The gnome slowly nodded. “It was an accident, that’s all.” Then he began slowly moving his head around to get a better view of his surroundings. “Where am I anyway? I’ve got to get home.”
“I’m not sure where we are,” Theresa said. When she saw a frown of disbelief on his face, she explained, “I know how I got here, and how to get back, but I have no idea what the name of this valley is or what that river’s called. Would it help if I told you that we are basically across the river from where we found you?”
He looked at her with blank eyes.
“I guess not. Well, when you’re a little stronger, you can walk around and get your bearings. You’ll probably recognize the area. Now, what about something to eat? Maybe some toast and tea? We need to keep it simple for a while. All you’ve had for the past few days is tea and broth,” Theresa said as she glanced at Hayley. Hayley nodded that she would fix it. Then Theresa turned back to the gnome and asked, “Do you remember falling off the ledge onto that boulder?”
The gnome frowned and appeared to be concentrating. Finally he shook his head, “No, I don’t. But after I got shot things got sort of blurry. I remember pulling the arrow out. Then I must have passed out for a while. When I came to, I remember thinking that I had to get mud on it to stop the bleeding, but that’s the last thing I remember until you said something about my arm.”
Theresa nodded. “Do you know what day it is?”
“Sure. It’s Friday morning. I got shot yesterday afternoon.”
“Actually, I didn’t find you until late Friday afternoon, and you’ve been pretty much unconscious since then. It’s Sunday morning.”
“It can’t be!” he said as he began struggling to get up. “There’s no way! My father would have sent out search parties. They’d have found me by now.” He slapped at Theresa’s hand with his good arm. “Where’s my tunic? I need to get out of here!”
“No, no, don’t try to get up! Please! You’re going to hurt yourself!” Theresa said as she tried to restrain him.
“Do as she says, son,” a voice said right beside Theresa.
Theresa jerked back from her patient and quickly looked around her, trying to find the person who had spoken. Hayley dropped the piece of bread she was toasting into the fire and twirled towards the voice. As they watched, a man seemed to appear out of thin air. He was a little more than two feet tall, but not much. Other than that, he looked just like a human in his mid-forties. His hair and beard were dark brown with a few specks of gray, and he wore a tunic, leggings, and boots, with a small sword fastened at his waist. A full-length hooded cape fell from his shoulders.
“Father,” Theresa’s patient said with a deep sigh of relief as he relaxed and settled back against the blankets.
The older gnome turned to Theresa. “Allow me to introduce myself. I am Merdin, King of the Forest Gnomes. I don’t know if my son has introduced himself or not, but he is Jaron, Prince of Farowood. And you are?”
Theresa bowed her head slightly at King Merdin and said, “I’m Sister Theresa from the Chapel of Light in Milhaven, and this is my aide, Hayley.”
“And what brings two young women so far away from home?” King Merdin asked.
“We were gathering herbs for the chapel,” Theresa answered.
“And you’ve suspended your own work to care for my son.” King Merdin said it as a statement of fact. Then he waved his arm towards the river and a dozen gnomes and three cats suddenly appeared.
Theresa had been concentrating on masking her surprise ever since she’d first heard King Merdin’s voice, so she didn’t react, but Hayley gave a startled gasp, took a step backwards, and clasped her hand over her mouth.
“Allow me to introduce my men, Sister Theresa. Most of them spent last night guarding your campsite,” King Merdin said. “The Alysian cats are friends of my family.”
The three cats were a bit larger than the domestic cats Theresa was used to. Sitting, they were about as tall as the gnomes. Their eyes looked like the fabled cheshire cat’s eyes in Alice In Wonderland, and they all had long hair, but none of them had the white fur of Alice’s cheshire. One was jet black, and the other two were a mix of colors, mostly browns and yellows.
King Merdin smiled towards the cats and continued, “In fact, Dani is the one who spotted Jaron and summoned the rest of us here. He’s been with you since yesterday afternoon.”
The big black cat slowly bowed his head in greeting.
“When do you think it would be safe for me to take my son home?” King Merdin asked.
Theresa hesitated and then said, “To be honest, I don’t think he should even sit up until maybe tomorrow, and I’d like for him to limit his movements for the next three or four days. How far away is home, and how will he get there? I mean, do you have a wagon where he can lie down? Will he walk?”
King Merdin looked at Theresa for a few minutes before answering. “We’re two days from home. We don’t have a wagon, but I imagine Dani will carry him.” He looked over at the cat. Dani nodded in agreement. “So all he’ll have to do is be able to sit on Dani’s back.”
“That would be a lot like riding a horse bareback, wouldn’t it?”
King Merdin nodded.
“Then I’d say he shouldn’t try it until Friday at the earliest. Remember, he has a broken arm as well as the shoulder wound.”
King Merdin was silent for a few minutes, and then he nodded. “I have to return home, but I’ll leave my men and Dani to assist you. I’ll return Friday morning to accompany Jaron home.”
Theresa frowned. “I don’t understand. Are you concerned about his safety? Is that why you’re leaving your men behind?”
King Merdin quickly shook his head. “No, not at all. I’m sure all of you will be perfectly safe here. No, I’m leaving the men to help you with your work. You’ve spent all of your time tending to my son, and from what you say, he’s going to need care for several more days. So, while you’re tending to him, my men will gather herbs for you. They know the ones the humans use, and they know how to collect them. Dani will stay in case you need to get a message to me.”
“Oh,” Theresa said. “Thank you. That’s very kind of all of you.”
“No more than the kindness you’ve shown my son. Now, may I ask him a few questions? I won’t let him talk long,” King Merdin said as he sat down beside his son.
“Certainly.” Theresa and Hayley began to back away to give them some privacy.
“You needn’t go. You might want to hear the answers yourself. I’m sure you’ve wondered what happened,” King Merdin said as he looked at Jaron.
“Really, father, it was an accident. It was my own fault. I was shielded and I was watching a young human track a deer. When he finally had the deer sighted, I tried to startle the deer so he’d escape, but I startled the human worse. I don’t know what he thought I was, maybe a bear or something, but he swung towards me, fired his arrow, and took off running,” Jaron explained. “It was pure luck that he hit me.”
“Bad luck, I’d say,” King Merdin observed. “Then what happened?”
“I’m not too sure. I remember pulling the arrow out. The next thing I remember is waking up on the ground and thinking that I needed to get a mudpack on it, and then …” Jaron shook his head. “I just don’t know.”
King Merdin took his son’s hand. “That’s fine. Don’t worry about it.” Then he turned to Theresa. “Where did you find him?”
She led him to the river and pointed out the boulder. There was still a large red stain on the rock. King Merdin nodded and walked back towards his son. “I’ll be back Friday morning. You do what Sister Theresa says.”
Jaron nodded and slowly closed his eyes.
~ ~ ~ ~
Jaron continued to improve throughout the day Sunday and by Monday his appetite came back. After a day on solid foods, he was ready to get up and start moving around a little. At first, Theresa insisted on going with him when he went for short walks, and she kept a close check o
n his wound, but by Wednesday, she was willing to let him venture out on his own. Thursday he decided to try riding Dani around the valley. Theresa didn’t object, but she did insist that he wear a sling on his arm. When he came back from his ride, he told Theresa that he felt like he would be ready to head home the next morning.
During the week, while Jaron was slowly getting on his feet, King Merdin’s men combed the valley and the surrounding mountainsides for herbs. Thursday evening, after dinner, Theresa checked the supply of herbs in her wagon and decided that they had more than enough. It was time for them to head home, too.
Friday morning, shortly after daybreak, King Merdin appeared at the edge of their campsite. He briefly spoke to his men, and then approached Theresa. “Is Jaron ready to travel?”
“I think so, but he’ll need to take frequent rest breaks. He’s still a little weak, and probably will be for another week or so, but as long as he takes it easy, he should be fine. I’ve prepared some herbs that will help him build his strength.” Theresa reached into the back of her wagon and drew out a pouch. “Just put one spoonful of this powder in a cup of boiling water. I’d like for him to drink a cup of this tea four times a day. There’s enough in here for seven days.”
King Merdin took the pouch and slipped it in his pocket. “Any chance of his wound opening again?”
Theresa shook her head. “I really don’t think so. Not at this point.”
“Good. Then as soon as my men are ready, we’ll be on our way. Did they collect enough herbs?”
“Yes, thank you. In fact, they’ve been such a tremendous help that we’re going to head back today, too.”
“Good.” Then King Merdin took a pouch out of his pocket and handed it to Theresa. “Sister, you have given me the finest gift one person can give another. You have saved the life of my son. I’d like to give you this as a token of my gratitude and the gratitude of all the gnomes.”
Theresa opened the pouch and removed a small set of wind chimes. “Oh, they’re lovely. Thank you,” she said as she held them up to the breeze. The chimes danced in the wind and a soft melody floated away on the breeze.
“If you are ever in need of our help, just hang these chimes and the wind will carry your message to us. Remember, we are everywhere, and it will give us great pleasure to be able to help you,” King Merdin said. “Don’t hesitate to call us whenever we can be of assistance.”
Theresa wasn’t quite sure what to say to a gift of that magnitude. “Thank you, King Merdin, but I assure you, tending to your son was my pleasure, and I will always treasure your friendship.” Relief poured through her when King Merdin seemed pleased with her response.
After King Merdin bowed and walked back towards his men, Prince Jaron thanked Theresa and Hayley and then joined his father. As soon as Jaron was mounted on Dani, his father handed him a hooded cloak, which he draped over his shoulders. In a matter of seconds, all signs of the gnomes and Dani were gone.
“Where did they go?” Hayley whispered. “How do they do that?”
“I have no idea,” Theresa said as she stared at the empty space where the gnomes had stood only seconds before. But she was planning to ask Laryn about it as soon as she got back. “Come on, let’s load up and head out.”
Chapter 7
Back to Glenco
Saturday morning, Rolan was sitting at his desk reading reports from his various spies around Brendolanth when he heard a hesitant knock on his office door. With an exaggerated sigh he sat back in his chair and yelled, “Come!”
“What is it now?” he hissed in exasperation as the door opened.
“Sorry, sir,” the young page squeaked out, “but this just came for you. It’s marked private and urgent, so I thought I should bring it to you immediately.”
“Very well. Let me have it,” Rolan said with another sigh. He held out his hand for the message. As soon as he saw the writing he cringed inside. Gerry. “Leave!”
The page scuttled out of the room and pulled the door to behind him.
For a few moments, Rolan just sat there drumming his fingers on the sealed message. Finally, he ripped the seal off and plopped the note on his desk. The message was short and cryptic:
I’ve figured out what we can do. Can’t wait to tell you. See you Sunday.
G
Rolan frowned and drummed his fingers on his desk. What had she come up with now? He wasn’t at all sure he wanted to know.
Then he crumpled up the paper, tossed it in the air, and with a flash, reduced it to ashes. He’d told her not to ever contact him, no matter what. If she was bold enough to do it once, she’d do it again. He had to come up with a way to put an end to this, an end to her, once and for all.
~ ~ ~ ~
Sunday morning Rolan woke up with a throbbing headache. He had gone to bed dreading the day, and had ended up tossing and turning all night. Once he was dressed, he sent for breakfast.
Although his cook fixed his eggs just the way he liked them and made his favorite muffins, nothing tasted good. Everything tasted the same – like cardboard. Even the coffee had a sour taste. He picked at his food for a while and then sent the tray back to the kitchen.
He paced his room, trying to come up with a way to end things with Gerry without jeopardizing his life or his future. The frustration of not being able to come up with a plan made his head ache worse, and as his pain increased, so did his irritation with the whole situation. When he realized that he was grinding his teeth, he ordered himself to calm down. No woman was worth all this aggravation. He’d come up with a plan. It just wouldn’t be right now.
Rolan opened his door and reminded the guard that he was not to be disturbed for any reason. Then he shut the door, changed clothes, took out his key, and left for the cave near Glenco.
Gerry was already there, waiting for him, when he entered the cave. She jumped up and caught him in a passionate embrace. After a few minutes, she stepped back and looked hard at him. “You’re late. What happened? Where were you? I’ve been waiting here for over an hour.”
“Sorry, my love,” Rolan crooned. “I couldn’t leave. I was being watched.”
“By whom?”
“Spies for Myron.”
“But you use the key to come here.”
“True, but I don’t want them to know I’ve left Trendon. That would make them curious and then they would start asking questions. Who knows what might happen then. We can’t risk it.”
“Well, at least you’re here now,” Gerry said as she kissed his ear. “Did you get my note?”
“Yes,” Roland said with a deep frown. “Gerry, you know I’ve asked you not to send any messages to the castle. They could be intercepted too easily.”
“But no one knows who I am.”
“And I want to keep it that way. Don’t do it again.”
“Oh, all right. Don’t be angry. I won’t do it any more,” she said, poking her lips out in a pout. Then she grinned and added, “But I just couldn’t wait to tell you that I think I’ve come up with the solution.” Gerry laid her head on Rolan’s shoulder and nuzzled his neck. “If you had a pendant like mine, you’d be able to challenge Myron and defeat him, wouldn’t you?”
Rolan nodded. “But I don’t have one.”
“Maybe we can get one for you,” Gerry said as she ran her fingers lightly over his chest.
“Do you mean take yours? I could never do that!”
“No, no. Mine wouldn’t do you any good. It’s connected to my life force. It only works for me.”
Rolan hadn’t realized that. He frowned and asked, “What do you have in mind?”
“I was thinking that we could make one for you, one that was connected to your life force. Would that help?”
Rolan struggled to contain his excitement. “Probably, but we’ll never know. Only members of the Sisterhood can get a dragon’s flame pendant.”
Gerry traced the line of his chin. “I could make one for you. I know where the dragon’s flame lamp is hidden, I kno
w where the extra pendants are kept, and I know how to awaken the flame in the opal.”
“How do you know all this? I mean, do all of the sisters know these things?”
Gerry smirked. “No, most of them have absolutely no idea how it’s done, but I worked at Brena’s chapel for a while when I was younger. I helped her make them. I can do it easily enough, but you’d have to take me to Brena’s Chapel of Light in Ragenon.”
“I could do that with the key.”
“I know. Then we’ll sneak into the chapel, make the pendant, and we can sneak back out without anyone knowing we were there.”
Rolan shook his head. “I don’t think I should go inside, Gerry. If anyone were to see me …”
Gerry rested her head on his shoulder. “That’s all right. You can wait for me at the edge of the woods. It won’t take me long.”
“Would it be dangerous?”
“Only if I’m caught,” Gerry said as she looked up at him with a twinkle in her eye.
Rolan had trouble suppressing his eagerness. “When were you thinking of doing this?”
“I’d like to travel with you a couple more times before we go to the chapel. The few times I’ve gone through the energy field, I’ve gotten really sick. I want to get used to it before we go to Timera Valley. I was thinking if you could manage to get away around midnight for the next two Friday nights, we could practice. On the first Friday night, we could just practice traveling with the key, and then, if I’m handling that all right, the next Friday night we could check out the chapel. I thought we’d plan to get the pendant on the next Friday, if everything went well.”
“Why do you want to wait so long?” Now that Rolan saw a way out, he was more impatient than ever. “I can get here every night this week, and then we can go to Brena’s this Friday night.”
The Dragon's Flame (The Chronicles of Terah # 2) Page 10