The Harry Ferguson Chronicles Box Set

by William David Ellis

  Finally, the weariness of the day fell upon her. She signaled Kusaila that she was headed to camp and started to fly back. He joined her, and quietly they soared away from the flashes of the thunderstorm and into the brilliant starry sky. Kusaila reached out to her with his large claw, and she stopped; together they hovered thousands of feet above the sea. She looked up and gasped. The stars were intense, more than she had ever seen. They sprinkled across the heavens, freckling it with lights. She was about to speak when Kusaila drew his claw to his lips and whispered, “Listen…”

  Sarah concentrated. She heard the wind and imagined the rustle of clouds beneath them as they pushed through the sky. She heard Kusaila’s great heart and the flutter of their giant wings. She heard her own breath as it mixed with the cold night. Then she heard it. A faint harmony, so familiar yet out of place. Someone was singing. A thousand someones had blended their voices like a hundred rivulets running together, laughing, playing, giggling, mixing with the somber tones of ancient melody. It broke across her heart like a mighty orchestra, rising and falling, diving down and then soaring into the heavens. She looked and saw Kusaila was also breathing in the harmonies. Eyes closed, face enraptured. They shared a spellbound moment. What the lightning and cold rain had done for their bodies, the song did for their souls. Sarah felt the sadness draining away. The faces of the warriors who had died beneath her flames, and burned their images into her guilt-ridden heart, slipped into eternity, and for a brief moment she could have sworn she saw many of them smile as they disappeared. Finally, the music faded.

  Sarah sighed, looked at Kusaila, and smiled. He nodded at her and she wondered if dragons could kiss. Kusaila began to glow, his dragon face dissipating on the wind and his human features solidifying.

  Sarah blinked. “You’re going to fall!” she said but then noticed not all his dragon features had disappeared. His giant wings remained, smaller now but strong, still flapping, moving just enough to keep him hovering. “How did you…” She laughed. Then he reached for her and she felt herself shift. She expected her wings to remain and was startled when they didn’t. Before she could start to fall, Kusaila grabbed her and held her close. She looked up into his dark eyes; a gentle smile crossed his strong features. She could feel the warmth of his body and snuggled close, her arms wrapped around him. His eyes asked and hers answered. Their lips met. For a moment nothing mattered.

  Then her heart betrayed her, and guilt poured its merciless accusations across it. A question pierced her conscience. How many times will you betray Harry? In response, she pushed back from Kusaila’s embrace. His confused eyes locked on hers. “I can’t. I am promised to another.”

  Kusaila nodded sadly. “I understand and respect that covenant.”

  “There is no covenant,” Sarah corrected. Then added, “Just the hope of one.”

  Kusaila grimaced, his eyes narrowed. “So there is still hope for me?”

  A whisper of a smile crept across her face but clashed with her own confusion. “I don’t know… I guess… maybe. I’m sorry, Kusaila, I need time. Can we go back to camp?” she asked quickly, trying to get away from the awkward conversation. “I am terribly exhausted and need to rest.”

  She placed her arms around his neck.

  “Yes, of course,” he answered, shifting back into his full dragon form.

  Sarah exerted her will and tried to shift into her dragon form. Her body shook and she felt the familiar transformation start. Then just as quickly it ceased. She started to fall and screamed, “Kusaila!”

  He dove and caught her, drawing her close. “I have you, Sarah, do not be afraid. I have you…” he said as he placed her on his back between his powerful wings.

  She nodded, taking a deep breath. “Thank you.”

  “Always, my Sarah… Always. Hold on tight; we will be back soon.”

  “What happened? Why couldn’t I shift?”

  “You’re exhausted, my Sarah. It takes a tremendous amount of energy to transform, and you just don’t have it at the moment. Do not worry; it will come back as soon as you have rested and eaten.”

  She laid her head against his great dragon neck. He was warm and she could hear the rhythmic beating of his great heart. The last thought she had before she slipped into a well-deserved sleep was Oh Harry, what am I going to do?

  ****

  Sarah woke the next morning with no idea how she got back in her tent, nestled underneath clean sheets and in clean underclothes. Looking around the tent, she noticed there was a platter of breakfast pastries and water. She stretched like a cat and then pulled back the blankets and stepped out of bed.

  The voice she was hoping to avoid spoke to her. “Good morning, Sarah. You slept well. You slept through the rest of the day and halfway into the next. No bad dreams either… all of which is a very good sign.”

  “I have my own health monitor now? I guess that is a good thing in one sense, but the price for it seems to be my privacy,” Sarah said aloud, one eyebrow rising automatically, emphasizing her point.

  “And a small price it is to pay, my dear,” Liv answered, unruffled. “Speaking of prices to pay… you and I need to talk… and the sooner we have this conversation, the better it will be for all parties involved.”

  Sarah wanted to run, but there was no place to hide from an ancient intelligence embedded in her own psyche.

  “No, there is not, Sarah, so woman it up, girl, and face me like a mature person and not like a conflicted, emotionally disturbed little girl who doesn’t know her own mind. Now let me lay the foundation for this lecture. Sometimes feelings are fickle, and that being the case, they should not be the basis for decisions that will affect us the rest of our lives. You, humans, are selfish creatures who have been conditioned by culture and hormones to seek your own best interest. I have news for you: selfishness is not stable ground. Emotions are fickle, as you may have already noted. But to do the right thing, the honorable thing, the thing that will serve the needs of others… Well, you can build on that. And when you decide to base your decisions on what is best for others, often those decisions become much clearer. They are not always easier to make, but at least you know you are doing what is right. Do you understand me, Sarah?”

  Sarah frowned and grumbled, thinking, If I say I don’t, I will just get a longer sermon, so, “Yes, Liv, I understand you. Quit being selfish and do the right thing. Got it… so what is the right thing now?” She expected an immediate reply from the ancient manuscript written across her heart and was surprised when she didn’t get one. “Liv? You still there?”

  Liv’s calm thoughts answered, mild rebuke tainting them. “I am not a preacher, Sarah… although I have known some great ones and once was paired with Maewyn Succat, the man you know as Saint Patrick… but that’s another story for another day. But if you prefer to make this decision without my counsel, then, by all means, I will remain silent and let you stew in your own conflicted juices.”

  Sarah sighed and said, “This is not a simple decision, Liv.”

  “Au contraire, mademoiselle, it is a simple decision; it is just a very hard one, and a very painful one, and your confusion comes from avoiding the pain. So, allow me to ask questions. All you have to do is answer them as honestly as you can. Agreed?”

  Sarah sighed a long, slow breath, cautiously controlling her dragon nature, which was a heartbeat away from manifesting. Delicate tendrils of smoke rose from her nostrils. She waited so long Liv asked again, “Agreed, Sarah?”

  “Yes,” she muttered under her breath. “Get on with it…”

  “Who do you think needs you most right now, Harry or Kusaila? Don’t overthink it; go with your first impression.”

  Sarah thought a moment. “Harry doesn’t seem to be in immediate danger. He is taking beautiful witches to dinner. Kusaila, on the other hand, is involved in a struggle for the very survival of his people, and of course his own life as well. So, my gut impression is Kusaila. Kusaila needs me most at this time, Liv.”

 
“Next question, Sarah… if you go back to Harry’s time, what do you think will happen?”

  Sarah allowed her imagination to envision the reunion. She saw Harry in her heart and how he looked at her; she remembered the last dance they shared. And was about to answer, It would be wonderful, when Liv interrupted her, adding, “Specifically, what do you think would happen to Lizzy? Would she ever be born? Would Harry pursue a relationship with the witch if you were there?”

  Sarah’s heart sank. She didn’t realize joy could turn so quickly to heartache. Tears began to well up in her eyes, and her throat constricted.

  Liv did not let up. “Sarah, would Lizzy ever be born if you were to go back to Harry? Would she, Sarah?”

  Sarah closed her eyes and tried to speak or even make a coherent thought. All she could do was shake her head. Finally, she whispered, “No. But what do I tell him? It will break his heart… I do love him; I want to be with him.”

  “Oh, honey… I know you do… but if you really love him, if you really love both of them, you have to do the right thing, and you can only be with one of them.”

  Sarah fell to her knees and sobbed. Hot tears fell from her eyes and hissed as they hit the tent floor.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Harry sat in the library of the Hunter Base, buried deep under London streets. Someone had told him the facility had been built hundreds of years before in the time of Elizabeth the First and just been remodeled and updated as the times demanded. Over the generations, the memory of the facility had been lost to the public and only a few people knew about the base. Harry wondered if he had contributed to the development of the base during those times. From the way people talked, he might have. But at the moment he had more on his mind than old adventures. His heart was conflicted and his head confused, and which caused what was anybody’s guess. He knew he loved Sarah. He had not heard from her in several days. The sword was also not very forthcoming when asked about her. He was also worried about Belle Rodum, and add to that the pain of losing Lizzy if he didn’t find a way… It made him sick. There was no good way out of this. He kept thinking back on his conversation with the King. The King had promised that he and Sarah would be together, but what about Belle Rodum and Lizzy? He sat on the couch trying hard not to think, his eyes closed. He heard someone sit down across from him. He didn’t open his eyes immediately. He hoped they would respect his privacy and leave him alone.

  “I know you are awake and can hear me,” John Timothy said. “I have some interesting news. Something for you to consider.”

  Harry opened his weary eyes and sighed. He didn’t say a word but just looked at his mysterious friend.

  “Before I tell you about this, I need you to know it is a trap. It is also extremely important, almost vital to the war effort, and therefore also the timelines that we guard. But since it is a trap specifically designed for you, we have decided to offer you the option of not accepting it.”

  Harry shifted in his chair, his eyes narrowing. “Wait a minute. This is an optional mission. Yet it is extremely important?” He stared at John Timothy, pausing, waiting for a reply that did not come, and then asked, “I have been here before, haven’t I? Didn’t work out so well for me, did it?”

  The smallest of frowns creased John Timothy’s face.

  “Uh-huh. Thought so. Do I get killed or what?” Harry pressed.

  “Usually it’s ‘or what.’”

  “Damn…! Tim, you don’t mince words, do you… is Belle really behind this?”

  “We are not sure. We don’t think she planned it, but she is involved. Probably as bait. You don’t have to go this time, Harry. There would be an oxbow in time, but as always it would work itself out… eventually.”

  “Let me ask you a question: Does my accepting this assignment or not accepting it have any influence on whether Lizzy is born?”

  “Usually it does if you accept it. She comes into being in this timeline. But Harry, there have been times when this time event… does not end well for you.”

  “I die?”

  “No, but there are worse things…”

  “Geez, John Timothy… but… Lizzy comes into being, correct?”

  “Almost always.”

  “Hey, no decision necessary. I am in… all the way. No matter what. But I do have a request… is there any way Sarah can be called up to help me?”

  John Timothy sighed, shook his head, and answered, “I’m sorry, Harry, Sarah has a different path in front of her now.”

  Harry’s head dropped and his heart ached. After a long pause, he whispered, then his voice strengthened, “I… don’t know which is worse… Knowing Sarah is gone or facing a mission I know is going to cause me great suffering. Right now, it doesn’t pay to be me, does it?”

  “Great adventures are usually simply suffering redeemed. Heroes are the ones who went through the fire. You will come through this, Harry.”

  “Will I?”

  John Timothy looked back at him and didn’t answer.

  The moment was interrupted by the sword’s voice. “Harry, I have a message for you from Sarah.”

  Harry’s heart leaped. Sarah sent me a letter! Aw, not now… if John Timothy is right, this is not something I am going to want to read.

  He closed his eyes and the letter unfolded before him on the scroll of his imagination.

  My dearest Harry,

  I don’t know how to write this letter,

  So, I was right, this is it...

  I know it will cause you pain. Believe me, it has broken my heart to write it. But I must write it.

  I guess that’s true... I hate this.

  After weeks of conflict, I have come to the realization that my place is here with Kusaila and his people.

  I saw it coming… did the sword see it coming? Of course he did; that is why he has been ducking my questions.

  I do not understand how this happened. I remember vividly the promises of the King.

  Did we really talk to him? Other people don’t get to do that. Did he really say we would be together? Then how in the hell is this happening? I know I do not need to question… that is a lie. I am consumed with questions and anger, and if I can’t trust his word about the most important desire of my life, how can I… trust him in anything. Is he using me for his own ends? Am I just an amusing puppet whose strings he pulls to entertain, and if I rebel will he just cast me away?

  Nonetheless, here I am. My heart wishes it did not have to be this way.

  Mine too, Sarah… mine too.

  But obviously, it wishes that it be this way… more.

  You could have gone all day without saying that.

  I love you, Harry Ferguson.

  Kinda hard to believe that right now, Sarah.

  No dragon, 1,244-year-old first grader woman could have hoped for a better man to love her.

  If you really felt that way you wouldn’t be doing this.

  And that is what makes this so hard. I want what is best for you and what is best for Kusaila and his people. I have come to believe that you will always overcome, you will always win your battles,

  That is not what John Timothy is telling me, Sarah, and somehow, I think he knows more than you do.

  but that is not the case here. Kusaila is in a fight for the very survival of his people and of course himself. If I stay, I may be able to help them survive.

  Hey, maybe you’re right; if you are there things might change.

  If I do not stay, I do not see how they can get through this.

  I understand with my head but my heart just doesn’t give a damn.

  Also, there is Lizzy to consider. In order for her to even be born, you must be with the witch.

  There is no way around that, is there? Oh, what a tangled web I have woven, and I don’t even remember doing it.

  Harry, there is no way around that. Lizzy is worth whatever price you have to pay to ensure she lives.

  I know… I know, and apparently, I am about to make a very expen
sive down payment.

  And I cannot be a part of that.

  That would be a little awkward, wouldn’t it?

  Someone once said great sorrow marks the place of those we love.

  In a graveyard no doubt…

  If that is true, be assured, Harry Ferguson, that you are loved with the greatest of love.

  Then why doesn’t it feel that way? I am coming in second to a dragon prince. I hope he loves you, Sarah, and takes care of you. But I will never know, will I?

  I don’t know what else to say, so I will not say any more. Goodbye, Harry. And may the North Star always guide your path.

  Whether I want to or not, it seems…

  Sarah

  Harry opened his eyes. John Timothy’s sad countenance stared back at him. “So, when do we start?” Harry asked.

  “Now, if it suits you.”

  “Let’s do it. I don’t have anything else to do.” Or anyone else to do it for, he thought.

  ****

  Back in Hermann Göring’s office

  “Very good, Fraulein Rodum; with all the warriors that will be assisting you, I am very sure Harry Ferguson will not enjoy this meeting.” He pushed the button on his office intercom. “Send in our distinguished guest. Now let me introduce you to someone who has an old score to settle with your Englishman.”

  Belle Rodum turned her attention to the large wooden doors and watched as they slowly opened. Her eyes widened as she noticed the tall, dark man with the clerical collar enter the room.

  “Fraulein Rodum, may I introduce the Reverend Laden Long?”

  Trailer for Kisses of my Enemy

  Lizzy walked into the large kitchen of the old house. It was paneled with native east Texas wood, and the faint, pure scent of cedar and sassafras produced an atmosphere of cleanliness. She was sure this had neither been the intent nor imagination of either of the Huslu men. Shani noted Lizzy smelling the house and said, “Lizzy, when you live with two and a half extremely hairy men, not to mention a huge, white wolf, and when one of those knucklewalkers likes to smoke cigars and run around in his droopy old drawes, well, a woman has to do something to keep the smells out!”