just doesn’t seem natural.”
Katrina walked over and put her hand on her husband’s arm. “I remember a snowstorm like this when I was a child. It lasted for days, and the snowdrifts were nearly to the top of our roof. This is going to happen every so often.”
“Perhaps you’re right,” responded Harmon, turning away from the window. “It’s just going to be a mess having to deal with it for days.”
“Come sit down at the table and I’ll fix your breakfast,” said Katrina, knowing Harmon had to be really hungry. He had been outside for over an hour in the cold and snow. “You’ll feel better once you’ve eaten a good hot meal.”
“Where’s your brother?” asked Harmon, looking over at Ashley who was rinsing off some other dishes.
“Still in bed,” Ashley replied. “I think he could stay in bed all day if we let him.”
“I have some chores for him later,” replied her father, shaking his head. He sat down at the kitchen table and leaned back, watching Katrina cook his breakfast. “He’s going to shovel the snow off the porch and steps as well as help down at the barn, so he’d better enjoy his rest while he can.”
-
It was early afternoon and Ashley had retired to her room. Her father had built a fire in the pot-bellied stove in the hallway between the bedrooms, and her room was considerably warmer. Reaching toward the back of the top drawer in her dresser, she removed a rather thick book similar to a diary. Her mother had purchased it for her the last time they had been at the general store in Plainview.
Taking out a pencil, Ashley sat down and began writing out another spell that Snowden had imprinted on her mind. She tried to do this every day. The amount of knowledge Snowden had given her was remarkable. What was even more amazing was just how clear the spells and information were in her mind.
Ashley had found that she understood everything much better when she wrote it out. Today she was writing out a spell that was supposed to allow a sorcerer to levitate small objects. She had never seen her father do this, nor many of the other spells Snowden had given her, but it didn’t mean her father couldn’t do any of those spells. Most of the time he didn’t practice his sorcery in front of the family, particularly in front of Ashley and her mother.
She spent over an hour writing the spell down in detail, describing the hand gestures and writing down the words that were needed to make the spell work. When Ashley was finished, she read over her work, making sure she had written everything down correctly. Satisfied that she had, Ashley got up and shut the door to her room.
Going over to her bed, she laid the pencil down in the center of it. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and went over the spell one more time in her mind. Then, opening her eyes, she pulled out her amulet and held it loosely in her left hand. With her right hand, she began constructing the pattern for the spell. A few choice words and it was complete. Taking a deep breath, she cast the spell at the pencil.
Very slowly, the pencil rose into the air above the bed. Six inches, two feet, and then finally a full three feet above her bed the pencil floated. For a moment, Ashley just stared, mesmerized at the pencil in amazement. She was still connected to the spell that held the pencil in its invisible grasp. Her light blue amulet was glowing softly in her hand, and she could feel a
faint sense of warmth emanating from it.
Ashley found that just by concentrating she could control the movement of the pencil. Slowly, and then more rapidly, she made the pencil turn, descend, rise, and fly slowly across her room. Her door opening startled her, and the pencil fell to the floor as she lost her concentration. She closed her hand around her softly glowing amulet and turned around. Stephen stood behind her in the wide-open doorway.
“Dad wants us to help him down at the barn,” Stephen commented. He wondered what Ashley had been doing. She had the strangest look on her face.
“Sure,” responded Ashley, knowing just how close she had come to being caught. She didn’t think that Stephen had noticed anything. “I’ll be right there.”
Nodding, Stephen went back toward the kitchen. Ashley quickly put her amulet back beneath her blouse, then put her notebook back in the dresser drawer and covered it so it was out of sight.
Going into the kitchen, Ashley found Stephen waiting impatiently for her. He already had his heavy coat and gloves on.
“Dad’s waiting,” Stephen reminded her.
“I know,” replied Ashley, slipping on her coat and gloves. Opening the door, she paused and looked back at her brother. “Let’s go.”
As soon as Ashley stepped outside, she felt the chill through her coat. Snow was hitting her in the face, and it was biting cold outside. Bracing herself, she began walking toward the barn with Stephen right behind her. The snow was already over her ankles, and the wind covered her tracks up after just a few steps.
“It’s really cold out here,” croaked Stephen, holding his hand over his mouth. He had already swept the porch and steps off, twice.
They made it to the barn and, opening the door, slipped quickly inside. It was warmer inside the barn. Her father had lit a small wood stove against one wall. He was standing next to it, warming his hands.
“That’s one heck of a snowstorm out there,” he commented, turning around to face his kids. They were in a medium sized room where they kept their saddles and other tack. “I used my sorcery to check the air patterns above the valley, and this storm is going to last for several days. It’s just not moving.”
“That’s not good, is it?” Stephen said with a frown crossing his face. He didn’t mind the snow too much, but he disliked the cold that went with it.
“No,” their father replied. “Fortunately, the cattle in the north meadow have the new barn for shelter. They will need hay. We have enough stored right next to the barn, but the cattle can’t get to it. Ashley, I need you to saddle up Spirit and come with me to the new barn. Between the two of us, we need to move hay over to the lot and put enough in the big feeders to last for several days.”
“What about me?” Stephen asked. He was surprised his father was taking Ashley and not him.
He felt relieved that their father had chosen Ashley to go to the north meadow with him. A long ride in this cold and blowing snow was not his idea of a good way to spend the day. He would much rather spend it in the house with their mother where it was warm.
“I’ve put some hay in the feeders inside the barn for the horses and the cattle we have here,” commented Harmon while looking over at Stephen. “I want to put the four cows with baby calves in the large stall. Stephen, I need you to clean out that stall. When you’re done with that, make sure there is plenty of firewood up on the porch. We’ll put the cattle and calves in the stall when Ashley and I get back.”
“All right,” replied Stephen, frowning. Mucking the big stall was dirty work. At least it was out of the wind, and if he got cold, he could come in here and warm up in front of the stove.
“When you’re done, make sure the fire is out in the stove,” added Harmon, gesturing toward the burning flame that was visible. He didn’t want to leave any fire unattended, especially in the barn.
-
After saddling up Spirit, Ashley and her father began the long ride through the blowing snow toward the north meadow. In normal conditions, the ride should have only taken about thirty minutes. As it was, it took them nearly two hours to get to the barn. Ashley was too cold to even smile in relief when the barn finally came into sight.
“We’ll put our horses next to the hay pile,” her father said, speaking through the thick scarf covering his face. “They should be out of the wind there.”
Riding up to the barn, they tied their horses up beneath the lean-to that protected the hay. There were several pitchforks hanging on one wall that could be used to move the hay.
Looking over at the barn and lot surrounding it, Ashley counted twelve head of cattle and four larger calves either standing in the small barn or just outside out of the wind. She was just about to stab the hay with her pitchfork when she heard a strange moaning noise. She paused and looked over at her father. Ashley could tell from the startled look on his face that he had heard the same noise.
“What was that?” asked Ashley, looking around the lean-to trying to find where the noise had come from.
Her father pulled out his amulet, made a few quick gestures, and then moved over to the far end of the hay pile. Reaching down, he moved some of the hay, revealing a body lying beneath it.
Ashley looked down and felt shock at recognizing who was laying there. “Todd!” cried Ashley, seeing that the boy was unconscious. How had Todd gotten here?
“Todd Sorenson?” asked her father, looking critically at Ashley.
“Yes, it’s Todd,” replied Ashley, kneeling down in the hay next to Todd. Looking closer, she saw that his face was bruised and he had a bloody gash on his forehead above his right eye.
“What’s happened to him?” asked Ashley, feeling worried. What was Todd doing on their side of the valley? “He’s been hurt!”
Her father was carefully examining the boy. He was using his sorcery to check to see if Todd had any broken bones. His dark blue amulet was glowing softly in his hand. “There’s nothing broken,” her father reported. “Just some bruises and that gash on his head. He’s mostly suffering from exposure from being out here in the cold.”
Harmon walked over to the horses and untied his canteen. He also untied the heavy blanket he had brought along in case they needed it. Walking back over to Todd, he spent a few minutes cleaning Todd’s wound and putting a bandage over it. He then tucked the blanket around the boy and looked over at Ashley. “Keep an eye one him. I don’t want to move him until he regains consciousness. He’s lucky he made it to the hay pile. If he had passed out in this cold and snow, he probably wouldn’t have survived.”
Harmon picked up his pitchfork and began filling the two large hay feeders in the cow’s lot. Occasionally he would stop and check on Todd. The color was slowly returning to the boy’s face, and his breathing was getting better. Harmon felt confident the boy would be regaining consciousness soon and then they could find out what the hell he was doing on their side of the valley. Harmon didn’t care to think of the ramifications if Todd’s father or uncle discovered where the boy was.
Ashley was sitting on the edge of the hay pile watching Todd closely. There was no sign of his horse. Ashley wondered if his horse had thrown him and if that was where all the bruises and that wicked cut had come from. What had he been doing on their side of the valley? Had he snuck off from his father and brother so see her again?
“Ashley?” Todd spoke in a weak voice. His eyes flickered open and seemed to focus on her.
“Yes, Todd, it’s me,” responded Ashley, feeling immense relief that Todd had regained consciousness.
“Where am I?”
“We found you in one of our hay piles,” Ashley answered. “We’re several miles from our house. What happened? How did you get all those bruises and that cut above your eye? Did your horse throw you?”
Todd’s hand went to the cut, feeling the bandage and wincing at the sudden pain. He tried to sit up, and Ashley helped him into a sitting position with his back against the hay pile. Ashley carefully wrapped the blanket around him so he would stay w
arm.
Harmon came and stood next to Ashley. He wanted to hear this too. This situation with Todd was going to be a problem.
Todd closed his eyes and sighed deeply. “It was Edward. We got into an argument, and it turned into a fight.”
“Over what?” Ashley asked, her eyes growing wide. She couldn’t believe that Edward had done this to his own brother.
“He was using his sorcery against a family in Glendon. I tried to stop him. He got angry and tried to use his sorcery on me.”
“His sorcery!” said Harmon, his eyes narrowing. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Edward used his sorcery against you?”
“Yes, but I got away. I managed to get to my horse, but he followed me. He caught me just outside of Plainview.”
“What happened then?” Ashley asked, almost afraid of the answer.
“We fought again. I tried to use my sorcery to protect myself, but I’m not nearly as strong as Edward. He managed to knock me off my horse and then he used his fists on me. He left me lying on the ground. My horse was gone, and I started walking trying to find your farm. I didn’t know where else to go. Then the snowstorm struck. I just managed to make it to this lean-to and the hay underneath it before I passed out.”
Harmon let out a deep breath. He understood why the boy had done what he did. Ashley and Stephen were the only two people the young man knew in Plainview. There was no doubt in Harmon’s mind that as soon as the snowstorm was over and the road between Glendon and Plainview was clear, the Sorensons would make an appearance.
This was a confrontation he had hoped to delay, but it looked as if it was going to happen in the near future. He would have to talk to his two brothers. He would need their help if the situation with the Sorensons got out of hand.
“I’m sorry, Ashley,” Todd spoke in a conciliatory voice. “I didn’t mean to cause you any problems. I just didn’t know where else to go.”
“Don’t worry about that for now,” responded Ashley, looking up at her father. “We just need to get you well.”
Snowden the White Dragon Page 8