Ashley watched her cousin as he walked toward the barn. If this problem with the Sorensons broke into open conflict, all of her male relatives would be involved, including Mason and probably Stephen. She turned her gaze toward darkness-shrouded Beaver Mountain. It was nearing time for her to go and visit Snowden once more.
-
Later, after Mark and Mason left, Harmon sat in the kitchen talking to Katrina. Mark and he had talked for nearly an hour about the Sorenson situation. There just didn’t seem to be a good solution.
“I don’t like this,” Katrina said, her light blue eyes looking at her husband. She reached across the table and took Harmon’s hand. “This could become very dangerous for all of us, including our children.”
“I know,” Harmon replied with a deep sigh. “If it was just Jacob and Kensett, I wouldn’t be too worried; I think we could handle them between us. Edward’s the problem. You saw the snowstorm he created with his powers. No one has been able to do something like that in generations.”
“He’s that powerful?” asked Katrina, worrying about what this might mean for her family.
“I’m afraid so,” responded Harmon, cocking his head and gazing at his wife. It bothered him that Katrina was worried over this. He loved his wife deeply and didn’t want to see her upset.
“Will Stephen have to help?” Katrina asked, worried for the safety of her young son. She wasn’t worried about Ashley. After all, Ashley wasn’t a sorcerer.
“It depends on when all this goes down,” Harmon replied with a concerned look in his eyes.
Katrina had the feeling her husband wasn’t telling her everything. She suspected there was some secret he was keeping from her. But she knew better than to ask. When he was ready, he would tell her.
Chapter Eleven
It was early summer, and Ashley was just coming back from Beaver Mountain. Each time she went there, she learned more about the dragon and those wonderful, exciting times back in the Golden Age. She came to know and understand so much more about the secret underground world beneath Firestorm Mountain. She’d been going to visit Snowden once per week whenever the opportunity arose.
The dragon had been implanting into her mind more of Cathy’s memories from her time in the secret research complex beneath the mountain. Sometimes it almost seemed as if she were Cathy. Ashley looked around, seeing and listening to a few brightly colored birds in the nearby trees. Spirit plodded along at a relaxed pace, stirring up just a faint hint of dust from his shod hooves. Everything seemed so peaceful today. She wished it would stay this way.
“Well, Spirit,” Ashley spoke to her horse, enjoying the pleasant weather. It was a warm afternoon, and a light breeze was blowing from the south. “I now know that it was the conflict between Adam and Jason that brought about the Worldfire and the destruction of the Golden Age.”
It saddened Ashley immensely knowing that sorcery had brought an end to that fantastic time. From what she had seen through Cathy’s eyes, Jason was a kind and honorable man. His biggest fault was that he was too trusting. If he would have confronted Adam sooner, the Worldfire might never have happened.
Ashley thought about all that she had learned from Snowden in the past several months. The dragon didn’t have all of Cathy Matheson’s memories of her training sessions beneath the mountain, but he did have quite a few. Ashley had learned so much that she was rapidly losing her fear of Edward. She needed another year to practice her sorcery and then she might give Edward a very startling surprise. With what was now in her memories from her lessons with Snowden, Edward might not feel so confident about being able to hold sway over the Andrews.
She was nearly home when she saw her brother approaching rapidly on his horse, waving and motioning for her. Ashley pulled Spirit to a stop and waited for him. He shouldn’t be riding his horse so hard.
Stephen reined up next to Ashley, his face flushed with excitement. “I just talked to Mason. The Sorensons are in Plainview demanding to talk to Dad, Uncle Mark, and Uncle Robert. Dad just left with Mason to go to the village.”
“The Sorensons are in the village?” Ashley uttered with sudden worry flooding over her. “What do they want?”
“It probably has to do with Dad going with Alfred on his last trading trip to Glendon,” Stephen responded.
Ashley nodded her head with renewed concern. Her father had gone to Glendon to speak to the Sorensons about the exorbitant fees they were charging to trade in Glendon and New Haven. From what her father had said, the meeting hadn’t gone very well.
The Sorensons had said that if the people in the southern part of the valley didn’t want to pay the fees then they could do without. Her father had argued with Jacob but to no avail. Jacob was adamant; pay the fees or else. Her father had returned home extremely upset and aggravated.
“Is Todd or Edward with them?” Ashley asked, her eyes looking toward the north where the village lay. If Todd had come, she wondered if there was some way she could manage to see him. She had really missed him the last few months.
“Mason didn’t say,” replied Stephen, turning his horse around and looking at his sister. “He just said that Jacob and Kensett were at the tavern and wanted to meet with the adult Andrews men.”
“I don’t like the sound of this,” spoke Ashley, looking over at her brother.
“Dad said for us to stay home. He told me to come and find you and to make sure you understood that. Under no conditions are you to go to Plainview. He said you would understand why.”
Ashley felt a chill run down her back. She wondered just what her father had meant by that cryptic comment. It could be in reference to Todd or even her sorcery.
“We’d better get back to the house and Mom,” Ashley responded decisively. “She will be worried about Dad until he gets back.”
Kicking Spirit lightly in his side, they started back toward the house. Stephen rode next to Ashley and was strangely silent.
“What’s wrong, Stephen?”
“It’s my sorcery,” her brother admitted with a long frown. “I’m just not strong enough. If this breaks into trouble with the Sorensons, I’m not going to be much help. Both Mason and Justin are stronger than I am.”
Ashley knew her brother was spending a lot of his time working on his sorcery. “Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that. Maybe the Sorensons just came to Plainview to agree to drop the trading fees.”
“I doubt that,” Stephen replied.
-
A little while later, they were in the barn unsaddling their horses. Ashley had just started to brush Spirit down when Stephen stopped her.
“I’ll take care of the horses,” volunteered Stephen, taking the brush out of Ashley’s hand. “Why don’t you go on up to the house and check on Mom?”
“Thanks, Stephen,” Ashley responded, surprised at her brother’s offer.
When Ashley entered the house, she found her mother sitting at the kitchen table with a pensive look upon her face. She looked up and grinned weakly at Ashley, obviously deeply worried about the meeting with the Sorensons. Katrina motioned for Ashley to sit down next to her.
“I wish this was over,” Katrina said, looking at her daughter and reaching out for her hand. “The meeting with the Sorensons isn’t going to go well; I can feel it.”
“I know,” Ashley replied in agreement. “I feel the same way. At least Edward didn’t come, so I don’t think there will be any trouble.”
“They will just make their demands and expect us to obey,” her mother replied in a somber voice. “Your father will not like that.”
“What do you think Dad will do?” Ashley asked, her eyes narrowing. She couldn’t imagine her father agreeing to continue to pay these exorbitant trading fees to the Sorensons. There was bound to be an argument.
“I don’t know,” replied her mother, getting a faraway look in her eyes. “I just don’t know.”
-
Harmon stood on the front porch of the general store, gazing in the direction of
the tavern. He took a deep breath and slowly let it out. He was waiting for his brothers to arrive before going to face the Sorensons. The street was strangely empty, which wasn’t too surprising since the Sorensons were in town. It seemed as if everyone was waiting to see what was going to happen.
Alfred Dotson stood next to him with a nervous look upon his face. “What do you think they want?”
“More demands,” replied Harmon, glancing down the street and seeing his two brothers heading toward the general store.
“I don’t know what they expect,” replied Alfred, shaking his head miserably. “We can’t pay the fees they want. It’s nothing more than robbery. Is there anything you and your brothers can do?”
“We can talk to them,” replied Harmon, evenly. “Hear them out and try to reason with them.”
“I don’t think that Jacob and Kensett are the types to listen to reason, Harmon,” Alfred responded with a heavy sigh.
“I guess we’re about to find out.” Harmon knew the trade demands were seriously affecting the storekeeper.
Alfred nodded and retreated back into his store. He would watch the tavern from the safety of one of his store windows.
Robert and Mark walked up to the steps and looked up at their older brother.
“Let’s get this over with,” spoke Harmon, motioning for his brothers to follow him. “Let’s see what they want.”
The three walked down the street to the tavern. Pushing the large wood door open, Harmon stepped inside with his brothers right behind him. Looking around, he spotted Jacob and Kensett sitting at the same table they had been sitting at last time. It was obvious from the looks on their faces that both of them seemed irritated. Probably from the long wait that had been necessary as they waited for all three of the Andrews.
“Sit down,” Jacob spoke brusquely, gesturing to the three empty chairs at their table. “We have a lot to talk about.”
Harmon and his brothers took the indicated seats. Harmon looked at Jacob and then at Kensett before asking. “Why are you here?”
Jacob took a long drink from the glass in his right hand and then gave Harmon a hard look. “We think it would be better if one of our families controlled the entire valley.”
Harmon’s face froze upon hearing the words. He had been expecting them. “I suppose that family is yours.”
“Of course,” Jacob replied with a nod. “We’re the most powerful and should be in control.”
“Why should we turn our section of the valley over to you?” Mark demanded, his face looking grim.
“You have no choice,” replied Kensett, toying with the drink in his hand. “You have seen what Edward can do with the weather. Can you imagine no rain in your section of the valley? Your crops would die.”
“How dare you threaten us with sorcery!” Robert spoke between clenched teeth. “It was agreed to at the very beginning that sorcery would never be used against another sorcerer in our valley. The lessons from the Worldfire demanded that.”
“That was ages ago,” responded Jacob, dismissing ancient history with a flick of his finger. “This is now.”
“We will not turn over our section of the valley,” Harmon said in an even voice. “Your sorcery may be stronger than ours, but the combined powers of my two brothers and I are nothing to laugh about. There has to be some other arrangement we can make.” He needed to stall for more time so he could decide what to do.
Jacob was silent for a moment, looking over at Kensett who nodded back in affirmation. “Perhaps we can make an arrangement that would be satisfactory to both of our families.”
“I don’t know if we want to make a deal,” Mark said, glancing at Harmon in surprise. It sounded as if he was giving in to the Sorensons. This wasn’t like him. “This is our side of the valley, not theirs. They have no right to make demands!”
“We have every right,” Kensett barked, his eyes showing anger.
“Let’s hear them out,” Harmon spoke, not wanting to get into a confrontation here in the tavern.
“It’s really very simple,” responded Jacob, setting down his glass. He looked directly at Harmon. “We want ten percent of all of your crops and trade goods. If you agree to that, then we will leave you in token control of this section of the valley.”
“Ten percent!” roared Robert, standing up and knocking his chair over. “Our people will never stand for that! We won’t stand for that!”
Jacob seemed nonplussed at Robert’s angry reaction. “Ten percent of a crop is better than losing all of it.”
“We will send wagons to pick it up in three months,” Kensett added, his left hand touching the white amulet that hung from his neck. It glowed brightly at his touch, reminding everyone that he was a very powerful sorcerer.
Harmon reached out and put his hand on Robert’s arm. “Sit back down, Robert.”
“I’ll stand,” Robert replied angrily, gazing defiantly at Jacob.
“We will need time to talk to the villagers and the farmers about your demands,” Harmon responded in a calm voice. “They won’t like the idea of turning over ten percent of everything to you.”
“Make sure they understand what the alternative is,” Jacob said curtly. “Remember, you have three months, no more.”
“If our wagons return empty, then we will return, and Edward will be with us,” Kensett warned in a threatening tone. “His sorcery is much stronger than what it was the last time we were here. This entire area of the valley could become very dry.”
“We will discuss it,” Harmon answered. “That’s all I can promise.”
Jacob rose and motioned for Kensett to follow him. “Don’t disappoint us, Harmon,” Jacob said pointedly. “You won’t get a second chance.”
Harmon watched the two leave. He waited until the door closed behind them before turning to face his two brothers. He could tell from the angry looks on their faces they weren’t happy with his decision.
“We can’t turn over our crops and trade goods,” Mark protested angrily. “The villagers and farmers will never agree to this.”
“Mark’s right,” added Robert, folding his arms defiantly across his chest. “They can’t really be expecting us to give in to their demands!”
“They can and we will,” replied Harmon, looking evenly at his two brothers. He knew they would need more convincing. “We need to buy more time. Mason, Justin, and Stephen aren’t ready for this yet. The boys need to learn more sorcery.”
“Time,” uttered Mark, shaking his head doubtfully. “With Edward in the picture, I don’t see where that helps us.”
“Edward’s the problem,” agreed Robert, looking over at Mark. I think the three of us combined could probably stop Jacob and Kensett, but when you throw Edward in that changes everything. Even with the boys, I don’t know if we can stand up to Edward.”
Harmon was quiet for a moment. He didn’t like the idea of paying a ten percent fee either. But for now, he didn’t think they had any other choices. The hard part would be convincing the local farmers and villagers it was in their best interest.
“This at least keeps them out of our section of the valley for a while,” Harmon said, gesturing for Robert to sit back down.
Robert took his seat and the three looked at each other in silence. The two younger brothers didn’t understand what Harmon was up to. It just didn’t make any sense to give in to the Sorensons’ demands. Didn’t it make more sense to fight them now? The longer they waited, the stronger Edward would become.
“Don’t forget about our secret weapon,” Harmon finally reminded them. He knew, at the moment, his two brothers were allowing anger to cloud their minds.
“Snowden,” Mark spoke, his eyes widening at the thought. He had forgotten all about the dragon. He leaned back in his chair and gazed thoughtfully at Harmon.
“Yes, Snowden,” Harmon reiterated with a nod of his head. “What do you think the Sorensons will do when confronted with a living dragon?”
Mark and Robert looked at ea
ch other. They had forgotten about the dragon. It could indeed be a game changer. Maybe things weren’t quite as bad as they had thought. After all, nothing could harm a dragon; not even Edward.
-
Ashley was sitting at the kitchen table, peeling potatoes. Her mother had sent Stephen down to the barn to check on a newborn calf. Reaching for another potato, Ashley wondered just what was happening in Plainview. The not knowing made her feel antsy. The pile of potato peelings in front of her was steadily growing larger.
“Just relax, Ashley,” her mother said as she sat a large cooking pot down on the wood cook stove. “We will know what happened when your father gets back, not any sooner.”
Turning to look at her mother Ashley responded, “I know. I just hate the waiting.” She looked down, surprised at how many potatoes she had peeled. Her mind had really been wondering. Her mother seemed to be doing much better now, particularly since she had started cooking.
It was at that moment that Stephen opened the door with a wide grin on his face. “Look what I found, Ashley!”
Ashley glanced over at Stephen and was surprised to see someone standing behind him. Her eyes widened when she recognized who it was.
“Todd!” she screamed, jumping up and running to the door and giving the young man a big welcoming hug.
Todd turned beet red, surprised and extremely pleased with Ashley’s reaction.
“All right, children,” commented Katrina, shaking her head with a friendly smile on her face. “Don’t squeeze the breath out of him, Ashley.”
Ashley released her hold on Todd and sheepishly stepped back. “What are you doing here?”
“I followed my father and uncle,” confessed Todd, stepping into the kitchen. “They don’t know I’m here.”
“That’s not safe, Todd,” Katrina spoke with a worried frown. “What if your father finds out where you are?”
“He won’t,” replied Todd, wanting to put Katrina at ease. “He thinks I’m in Glendon staying with my mother for a few days.”
Snowden the White Dragon Page 14