The Dragon's Flame (The Chronicles of Terah # 2)

by Morgan, Mackenzie

  When Joan heard the door open, she glanced up. Her eyes lit up and a big smile spread across her face. “Well, hello, stranger. What brings you to the castle in the middle of the morning? No one’s sick, are they?”

  “No, nothing like that,” Theresa said as she sat down across the desk from Joan. “I came to get my wagon and to beg a few supplies.”

  “Where are you off to?”

  “I thought I’d head towards the mountains east of here to gather some herbs.”

  Joan looked a little skeptical. “I thought the chapel aides usually handled gathering the herbs. Do you just need a break, or is there some other reason why you’re going?”

  “I thought it would be best for me to give Sister Agnes some time to settle back in at the chapel.”

  Joan nodded. “So that the aides will go to her with their questions instead of coming to you.”

  “Which is only right. After all, it is her chapel.”

  “You really want a chapel of your own, don’t you?”

  “Yes, I do. And one day, I’ll have one. It’s just not time yet.”

  “Well, have a good trip. I have to admit I’m a little jealous. I’d love to get out in the woods for a couple of weeks,” Joan said with a sigh. Then she frowned and asked, “You aren’t going by yourself, are you?”

  Theresa fingered her pendant. “I’m not in any danger, Joan. I’ll be fine.”

  “That pendant can protect you from an attack, but it can’t do a thing for you if you sprain an ankle or break a leg, Theresa.”

  “Well, maybe Hayley would like to go. She’s been after me to teach her more about gathering and preparing herbs, but I’ll need to clear it with Sister Agnes before I ask her.”

  “I’m sure Sister Agnes won’t object, but if she does, let me know. We’ll find someone to go with you. If not, I’ll go myself. I could use a break,” Joan said, glancing at the stack of letters that had come in that morning. “Have you told Kevin yet?”

  “No, not yet. I was on my way to his office when I stopped in here.”

  The two friends chatted on for a few more minutes, but then Karl called Joan and asked her to step into his office for a moment. While Joan was getting her stuff together, Theresa stuck her head in Karl’s office and quickly spoke to him. Then she left for Kevin’s office.

  When Theresa told Kevin of her plans, he told her to take whatever supplies she needed from the castle storeroom.

  “How long do you plan to be gone?” Kevin asked.

  “Probably two or three weeks, although I could be out as long as a month. It all depends on what I find.”

  “I know you have your pendant, but I don’t like the idea of your being out there by yourself.”

  “I’m thinking of asking one of the chapel aides to go with me.”

  Kevin nodded. “But I’d still feel better if you had an armed guard. If nothing else, he could hunt for you.”

  Theresa smiled and said, “That’s sweet, Kevin, but I really don’t want a guard.”

  “Well, would you at least take one of the falcons so that you can get a message to us if you run into any trouble or need our help?”

  Theresa sighed and nodded.

  “When are you leaving?”

  “I’m going to pack everything today. Sister Agnes should return tomorrow. I’ll probably leave Sunday, Monday at the latest.”

  “You won’t be back up here before you go?”

  Theresa shook her head.

  Kevin stood up and walked over towards his office door. “Then we need to get the falcon today.” He opened the door and said, “Ariel, would you go out to the aviary and prepare one of the falcons for travel? When you have him settled in his cage, take it to Neiven and ask him to secure the cage to Sister Theresa’s wagon.”

  Ariel nodded. “Yes, sir. Shall I include its food?”

  “Yes, a month’s worth. Thank you,” Kevin said. Then he glanced around the outer office. Elin was busy with the résumés and recommendations that had come in that morning, and Cameryn was sorting through the rest of the mail. The only page who wasn’t busy at the moment was Isak.

  “Isak, would you go out to the kitchen and ask Miranda to help Theresa get a month’s worth of provisions for two people? Tell her that they’ll be traveling in one wagon, so space is limited. Thank you.”

  Then Kevin stepped back inside his office and shut the door. “Look, since you’re taking the falcon with you anyway, why not send me a note every Wednesday and Sunday, just to let me know where you are and that you’re okay.”

  Theresa frowned.

  “Look at it this way, it’ll save me a lot of time. Otherwise I’ll be flying all over the area a couple of times a week to check on you.”

  Theresa laughed. “Okay, you win. Are you sure the falcon will return to my campsite?”

  Kevin shrugged. “I have no idea. They tell me that the falcons are trained to return to their cage, wherever it is, until they’re put in a different cage. Don’t ask me how they train them, or how a falcon knows one cage from another, but if your falcon gets lost, don’t worry about it. If I don’t hear from you when I should, I’ll fly out to see what the problem is. I can always get you another falcon.”

  “I hate for you to go to all that trouble, Kevin,” Theresa said as she stood up to go.

  Kevin laughed. “It’s no trouble. In fact, I’m tempted to ask you to forget to send the falcon sometime just to give me an excuse to get out of here for a while.” Then he opened his office door for her and said, “Take care, Theresa. And have a good time.”

  “Thanks. Well, I really should get my things together and head back to Milhaven. See you in a few weeks.”

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  By the time Theresa found the cooking utensils, tarps, and sleeping blankets that she wanted to take with her, Neiven had her wagon backed up to the kitchen door. From the outside, her wagon looked like one of the local farm wagons. Metal hoops were arched over the wagon bed and a canvas tarp was stretched over the hoops. Canvas flaps at the front and back served as doors. But her wagon had a few extras inside. Cabinets had been built along both sides of the wagon and under the driver’s seat. The cabinets near the back had doors, but the ones near the front had netting and were designed to hold potted herbs that needed to be kept in a cool, dark place. Wooden troughs had been anchored to the top of the cabinets on the right for the rest of the potted herbs. Storage bags for drying herbs were hung from the metal hoops.

  Neiven had anchored the falcon’s cage to the top of the cabinets on the left side of the wagon near the back flap, and had stored the falcon’s food in the cabinet directly underneath. Theresa stored the food that Miranda had gotten together for her in the other cabinets and piled the cooking utensils, tarps, and sleeping blankets on the floor.

  After everything was packed, Theresa drove her wagon back to Milhaven. She pulled into the barn at the chapel late that afternoon. While she was brushing her horses, Hayley walked into the barn. Although she was a couple of years younger than Theresa, she had worked at the chapel for about three years.

  Hayley wanted desperately to be a Sister of Healing, but so far she had not shown any signs of having the power to heal. She had spent her first year at the chapel cleaning and cooking. During her second year, Sister Agnes had taught her how to clean and dress wounds. Normally, she would have begun to study herbs during her third year, but due to Badec’s illness, Sister Agnes had not had time to teach her much about gathering or preparing the different herbs, much less their specific uses.

  Hayley was tall and strong, but her round figure was decidedly feminine. Her dark brown hair had auburn highlights that lit up like specks of copper when the sun hit it. Her features were soft, and when she smiled, her eyes sparkled, but when she was upset, her dark gray eyes took on the look of a storm at sea. And right now, her eyes looked stormy.

  “You’re leaving, aren’t you?” Hayley asked, biting her bottom lip.

  Theresa wasn’t sure how to answer her, so
she put the brush down and led both of her horses toward their stalls. Finally she said, “We’re running low on some of our herbs. I thought I’d go into the mountains to gather some after Sister Agnes gets back. That’s all.”

  Hayley’s shoulders relaxed a little, and after a couple of moments, her eyes began to sparkle. “How long are you going to be gone?”

  “I’m not sure. Probably somewhere between two weeks and a month.”

  “Do you think I could go with you? Please, Sister Theresa. I’ve never been on an herb-gathering trip. I really want to go. I’ll do all the cooking and cleaning if you’ll let me go.”

  “Now that’s an offer that’s hard to refuse,” Theresa said with a laugh as she filled a couple of buckets with oats. “I’d love to have you go with me. For one thing, I could use the help with the herbs. But Sister Agnes may have other plans for you. Let me talk to her about it when she gets in, all right?”

  Hayley’s grin spread from ear to ear. “Thank you, Sister! Thank you so much!”

  “Whoa, slow down, nothing’s definite. I’ll ask Sister Agnes, but like I said, she may have other plans for you.”

  “If you ask her, she’ll let me go. I know it! When do we leave? I can’t wait!”

  “Well, I’m planning to leave a day or two after she gets home, but remember what I said. I’m not making any promises that you can go with me,” Theresa said slowly, hoping her words would register, but she could tell that Hayley wasn’t listening. As far as Hayley was concerned, it was a done deal.

  Chapter 6

  Theresa’s Excursion

  Sister Agnes pulled into the backyard of the chapel shortly after lunch Saturday afternoon. Once she was unpacked and settled, she and Theresa went into the workroom to talk in private.

  “So, how did things go while I was gone?” Agnes asked. “Any problems?”

  “No, not really. We had a few injuries, a couple of cases of upset stomachs, some colds and earaches, mainly among the children, a couple of headaches among the women, the usual stuff. Nothing strange, exciting, or complicated. Thank goodness!”

  “I’m sure you would have handled it just fine,” Agnes said with a smile. “Now, what’s this I hear about you going on a trip?”

  Theresa frowned. “I’m not going on a trip. I’m just going into the mountains to replenish some of our herbs. Did Hayley mention it to you?”

  Agnes nodded.

  Theresa closed her eyes and shook her head. “I would never have mentioned it to her until after I talked to you if she hadn’t gotten so upset when she saw me with the wagon. She thought I was leaving for good. I told her not to say a word about it to anyone until I’d had a chance to talk to you and ask you to let her go with me. Please don’t get the idea that I’m trying to take over.”

  Agnes laughed. “I understand completely. Don’t be angry with her, Theresa. Hayley’s so excited about finally having the chance to learn something that she just couldn’t help herself. If only they were all that eager.”

  “You don’t mind then?”

  “No, of course not. In fact, you’d be doing me a big favor if you’d take her under your wing. I must have gotten a lot more worn out over the past year than I realized. Even with all the rest I’ve had over the past month, I’m still not up to full strength.”

  When Theresa frowned and started to say something, Sister Agnes shook her head and held her hand up. “Don’t worry. I’m plenty strong enough to handle the chapel. I’m just not up to teaching an eager young mind on the side.” Then Sister Agnes put her hand over Theresa’s and smiled. “Take her with you and teach her how to gather herbs. Then, maybe when the two of you get back, you can teach her a little about preparing them. I’d really appreciate it, and so would she. I think the whole thing is a terrific idea.”

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  Monday morning Theresa and Hayley drove out of Milhaven around daybreak, heading east towards the mountains. Theresa didn’t know exactly where she wanted to go once she reached them, but she had maps, plenty of food, and the falcon in case of trouble.

  When they reached the taller mountains, Theresa turned off onto a smaller road. It followed a lazy stream a couple of miles up a gentle slope into a high valley. By late afternoon, they had set up a temporary corral for the horses and a campsite for themselves. While Hayley prepared dinner, Theresa scouted the area, looking for beds of wild herbs. She found enough to keep them busy for at least three full days, maybe more.

  After dinner, while they were relaxing around the fire with a fresh pot of coffee, Theresa’s thoughts turned to another valley, one she’d lived in last summer. She didn’t realize that she was smiling until Hayley asked if she was having happy thoughts.

  “As a matter of fact, yes,” Theresa answered. “I was just thinking about Rainbow Valley. I lived there for about eight months last year, mostly gathering and preparing herbs.”

  “Where’s Rainbow Valley? I’ve never heard of it.”

  “It’s a small valley in the mountains of Nandelia.”

  “Is that where you trained?”

  “No. Actually I trained with Drusilla in Drisden, a small town in northern Brendolanth,” Theresa said as she topped off both of their coffee cups. “I don’t guess there’s any harm in telling you now that everything’s settled. You know that I arrived in Milhaven with Myron and the others, right?”

  Hayley nodded.

  “Well, by the time we got here, we’d been traveling with Myron for about a year. Rainbow Valley is where we stayed while Myron was studying with Glendymere.”

  Hayley’s eyes widened. “Then the rumors that Glendymere was his teacher are true?” she asked in a hushed voice.

  Theresa nodded.

  “Did you ever get to meet him? Glendymere, I mean.”

  “Oh yes, lots of times. I’ve even flown on his back.” Theresa smiled at the memory.

  “I’d be terrified to be around a dragon,” Hayley said with a shudder.

  Theresa laughed. “Well, he is a little intimidating at first, but once you get past the initial shock, he’s really quite nice. I guess you could say he’s one of the good guys.”

  “Did you get to meet the family of giants who attend him?”

  Again Theresa nodded.

  Hayley said wistfully, “I’ve never met a giant. I did see one from a distance once. He looked so big and fierce I’d have been scared to death if I’d had to talk to him.”

  “Giants are just like humans, only bigger. The ones I’ve met have all been very good people, kind, gentle, easy to talk to, but I imagine there are some who aren’t very nice, just like some humans aren’t.”

  “Did you live with them?”

  “No. Their home was at the top of Wildcat Mountain. We stayed in a cave in the valley.” Hayley’s frown led Theresa to explain. She described how the caves had been transformed into comfortable living quarters, complete with furniture, lamps, and rugs. By the time she finished describing the workroom that had been set up specifically for her, she felt positively homesick.

  “You want to go back there, don’t you?” Hayley asked.

  “I’d like to go back to visit, and I’d love to see Sari again, but I don’t think I could live there permanently.”

  Hayley nodded and then asked, “Who’s Sari?”

  “Blalick and Ashni’s daughter.” At Hayley’s puzzled look, Theresa explained. “The family who attend Glendymere. Blalick and Ashni are married and they have two children. Macin is their son and their daughter is Sari. Anyway, she was interested in learning about herbs so she volunteered to help me while we were there. She and I worked together almost every day setting out and tending herb beds. By the time I left, we had more than enough herbs to set up a full supply for the giants and to stock my wagon. We sent the surplus to Sister Evelyne in Abernon.”

  “What will happen to the herb beds?”

  “Sari will take care of them. She knows what to do.”

  “What will she do with all the extra herbs now that you’
re not there?”

  “She’ll send some to Evelyne, and Evelyne will distribute them to the sisters in her area,” Theresa said. “There are a lot of rare herbs that only grow in the high country and we set out lots of those. I’m going to go back before long and get some of those for the clinics around here.”

  “Can I go with you? Please take me!” Hayley begged.

  Theresa laughed and shook her head. “Let’s take things one day at a time, Hayley. Gathering and preparing herbs is dirty, tiring, backbreaking work. You may get your fill of it on this trip.” Theresa stood up, stretched, and began banking the fire. “Come on, let’s get to bed. I found some herbs nearby that have to be gathered while the leaves are still damp with the morning dew. We’re going to need to get up at least an hour before sunrise.”

  Hayley looked a little startled.

  “What? You thought this was a vacation?” Theresa asked with a grin as she held her hand out to help Hayley up. “Like I said, dirty, backbreaking work!”

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  When Theresa got up Friday morning, she ached in places she hadn’t ached in before. Over the past three days, they’d collected a lot of herbs, and Theresa decided it was time to take a break and move to a new site.

  After breakfast she said, “I thought we’d pack up this morning and head over to the other side of that saddle,” pointing to a low pass between the two mountain peaks that formed the walls of the valley.

  Hayley grinned and said, “Sounds good to me. It’ll be like a day off!”

  An hour later, the wagon was loaded, the horses were hitched, and they were ready to go. Theresa wasn’t sure if the path they were following was a narrow road, a footpath, or an animal trail, but it was wide enough for the wagon and headed in the right direction.

  After they crossed the saddle and began to descend into the next valley, the forest changed. The foliage was so thick overhead that little light penetrated to the forest floor and the moss and ferns that covered it muffled the sounds of the horses’ hooves. Small streams crisscrossed the mountainside, gathering size and speed as they made their way down. As the ground began to level, Theresa heard the rushing sound of a nearby waterfall.