by Lea Doué
Mel waited, hoping Jade could find her way over a longer distance. She was still just a baby. Orin had been closer, no doubt, when he’d sent Jade to find her earlier. The tree swayed ever so gently with a breeze that didn’t reach through its thick branches. Sweat dripped down the back of her neck, and her eyelids grew heavy. She shook herself and wrapped her arms more tightly around the trunk, taking deep breaths to keep herself awake. The sun gradually dipped as they day stretched into late afternoon.
“Mel!” Orin’s voice echoed through the woods. “Mel, where are you? You can come out.”
Unable to see him, she scrambled down a few branches to a spot where the leaves grew less thick. As she lowered herself to reach the next one, something jerked her head back.
“Ouch!” The loose ends of her braid had snagged on some smaller branches. She didn’t have time to untangle the whole mess, so she balanced on one foot and used one of the throwing daggers to saw off a couple inches of her hair. There. She stuffed the remaining ends down the back of her tunic and continued. By the time she reached the ground, Jade had found her and circled with trilling chirps.
Orin ran out of the woods, came right up to her, and lifted her off her feet. “Once this is all over, you’ve got to promise no more running off.”
She clung to him. “If I do run off, I want you with me.”
Baz strode into the deserted encampment carrying the pack basket. True peeked over his shoulder, a comical sight at odds with the sword in his hand and the anger simmering in his gaze. “Which way did he go?”
Orin set Mel down but kept an arm about her waist.
She leaned into him. “Northwest.”
“We need to get back to Keir.” Baz sheathed his sword and turned on his heel. “I can’t believe we trusted him!”
“What are you talking about?” Mel rebraided the ends of her hair as she and Orin tried to keep up. Well, Orin had no problem, but if Baz walked any faster she’d have to run.
He rounded on her and she reeled backward. “Where is Vanda? Where did he take her? Did he follow my father to the tower to offer her up to him?”
She stared at him and put both hands on her hips, one of them still clutching the end of her braid. “Are you talking about Tharius?”
“Who else would I be talking about?”
“Your father, who just held me hostage in his tent and threatened me unless I agreed to marry you.”
“What?” Baz and Orin spoke in unison. Fleet crawled from the basket onto Baz’s shoulder and studied her.
“Tharius has taken Vanda to the lake, just as we agreed. He’ll be there, well hidden, before the king arrives at the tower.” She explained how she’d come to be in the king’s camp. “Your father is a difficult man.”
Baz ran a hand through his curls. “You don’t have to tell me.”
“Let’s keep walking while I fill you in, shall we?” She waved her braid. “Either of you gentlemen have a ribbon?”
Orin handed her the leather cord she’d tied around Jade’s leg.
“Thanks.” They both listened intently as she talked, asking questions here and there. “How did you know to come looking for me? There’s no way you could have heard me calling from that distance.”
Orin shook his head. “We didn’t hear anything, but those weren’t the only dragon soldiers in the forest. A different group found us. They’d been looking for Baz and pledged their allegiance to him over his father. A large portion of them are not too pleased with the king’s actions lately, including his use of the spelled looking glass.”
Wow. No wonder Baz seemed touchy. “So you were there to confront King Lotario?”
Baz grunted. “I thought I could talk to him. Orin came to back me up. We hoped he would at least listen with another prince present. But when Jade started acting strange… well, we guessed you were near, and not by choice. You know the rest.”
“Baz’s soldiers took the man you hit in the head as a witness,” Orin said. “And they’re moving more soldiers towards the tower, but they might not make it in time to save Gram. Especially if the king suspects what’s going on.”
Mel wanted to leave immediately, but they had no mounts. “We’ll have to wait until nightfall to follow, won’t we?”
“Keir is still faster than the rock dragons,” Orin said. “He’ll have us there in no time.”
*
“We’re here.” Orin nudged Mel’s shoulder.
She hadn’t slept all afternoon, hoping to pass out from exhaustion in the basket. The plan had worked, and now she blinked gritty eyes against the pale light of the cave dragon scale. “Couldn’t let me sleep through the landing, could you?” Not that she would have.
Keir landed softly, and all three dragons popped their heads out of the pack basket. Hunter yawned and glanced around before ducking back in with True. She’d worried needlessly that Tharius might have hidden too well. Once they got close enough, Vanda told Baz their exact location along the lake.
For once, Mel managed to use the rope ladder and land on her feet without being sick, but she refused to believe she was getting used to flying. Vanda greeted them at the shore.
On the map, the lake had been nothing but a tiny dot nestled between the Burnt River Mountains and the ocean, but up close, the far shore remained out of sight in the darkness. Moonlight silvered the rocky beach and blurred the rough edges of the scrubby bushes and weedy flowers that led up to the woods.
Head low, Keir trudged into the trees, headed for a cave Tharius had found. His tail dragged and knocked leaves off bushes. They all followed and helped remove the baskets at the cave entrance, shoving them into a nearby thicket to hide them. The effort seemed pointless with a hulking black dragon lying nearby, no matter how much he blended into the shadows.
Mel entered first. Tharius rested on his back with his head pillowed on his dragon’s saddle, pale hands folded over his stomach. His mother’s ring winked in the soft glow of the orbs, as did Sissi’s ring. Ever since he’d taken it off his finger, he’d kept it around his neck, at least in her presence, a thoughtful gesture, no doubt to put her at ease and another attempt to lull her into trusting him.
The rock dragon, still bridled, thrashed its head in the corner. Tharius sat up as the others entered the cave, and then he joined his dragon and grabbed hold of the reins to calm it. Baz set True’s basket against the wall and stood guard over it.
“He doesn’t like other dragons?” Mel asked.
Tharius glanced at the basket, where Jade and Hunter poked their heads out of the closed flap, and Fleet had already squeezed half his body out. “I’d say there’s too much sorcery nearby for his liking. I’ll settle him elsewhere for the remainder of the night.” He draped the saddle and supplies loosely over the dragon’s back and then left.
Orin put an arm around Mel’s waist. “I guess it’s too much to hope he’ll leave for good.”
She laced her fingers with his, and the image of the gold dragon ring flashed into her mind. “I’m not sure we want him to leave for good just yet.”
After Vanda handed out blankets and Baz set out the glowing scale, everyone sat around and caught up on what had happened since the kidnappers attacked. Mel explained about Tharius’s counter-potion last.
“You’re not actually going to give it to them, are you?” Orin asked.
She shrugged. “It’s up to them what to do with it.”
“That’s going to be a tough choice to make.”
Jade swooped over their heads, stretching her wings. Her brothers explored the back of the cave where the rock dragon had slept.
“I think we’ve broken the dragons. Messengers aren’t usually nocturnal.” She stroked True’s feathers. The goose had cuddled up as soon as Mel sat. “Not your fault, of course. You’re the best foster mother a goose can be.”
“We need to make a plan,” Orin said. “We’ve been flying blind, so to speak, and reacting to what’s been happening. The king has the upper hand with Gram in his kee
ping.”
“So our first priority is to get her away from him and then get somewhere safe,” Mel said.
Fleet landed on Vanda’s knee, and she scratched beneath his wings. “Baz would know where we could go.”
“My mother’s people would keep us safe and secret, but they’re all the way on the other side of the kingdom and the first place Father would look.”
“It doesn’t have to be any one place,” Orin said. “Since Keir can take us wherever we need to go.”
“True,” Mel said. “But we don’t want to overburden him.”
Vanda blinked. “Keir says he’ll do whatever he has to.”
“There are plenty of mountains to choose from,” Baz said. “And probably plenty of caves more roomy than this one. Some might even have thermal springs.”
Tharius walked back in and stopped, looking at each of them in turn, including True and the dragons. He did that a lot, come to think of it—pausing and thinking before he acted. Rather opposite of her rushing into things all the time. He’d acted quickly with the kidnapper, though. And here she was sitting and discussing their next move at length without twiddling her thumbs too much.
See. People could change.
“Making plans?” he said.
Orin eyed him up and down. “Yes. You have anything to contribute?”
Mel couldn’t blame him for sounding testy. He was trying to be patient with her own change in attitude towards the man, which she didn’t understand herself. She did understand Tharius’s desire for freedom, but not his desire for revenge. One minute he seemed genuinely helpful, and the next she doubted him and read manipulation in every word and action. He was a walking contradiction. He couldn’t be happy. Had he ever been happy? Perhaps when his mother was alive.
She shook her head to stop her mind from wandering and answered before Tharius could retort. “If you have anything to add, just speak up. I’m sure that won’t be hard for you.”
Orin added, “You could always go do your looking-into-the-distance thing and see if you can figure out exactly what Gram’s situation is.”
Vanda sat up straight, eyes wide with hope.
Goosebumps broke out on Mel’s arms. “I do not approve of him using sorcery.”
“It was just a suggestion.”
Tharius smirked and ambled to the rock dragon’s corner, making a point to go as far back as possible. He sat and faced them, eyes closed and arms crossed. There was no sign of a looking glass.
She turned away, genuinely repulsed at the thought of watching him work sorcery. Orin glanced at him from time to time. Ugh. Why did he have to suggest that?
Fleet waddled over and tucked himself under one of True’s wings. If only they’d found the little messengers earlier. So many of their problems could have been solved if ordinary folks had a means of quick communication.
“Can you tell us more about this tower?” she asked Baz. “We need to figure out how to get Gram out while using Keir and the darkness to our advantage.”
Baz yawned and then rubbed his temples. “It’s just a tower made of volcanic rock, about six stories tall. Windowless except for the top chamber, which has two, one facing the Burnt River and one facing the cliffs and beach. It was a place to house uncooperative sorcerers during the Dragon Wars, and it will house only a few quads of guards. Once my father arrives, some of his dragon soldiers will have to camp outside.”
“Tharius and Vanda had a few hours head start,” Orin said. “He’ll be at the tower soon, if he’s not already.”
“Yes. He’ll want to witness his orders being carried out.” Baz wrinkled his nose in disgust.
“Is he actually capable of having innocent people killed?” Mel asked. “Would he go through with it?”
“I never thought so before, but now…” He took a deep breath and released it, his shoulders dropping. “Yes, I think he’s fully capable of doing that and more.”
“More?” Orin said.
“He doesn’t like it when people get in his way.” He glanced at Mel. “Or refuse to do what he wants.”
“Keir wants to know if he can land on the tower,” Vanda interrupted as if she hadn’t been listening. “It might be easier to get in from above.”
“It’s possible, but the surface would be slippery,” Baz said. “Someone could climb down on a rope and bring her up the same way, if she were up to it.”
“What about archers?” Mel asked.
“Some of us could create a distraction,” Orin suggested.
Tharius chuckled, eyes still closed, and then he laughed. His amusement ended quickly, though, and he heaved a sigh. When his eyes opened, he stared straight at Vanda. “Your most remarkable grandmother has taken a great step towards securing your freedom.”
Vanda stared at him blankly. “What?”
“She’s been in the tower for weeks, from what I can tell,” he said. “The entire time, she’s been doing… something… I can’t even guess what, and has created a hole in the barrier near the beach. I believe it’s large enough for someone to get through.”
Baz sat up straight. “What are we waiting for, then? Let’s get everyone out through that hole. We’ll free Vanda and Mel both at once. The curse will be broken and Father won’t have any need to hurt anyone, or… well….” He shot a glance at Mel. “Problem solved.”
Mel tingled with excitement. As much as she disapproved of Tharius’s methods for getting information, she wanted to run out of the cave now and fly with Keir to free them all.
Tharius shook his head but said nothing.
“Oh, for goodness sake, Tharius, just tell us what the problem is!” She gripped a pebble in her hand, seconds away from lobbing it at him. “You just told us there’s a way to get out, and now you’re shaking your head like we’re missing something.”
“You must remember, the barrier is invisible,” he said. “The hole is parallel to the tower window, so it’s up higher than can be easily reached. There are no trees around, so no climbing like a squirrel. Shall I continue to list the difficulties?”
“No.” She hurled the rock out the entrance. “You’ve made your point.”
“Still, it’s a way out,” Baz said. “Surely Keir will give us some advantage in his dragon form.”
Keir’s growl of agreement rumbled into the cave.
“We can still use the rope idea at the barrier,” Mel said, “but Keir would have to hover instead of perch on a rooftop.”
Tharius cleared his throat.
All eyes turned to stare at him.
“I would suggest you free the grandmother before attempting any other heroics.”
Mel expected him to stop there. “What—”
He held up a hand and interrupted her to continue. “She’s strong, but even her strength has limits, and she may have no way of knowing she’s been successful. She will keep at it until her energy is spent.”
He studied Vanda with wonder in his eyes, perhaps because he’d had little experience with the type of love and devotion Gram displayed through her actions. “There are six quads of dragon soldiers camped outside, with more inside. That’s ample numbers to take all of you, except perhaps the black dragon. I’m no help to you there—I can’t use sorcery around the tower because of the soldier-king’s legacy. I don’t know how your grandmother has managed to do what she’s done.”
Chapter Seventeen
Mel frowned, glancing from one shadowy face to another as they sat in the glow of the cave dragon scale, considering their options. She couldn’t imagine how Gram had created a hole in the barrier, but it would certainly speed up their curse-breaking attempt. “It doesn’t matter how she’s done it. We just have to figure out how to take advantage of it.”
They sat a moment more in silence, everyone busy with their own thoughts.
Mel spoke hers aloud first. “Here’s what I’m thinking. Someone flies in with Keir and gets Gram out. Everyone else travels to the chink in the barrier, and we meet up there. Vanda and I swing th
rough using a rope… and we all have our happily ever after.”
“Pretty plan,” Tharius said. “But I think you’ve overlooked a few things.”
“Thank you for that extremely helpful comment. I’ve just given a basic outline, obviously. If everyone’s in agreement, we can work out the details.”
He didn’t respond. Odd how helpful he’d become without asking anything in return. Yet.
The others began discussing the logistics of her plan, but her mind wandered. Dirt stained her fingernails, her stomach felt hollow, and invisible sand irritated her tired eyes when she blinked. She wanted nothing more than for her first adventure to be over, for everyone to be safe so she could settle down and train the little dragons with Orin.
And then she’d like to raise more messenger dragons. She and Orin could train dragons and travel to the villages that needed them most. They would help people learn to harness their curiosity and energy, not only for taking messages, but also for helping complete daily tasks. Of course most people had never been able to keep the dragons when their sole purpose was carrying messages. Only palaces and manors and merchants had adequate amounts of correspondence to keep them busy enough to curb their destructive habits. But, as far as she knew, no one had ever thought to ask if they were good for other things.
She would help make sure situations like this didn’t happen again because of a lack of communication. It would be a long process, but a worthwhile one with very few palace walls.
Baz and Vanda whispered animatedly, while Tharius watched the entire group, hands folded over his stomach. She studied his gloved fingers and then glanced out the cave entrance to where Keir waited in the dark. She looked at Orin.
“What is it?” he said.
She smiled, trying to sound confident. “We’re going to get out of this.”
He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. “Of course we are.” He kissed her forehead. “And remember, when we do, you don’t owe Tharius anything.”
She nodded absently. If the plan taking shape in her mind worked, she would probably owe him something. She hoped she could pay the price.