Dragon's Gap: Set Includes Stories 6-7 Plus A Christmas Surprise

by L M Lacee

  She looked embarrassed or annoyed it was hard to decipher Ciana thought. “My brother Tayne decided to storm the town and rescue our King, instead of doing what I advised and call for aid. As you can see it did not work.”

  Sparrow’s voice was a drawl as she said. “I was going to say he did not listen to you, but that is sort of moot now.”

  Ciana stifled a laugh as did several of the female faeries. Phoebe’s lips tightened, and she said through clenched teeth. “No, he has always been a bull headed male. Ever since he was an annoying small one. I swear our mother dropped him on his head, probably once or twice but she denies it… Sorry not relevant.” Her face became slightly pink as she looked around to see smiles on most faces, if not outright laughter. “Yes well, anyway. He was kicked into a small valley when it was dark. I went and brought him back here then sent the message to you.”

  Andre said. “I see. Is it a very long time since you have been to Earth?”

  “It is many, many centuries.”

  Ciana said. “We as a race of humans and shifters must be very different since then?”

  Phoebe nodded. “You have iron. This is not a comfortable substance for Elves to be around. When we were here last it was not prevalent. Sadly it seems it is now, and it is everywhere.”

  “Can you build a tolerance for it?” Ark asked it seemed he was quite intense with the question. His body was wired taught as he waited for her answer.

  Phoebe flicked her eyes towards him and away again quickly. If Ciana was reading this right the Elf seemed smitten, she raised her eyebrows to Sparrow who smiled and bent her head to study her shoes. Ark seemed to relax as the Elf answered. “Yes, we will. Although like all things it will take time.”

  Andre` told her. “Our healers may be able to help with that. We will know when we return.”

  Ciana agreed. “Or Sage. She may be able to do something.”

  “So do you know for sure, this is what was used against your King and his warriors?” Sparrow asked as she and Ark stood together they seemed to have been in some kind of quick intense discussion before she asked the question.

  “Yes, Tayne before he passed out told me they are chained in iron which removes their power. If it remains on them too long, they will perish. We are moon Elves we have innate energy or power but to be encased in iron will drain that from us. If we cannot recharge under the moons light. We will get moon sickness and die.”

  “Well concrete is not going to help is it?” Ciana asked of no one in particular.

  “And the poison?” Ark asked with a raised eyebrow towards Ciana.

  “Tayne said he was stabbed with a knife. I believe it was this that which poisoned him.” Phoebe stated.

  “It sounds to me like they knew you were coming.” Andre` asked Phoebe without accusing her.

  “How is that possible?” She asked. “We did not know where the babe was until our tracker picked up her trail and that was only hours before we arrived here. No! It is impossible.” She seemed quite adamant of that fact Andre` tended to believe her.

  Ciana asked. “So if they were not prepared for you, Who? Because they have poisoned knives. Which says they were waiting for someone.”

  “They could just be crazy we have met many like that.” A shield mumbled he was tall like all the dragons although this one looked a lot younger than the others. Ciana wondered if he was young or just looked it. She was finding guessing dragon’s ages was very difficult.

  Ark nodded. “Clint is correct. We have seen this over the last year time and again.” He asked Phoebe. “Are you sure they are human?”

  She shrugged. “I have no idea and never thought to ask Tayne. I am sorry I just assumed they were.”

  “What we need to do is determine if that is true and if they know about us.” Sparrow said decisively.

  “So how do we do that?” Ciana asked her with a grin thinking she bet she already had a plan in place. Sparrow returned the grinned. “That is where we come in.”

  Andre` said. “Take care Commander if they were aware of the Elves, they may know of you!”

  “This is not the first time we have scouted in enemy territory my Lord, We will take some time to get there.”

  “What happens if you get into trouble?” Ciana asked, worried for the faeries.

  “Commander Ark knows when to come in.” Sparrow told her. “There will be no way they are ready for dragons. Regardless of what their defences are.”

  Ciana thought she was probably right seriously dragons were huge, an anti-aircraft cannon, would be needed to bring one down. Even then she was not too sure that would work.

  “Wait for us.” Sparrow told Ark who nodded. As she and her six warriors shrunk in size. Then as one they flew once around the camp. Within a blink of an eye, they were gone.

  “Oh wow! That was so cool.” Ciana said as Clint handed her a cup of tea.

  “Oh thank you, do I know you?”

  He smiled. “I live with Ark’s brother Ace, do you know Harper?”

  “Oh yes, I do.”

  “Well, I belong to her in a manner of speaking.” Ciana nodded as he went around handing out cups with either tea or coffee. Ciana sipped her tea and asked Ark who was staying suspiciously away from Phoebe. ”Does Harper know he is here?”

  “Ahh! Ace does.”

  “Not the same thing.” She turned to Andre`. “Expect company when she finds out.”

  “Really?”

  “Oh yes! Humans, even half humans take our guardianship seriously, if she finds out he is here in possible danger she will be here faster than you can say oops!” No one commented on Ciana’s observation hoping she thought, that she was wrong. Clint she noticed, kept out of Ark’s and Andre`s way.

  CHAPTER NINE:

  S parrow and her unit flew from bush or tree to bush to tree. Taking their time to scout the terrain just in case traps had been set for unwary faeries.

  Thankfully there were none. It still took them just over forty minutes to get into the town. Six faeries flew off to four different locations.

  Sparrow went to where they held the Elves. It was an old-fashioned jail, three cells long encased in concrete as Ciana had said and with iron bars for doors and windows. Sparrow flew to the bars of the window. She stood side on against the bar. It would make it impossible to see her but she reasoned if they did, humans often thought she was just a pretty butterfly.

  She waited until the guard had finished talking. “You there! Yeah you King. Come here?”

  An Elf answered. Sparrow looked him over. He was obviously the King. He was tall with shoulder length white almost silver hair and bright blue eyes like his sisters. His skin was a light grey she did not think that was from being in the jail as all the Elves with him seemed to be the same color they all had variations of the white or grey hair and most she could see had blue eyes. The King looked the fat male over and shook his head. “I do not think so. You may come in here if you wish too.”

  The guard growled making his belly and chins wobble. “Get your fucking arse up here now!”

  The Elf yawned and stretched, placing his hands behind his head as he looked at the male. Even from where Sparrow stood she could see the contempt the Elf displayed for the male. “I again say no.”

  The male went red as the other Elves laughed. The male snarled. “You think you are so clever?”

  “I am more so than you.”

  “Huh and yet you are the one in here and I am the one who will be going home to sleep in my own bed tonight.”

  “Well go then. Do not let me keep you.”

  The guard sneered at them all and said to Thorn. “I will remember what you look like, you will be dead as soon as you leave here. Just like that other devil is.”

  Thorn looked at the male again, he was the one that had stabbed Tayne. Thorn had watched unable to help or save Tayne as the cowardly male had cut him down from behind. Thorn’s voice turned from languid to cold rage as he addressed the male. “You should hope I never me
et you without bars or chains between us!”

  The male went to say something else when the male that actually ran the town arrived. “Jenkins leave, go on home now.”

  “Sheriff I can stay a little longer.”

  “No, you go on home now. No one is needed tonight.”

  The fat male turned and gave Thorn a hard stare and left. They could hear him shuffling as he moved into the main office of the sheriff’s station. When the door closed cutting them off from the other people in the busy office. The sheriff told Thorn and his warriors in the three cells. “You will be released tonight when it gets dark.”

  Something seemed wrong about him. About what he was saying? It was as though the male did not like the words that came from his mouth as though he was speaking against his better judgement. Thorn sat up straight, this was not right. The male they had been paraded in front of this afternoon, the Judge, said they must remain behind the bars until daybreak tomorrow. Yet this male has said they must go tonight!

  Even without all his senses and power, Thorn knew a trap when he heard one. Without showing he knew or was concerned, Thorn said. “Whatever you say sheriff. This is, as you told me earlier your town.”

  The male nodded then said. “That is right, you keep on remembering that.” The male looked them all over and turned around walking slowly to the door. As he pulled it open, he said quietly and Thorn wondered if he knew they heard. “I wish it never came to this. I did not sign up to be this kind of sheriff.”

  Then he hurried through the opening. Sparrow waited until she was sure he had gone. As it seemed the Elves did, no one made any sounds then after a few minutes Sparrow flew down and grew. “King Thorn greetings from Lord Andre`.”

  Thorn rose from his bed he was taller than Sparrow’s almost six feet. “You have me at a disadvantage.”

  “I apologize, I am Sparrow, guard to Queen Scarlett of Dragon’s Gap on loan to find and rescue you and the moon dragon.”

  “I see. Who called you?”

  “A female Elf called Phoebe, she called after she rescued her brother Tayne.”

  Thorn closed his eyes in relief, Phoebe was still safe and she had rescued Tayne. He could feel the tremor of relief and hear the relieved murmurs from his warriors. He had cleared the emotion from his throat before he asked. “He lives?”

  “Yes, it seems someone stabbed him with a poisoned knife. We transported him to Dragon’s Gap. Were any of your other warriors hurt?”

  Thorn relieved even more at the news of Tayne’s survival nodded. “Yes but no more than bruisers and a few cuts they can heal themselves although it is taking time.”

  Sparrow could see the truth of that as she looked at the males in the cell with him. She could see the cuts and bruises for herself. They marred the perfections of their skins. Even the King had not escaped, his lightly grey skin was bloody in places and darker grey in others, one eye was slightly swollen. “They are mistreating you?”

  “No this was as we were captured the male you saw here the one called sheriff called a halt to the beatings.” Thorn told her.

  Sparrow nodded. “Your sister Phoebe told us that it was the iron that will slow the process of healing down like it has removed your power and abilities from you. Once we get you out from behind the iron and concrete you will all fair better.”

  “Did Phoebe tell you of the moon sickness?”

  She did. “I will advise the commander and Lord that you need to be released before they decide to let you go.”

  “Ahh! You heard?”

  “A trap definitely!”

  “Indeed!”

  “I need to know how they caught you, were they aware of you, were they waiting for you?”

  “No, they were not waiting for us. In fact the females that have the babe. Her name is Mona which means moon. I was pleased to know.”

  Sparrow thought as the King of the moon Elves he would be. Thorn told her. “We were made very welcomed they told us they were waiting for someone to come and get the babe.”

  “How did she get here?’

  “It seems a male left her with them and told her the babe’s father would be along to collect her. They have only had her for two weeks.”

  “Sounds like the hand of the Goddess.”

  “It is what I thought. We left the house without the babe. The females said it would be better if we came at night and took her. We, of course, agreed.”

  “Why at night?”

  Thorn looked blank for a minute as he slowly said. “I do not know. Abel, Sumar, Marcus, Darrick. Do you remember why?”

  All four of the Elves shook their heads and muttered to themselves. Sparrow watched them as they sat forward on the bunks and thought hard about that meeting. Finally, one of them said. “I think it was so no one would see us leaving with her. I think… I am unsure now!”

  Sparrow returned her gaze to the King he shook his head, his eyes as confused as the four males. “I like Abel am unsure why?”

  “Well, that seems strange. I have someone looking at them now and the infant. So what happened after you left the house?”

  “Nothing all was good. It was as we left the town. We were very pleased. Well I was very pleased with the knowledge the search was over and I could now take the babe and go to Dragon’s Gap, and meet my Radiance finally. As we crossed the line from hard packed road to dirt. Several males set upon us and we were hit with sticks that took the strength from our bodies and made our bodies jerk and spasm. We passed out briefly and next thing I knew my warriors were descending down the hill. I had no voice to warn them my power was gone. I was left as my warriors were, with no abilities to forestall the flight they made into the sticks that dropped them to the ground, as we all had been.

  Except Tayne he turned to leave and a male. The fat one who was here as you came to the window.” Sparrow was amused he had known she was there. He had not indicated that he had seen her.

  “That male I watched as he stabbed Tayne twice, then he kicked him down the hill. Tayne rolled, and we saw blood pour from his wounds. I was sure he was dead.”

  “Ahh I see.” Sparrow frowned, what could those sticks be? She had not come across them before, she would ask Ark he may know. “Do you know why they attacked?”

  “No, we went to what they call a court. Believe me it is not what a court is like. We were shackled together and marched in front of a male with black robes that refused to let me speak. When I tried the fat male hit me several times, only once with the stick thank the Goddess.” Sparrow had the thought that the fat male should hope he was nowhere around when King Thorn was released.

  Thorn told her. “The male in robes told us we must remain behind these cursed bars for one more night. Then as you heard, the sheriff said we are to leave when it gets dark.”

  “Do they know you are Moon Elves?”

  “No. We did not tell them.”

  Thorn looked at her as he guessed what she was thinking, he was shaking his head as he said. “If you are thinking when the moon rises we can use her energy to replenish our own to make our escape.”

  “It crossed my mind.”

  “I hate to disappoint you there is no moon tonight. As moon Elves we always know what phase of her life she is in. Tonight she will not show her face to the world.”

  Sparrow was impressed. “Always no matter where or on what world you are. You always know?”

  He smiled gently as he answered and she could see the love he held for the moon reflected in his eyes as he said. “Always!”

  Sparrow cussed inwardly using many of the words Edee did as she realized this escape plan would have to be without the Elves help.

  “Well okay. I am going to leave you now and return to my Lord and the Commander of the dragons who are waiting for mine and my units report.”

  “Dragons!” Someone whispered. Sparrow nodded when she too heard the whispers. “Oh yes as well as my unit of faeries. We can call for more help if we need too. I have sent my unit to scout the remaining tow
n once we report our information to Lord Andre`. One of my warriors or I will return and let you know what the plan is.”

  “We thank you Sparrow and your warriors. Convey out gratitude to the dragons please.” Thorn asked her.

  Sparrow gave him a nod. “I will do so King Thorn.” Within a blink of an eye, she was gone. Leaving behind relieved Elves who immediately started whispering. Sparrow flew up into the trees outside the building. She was going to wait for her units return when she saw the male that seemed to be in charge leave the building the Elves were in.

  She watched him walk down the street and turn into a small doorway. She instantly decided to follow him. When she reached the doorway, she hovered in the sunlight looking like an unusually beautiful butterfly. She could not see how to get in without being captured or squashed by the people. She could see the male through the glass door climbing a set of stairs, so she flew herself up and came to a half opened window flying in she saw she was in a large opened room a male sat behind a long wooden desk filled with papers and books a thin grey-haired female sat in a chair across from him writing as he spoke.

  The sheriff entered and the female immediately got up and left. Sparrow sat behind a book on the cabinet and listened. The dark haired male with steaks of grey in his hair who was well dressed sat behind the large desk. He lent back in his chair but did not get up as the male walked nearer. Sparrow thought he was the males King. He said and his voice was strong and deep for a human male not as deep as Lord Reighn’s, though. “Ned. Why are you here?”

  The one called Ned was not as grey as the male behind the desk but as Sparrow looked between them she could see they had familiar features. They were related, maybe cousins. His voice was not as deep as the first males but it was just as strong. “I don’t like this!”

  The male behind the desk sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “We made a deal. We took the money.”

  “Well give it back. They are not shifters.”