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

by Morgan, Mackenzie

  “Could we talk for a few minutes?” King Merdin asked softly. “I have a favor to ask of you.”

  “Certainly,” Pharn said. “Would you honor me by accompanying me to my home?”

  “It would be our privilege,” King Merdin answered.

  Pharn led them to a small bush and held it back so that they could step through a hole in the rock behind it. The hole was the entrance to a good-sized cave. The front room of the cave had a fire circle, several mats, and a large pillow. A yellow Alysian cat was lying on the pillow, but when Dani entered the cave, the yellow cat stood up, offered the pillow to Dani, and moved to the other side of the cave. Dani settle on the pillow as Pharn, King Merdin, and Jaron sat down on mats near the fire circle.

  “Would you care for some refreshments?” Pharn asked.

  “Maybe later,” King Merdin answered. “First I would like to explain why we’re here.”

  Pharn nodded.

  “Several months ago, my son was accidentally shot by a young human while he was in the woods. A Sister of Healing found him the next day, unconscious and close to death. She nursed him back to health.”

  Pharn smiled. “We owe her a lot.”

  King Merdin nodded. “About six weeks ago, the Sister of Healing who lived in Glenco vanished. The head of the Sisterhood asked our friend to come down here and see if she could find out what had happened.”

  “And you want our help,” Pharn said quietly.

  King Merdin nodded. “We don’t know much about the woman who’s missing, but we do know that she met a friend once a month at a cave in the forest.”

  “Where?”

  King Merdin picked up a piece of rock and drew a rough map in the dirt floor. He marked the road leading into Glenco, the path that led along the foot of the mountain, the cave, and the tunnel entrance. “I’m afraid that’s the best I can do. Do you know of that cave?”

  “If it’s the cave I’m thinking of, I’ve heard something about it being an evil place,” Pharn said with a frown.

  “Evil?”

  “Something happened there. I don’t know what, and I’m not sure where the rumor started, but it’s been whispered among the gnomes that it’s a place of death.”

  “I really need to talk to anyone who has any information about that cave or the people who met there,” King Merdin insisted.

  Pharn nodded. “I’ll see what I can do, but it’ll probably take me a couple of days to track down the rumor.”

  “Thank you. Would it be all right for me to come back Wednesday morning to see what you’ve been able to find out?”

  “That’ll be fine,” Pharn said. “Now, may I invite you to dinner?”

  “Thank you, but no,” King Merdin said. Disappointment was written all over Pharn’s face, so King Merdin added, “We really have to get back. But if we could trouble you for some tea? And maybe a little cream for Dani before we go?”

  Pharn smiled and stood up to go get some refreshments for his guests.

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  Wednesday morning, King Merdin used his key to take himself and Jaron directly to Pharn’s clearing. Pharn was waiting for them with an older gnome who looked like he wanted to be anywhere but where he was.

  After Pharn greeted his guests, he introduced the other gnome. “King Merdin, may I present Espen. He belongs to a clan that lives near the top of the mountain. I think you may find what he has to say interesting.”

  “Espen, I appreciate the trouble you’ve taken to meet with us this morning,” King Merdin said as he shook hands with Espen. “I hope it hasn’t inconvenienced you too much.”

  Espen mumbled something under his breath that King Merdin didn’t catch. He looked like he was ready to bolt.

  “Now, what can you tell us about the cave at the foot of your mountain?” King Merdin asked.

  Espen cleared his throat and said, “It’s an evil place, sir. An evil place. Bad things happened there.”

  “Can you tell me what happened?”

  Espen nodded, but he didn’t say anything.

  “Did you see this bad thing?”

  Again, Espen nodded.

  King Merdin looked around at the small crowd that was gathering around them. “Would you feel more comfortable talking about this in private?”

  Espen nodded once more.

  King Merdin put his arm around the older gnome’s shoulders and led him to Pharn’s cave. After Espen and Pharn were seated on the floor near the fire circle, King Merdin and Jaron sat down opposite them. “It’s just the four of us now. Can you tell me what you saw?”

  Espen’s eyes darted back and forth around the cave. When he was sure no one else was in the room, he whispered, “A man and a woman were meeting there. Every month. For a couple of years.”

  “Did you see them?” King Merdin asked.

  Espen nodded.

  King Merdin nodded with him and then asked, “On Sundays?”

  “Third Sunday, but not every month, most months, until May.”

  “What happened in May?”

  “They met every Friday night.”

  “Every week?”

  Espen nodded. “I heard them talking about it, so I checked to see if they did. They met there on Friday nights, but they didn’t stay there.”

  “What do you mean? Where did they go?”

  Espen shrugged. “They just left.”

  “Did they walk away?”

  Espen shook his head no. “They just vanished. Poof. Gone. An evil place.”

  King Merdin nodded. “I see. Did you ever see the man?”

  Espen nodded.

  “Which direction did he come from when he came to the cave?”

  “Direction?”

  “Did he come from the direction of the village? Or from the other side of the mountain? From one of the farms?” King Merdin prompted.

  Espen shook his head again. “He wasn’t there, and then he was. Just like a gnome.”

  “Like a gnome?”

  “Sort of. I thought maybe his clothes were Alysian cat fur, but I sneaked in and felt his cape one time. They weren’t.”

  “Did the light sort of shimmer a little before he appeared?”

  Espen nodded enthusiastically. “Yes, it did. How did you know that?”

  “I think I know how he did it. Don’t worry. Our secret’s safe.”

  “Good,” Espen said with a sigh. “I was worried about that.”

  “Now, what happened to make you say that the place was evil?”

  “He killed her,” Espen whispered, looking at the floor.

  “The man killed the woman he had been meeting?” King Merdin asked.

  Espen barely moved his head as he nodded, and when he spoke, his voice was so low that King Merdin had to strain to hear him. “In a sorcerer’s blast. He must have been a sorcerer, but he didn’t look like one. He never wore a sorcerer’s pendant.”

  “Are you sure he killed her? She was a sister,” King Merdin said gently. “She was supposed to be wearing a dragon’s flame pendant. That should have protected her.”

  Espen slowly shook his head. “He killed her. Her pendant didn’t do any good. He had one, too.”

  King Merdin frowned. “Are you sure?”

  Espen nodded a little more energetically. “It was just like hers.”

  “Had you ever seen him wear one before that night?”

  Espen shook his head no. “He didn’t have one when he got there that night. Then they left, just like they had the other Friday nights. I didn’t see them come back, but they must have because they walked out of the cave later. He had one around his neck then. That’s when he killed her.”

  King Merdin nodded and sat quietly waiting for Espen to finish. When Espen didn’t say anything else, King Merdin asked, “What happened next?”

  Espen looked down at the floor for a minute. Then he looked straight into King Merdin’s eyes and said, “He picked her pendant up out of her ashes, smiled, and vanished. He was an evil man! He had just killed his fri
end and he was smiling!”

  King Merdin nodded. “I think you’re right, Espen. He was an evil man. I’d like for you to tell all of this to a friend of mine. Would you be willing to come back to Farowood with me?”

  Espen shook his head violently. “No! I don’t want to leave my mountain.”

  “I don’t mean for good. Just for a couple of hours. I’ll bring you right back after you tell my friends what happened.”

  Espen was still shaking his head and his eyes looked panicked. “No. My family’s here. I don’t want to go.”

  “All right. How about this? If I bring my friends to the cave, would you be willing to meet with them there and tell them what happened?”

  “These friends, are they humans?”

  “Yes.”

  “I don’t like humans.” Espen’s voice was edged with tension. “They do evil things, just like the man.”

  “Not these two. They’re friends of mine. They’re good people. One of them saved my son’s life. They won’t hurt you or anyone else.” Espen appeared to be weakening, so King Merdin added, “And I’ll be there, too. Nothing will happen. I promise.”

  Espen thought it over for a minute. “Can Pharn go with me?”

  “Of course.”

  Espen slowly nodded. “All right. I’ll do it.”

  “Good! Can you be there tomorrow afternoon? It might be late afternoon before I can get there. It’ll take me a little while to make the arrangements.”

  Espen nodded. “If you aren’t there, we’ll wait.”

  “Thank you,” King Merdin said as he put his hand on the older gnome’s shoulder. “You’re doing the right thing, Espen. Your family can be proud of your courage.”

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  Thursday morning Theresa left her campsite shortly after daybreak. She wanted to be at the old campsite by mid-morning, just in case King Merdin was early. She had only been waiting about an hour when he appeared.

  “Did you have any luck?” Theresa asked.

  King Merdin smiled and said, “Actually, I did. I have to admit I didn’t expect to, but we got lucky.” Then he told her what Espen had told him. “I’m a little confused about the pendant part. I didn’t think anyone but sisters had dragon’s flame pendants. Is there more to this than you’ve told me?”

  Theresa nodded. “On the same night that Sister Gerry vanished, Brena was attacked in Timera Valley. Someone broke into the chapel and stole the dragon’s flame lamp and one of the extra pendants.”

  “Looks like we’ve found your thieves. Did you know the sister from Glenco was involved in the theft?”

  Theresa hesitated a moment before answering. “No. I had a bad feeling about it, but there was nothing to base it on. Do you know what I mean?”

  King Merdin nodded. “Looks like your instincts were right on target. Do Myron and Glendymere know about the break-in?”

  Theresa nodded.

  “Good. Espen has agreed to meet with you and Myron this afternoon and tell his story to the two of you. From what he said, the man had a key, so it must have been one of the seated sorcerers. If Espen can describe him, maybe Myron’ll know who it is. I guess our next step is to find Myron.”

  Theresa nodded again. “He should be at the castle.”

  “Let’s hope he is. Take my hand. I’ll take you to the meadow behind the castle.” King Merdin held his hand out to Theresa. “You find Myron and I’ll meet the two of you back in the meadow in an hour.”

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  When Theresa reached Kevin’s office, she figured she had about forty-five minutes before she and Kevin had to meet King Merdin. She knocked on the office door and waited for Ariel to open it. “Is Myron in, Ariel? I really need to speak with him. It’s rather urgent.”

  “He and Chris are meeting with Laryn about something right now. They shouldn’t be too much longer.”

  “I’m sorry, Ariel, but I need to see him now.”

  Ariel slowly shook his head. “I’m sorry, Sister Theresa, but Myron told me that they were not to be disturbed.”

  “Fine. I understand.” Theresa walked across the reception area as if she were going to Chris’s desk. “I’ll just leave a message.”

  Ariel relaxed and turned to go back to what he was doing. Theresa veered off at the last moment, darted over to Kevin’s door, rapped twice, opened it, and stepped inside.

  “Kevin, you really need to tell your pages that when one of us says ‘urgent’, we mean now,” Theresa said in a rush as she shut the door behind her. “We have to talk.” She walked over to the chairs in front of Kevin’s desk and sat down. “Hi, Chris, Laryn. Sorry to barge in here like that, but I don’t have time to cool my heels in the reception area.”

  Kevin’s mouth dropped open, and after a moment, he started laughing, as did Chris and Laryn. “I hope your opal didn’t burn any of my pages,” Kevin finally managed to say.

  Theresa shook her head. “But I imagine Ariel’s feeling a bit irritated with me right now, and probably a little afraid you’re going to blame him. Why don’t you stick your head out the door and tell him it’s all right.”

  Kevin stood up, walked around his desk and opened his door. “Ariel, I should have warned you that if Sister Theresa came in she was to have immediate access. I didn’t expect her back so soon or I would have.”

  “Very well, sir,” Ariel said stiffly. Then he turned back to his work.

  Kevin quietly shut his office door. “I think we made him mad.”

  “He’ll get over it,” Laryn said. “Theresa, would you like for me to leave? Or can I hear this, too?”

  “Please stay. I want all of you to hear what I have to say, but I have to be quick. Kevin and I have to be out in the meadow in half an hour to meet King Merdin.”

  “King Merdin?” Kevin asked.

  Theresa nodded. “The real reason I headed out into the woods was to meet with him. I wanted to ask him if there are any gnomes living near Glenco. I thought maybe one of them might have seen something that would explain what happened to Gerry. He and Jaron went to the valley and talked to several of the local gnomes, and they found someone who did see something.”

  “What did he see?” Chris asked.

  “First, there’s something I haven’t told you,” Theresa said. “While we were living in Glenco, we found a cave where Gerry was apparently meeting someone, probably a lover.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?” Kevin asked quietly.

  “It was her secret, not mine. I’ve been wrestling with it ever since I got back. As a sister, I’m pledged to protect the other sisters, as long as what they’re doing doesn’t harm others. I had to be sure before I told you.”

  Laryn nodded. “And now you’re sure?”

  Theresa nodded. “The man Gerry was meeting was a seated sorcerer.”

  For a moment, no one spoke. Then Chris whistled a long, low sigh. “Are you sure?”

  “From what the gnome who talked to King Merdin said, yes.”

  “What else did he say?” Kevin asked.

  “The last time he saw them was on a Friday night. The man killed Gerry with a sorcerer’s blast.”

  “Why didn’t her pendant protect her?” Laryn asked.

  “Because he was wearing one, too,” Chris said as he looked at Theresa to see if he was right.

  Theresa nodded. “We found our thieves.”

  “What about the lamp?” Kevin asked.

  “I don’t know. I hadn’t told King Merdin about the break-in at the chapel in Timera Valley, so he didn’t ask about the lamp, but when we talk to the gnome from Glenco, we can,” Theresa said as she stood up. “Now, I hate to rush you, but if we’re going to go with King Merdin to meet this gnome, we have to get out to the meadow.”

  Kevin stood up. “Is this gnome going to be willing to talk to us?”

  “I don’t know how willing he’ll be, but he told King Merdin he’d be at the cave this afternoon and that he’d tell us what he had told King Merdin.”

  “All right. Chris,
I don’t know how long I’ll be gone. Is there anything we need to cancel?”

  “Nothing I can’t handle. Go on.”

  “Good luck,” Laryn said. “I can’t wait to hear what you find out.”

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  Kevin and Theresa reached the edge of the meadow a few minutes before King Merdin. While they were waiting, Kevin said, “You do realize that this means there’s a good chance that Sister Gerry was responsible for the poison that killed my father, don’t you?”

  Theresa nodded. “I didn’t tell King Merdin anything about that though.”

  “Good. I’m not sure how I’m going to handle that yet, so for now, I don’t want anyone else to know.”

  “Have you told Laryn anything about the mushrooms yet?”

  Kevin shook his head. “I was waiting for some kind of proof that they were connected.”

  Before they could talk about it any more, there was a slight shimmer of light and King Merdin stepped out of the energy field. “Are you two ready to go?”

  Kevin nodded. He and Theresa put their hands on King Merdin’s shoulders, and in a couple of minutes, they were standing on the path at the foot of the mountain near Glenco.

  “Espen is a bit nervous,” King Merdin said. “I’m not sure how he would react if he saw us arrive. He’s used to gnomes suddenly appearing, but not out of a shimmering light. He thinks that the shimmer is connected with the man he saw, and that it’s evil. I’m afraid we’re going to have to walk the last half mile or so.”

  “No problem,” Kevin said. “Which way do we go?”

  King Merdin pointed towards the left and the three of them began walking in silence. About fifteen minutes later, they reached the cave. No one was in sight, so they settled down on the ground outside to wait. After a couple of minutes, two gnomes stepped out of the cave.

  King Merdin stood up, looked at Espen, and said, “These are my friends, Myron and Theresa. They’re good people, Espen. You don’t have to worry about them.” Then he turned towards Kevin. “Myron, this is Espen. And this is Pharn, chief of the mountain gnomes. Espen has something he’d like to tell you.”

  Espen was cowering behind Pharn. After a moment, Pharn stepped to the side a little so that Espen was standing out in the open. When Espen tried to sidle over and hide behind Pharn again, Pharn stopped him and said, “Espen, tell the sister what happened. See? She has a pendant, too. She needs to know what happened to the other sister.”