Cora and the Nurse Dragon

by H. L. Burke

Cora untied Abry, then Parker, and finally Xavian. She then examined their prison. The walls went up to just past their heads, above which were iron bars, meant to keep the dragons from flying out. Hay covered the floor. She kicked at it. Wooden boards underneath, so no digging out.

  Parker stood up, his eyes red. “I feel like I got you into this whole mess, and I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have … Mitzi was so excited about her dragon, and she wouldn’t listen to me. She told dad about going to your greenhouse and seeing the shiny dragon hatch. Dad’s been having money troubles.”

  Cora nodded. That was why he was asking Mr. Algernon for money.

  “I guess he’s been … he was … betting on his own races. He’s not supposed to, but he said it was sure money. When Mr. Algernon wouldn’t give him a raise, he came home and asked Mitzi all these questions about the dragons, and I just knew he was going to do something bad, something stupid bad.”

  “So you came to warn us?” Abry whispered.

  “Yeah, but not fast enough. And now my dad is … is ...” He choked.

  “It’s not your fault,” Cora said. “We still could get out of this.”

  Maybe someone will get my message, but will they know what it means? Or how to help us?

  It was silent in the warehouse, and hot. The afternoon sun filtered through the high, dusty windows. Specks floated gracefully in the beams, but they didn’t hear anything from Baxter.

  “Do you think he left?” Abry jumped, trying to see over the walls.

  “Maybe. I didn’t hear the car leave, though.” Cora came to stand beside her.

  “You’re smaller than me. Let’s see if you can get up on my shoulders.” Abry crouched. Cora got on her shoulders, and Abry stood. The girls wobbled.

  “Whoa!” Cora put her hands out and caught the wall. Parker ran over and braced them both. Cora stared out through the bars. She could see the cage with the dragons, still in the middle of the floor, and a dark puddle that made her gag. Gripping the bars, she searched for Baxter. “I think it’s clear. Maybe he went out to hide the …” She stopped herself before she said body. She pulled at the bars. They were too close together to slip through here, but on the side dividing her from Gold Digger’s stall, one was missing. The opening would be too narrow for a dragon to get through, but maybe a girl … “Move me over that way!” she pointed.

  Abry obeyed. Cora grasped the bars on either side of the gap and pulled herself up. She wobbled for a moment at the top of the wall, then tumbled face first, into the straw on the other side.

  Gold Digger bounced into the air. He hovered a few feet over her head, his tail thrashing against the wall, and his snake-like body undulating. Cora ducked a tail-swipe and rolled into a corner.

  “Cora?” Abry called out.

  “I’m okay!” Cora hissed, hoping it would carry. Gold Digger flinched towards the sound and whirled to face her. His eyes flashed. His nostrils flared, and his hot breath reddened her cheeks. She froze. The racer’s head was as long as her torso, his eyes like Scraggles’s, except so much bigger and brighter. He made a low, clicking noise in his throat. Reaching out, she laid her hand on his snout. His eyes never left hers. “I won’t hurt you, boy. I want to get out of here.”

  “Is there a way out?” Xavian asked.

  “Just a second!” She flattened herself against the wall and squeezed past the dragon, keeping her hand on his side so he was aware of her. If I startle him again, he might break every bone in my body before he calms down. She reached the door and rattled it. It was firmly shut. Putting her back to it, she pushed as hard as she could. Nothing. The dragon was as much a prisoner as the kids were. She sank to the floor and tried to think.

  A door creaked open, and footsteps echoed through the silence.

  “You’re in luck, boy,” Baxter’s voice said in a mocking tone. “I managed to get a call in to your dad, and he’s eager to get you back. I could’ve asked for half his estate, I think, but I need to be able to carry it across state lines.” He laughed. “Let’s get you ready for a ransom drop.” The latch to the other door rasped open. Cora’s heart pounded. “You untied yourselves? How? Hey … where’s the other girl?”

  Cora’s mind flailed. She sprang up and grasped Gold Digger around the neck. I have to get out. I have to get away.

  “Where is she?” Baxter grew louder. “I will shoot one of you.”

  “I’m here! In the next stall.” Cora’s voice squeaked out of her. The other door slammed. She winced. I can do this. I can do this. It’s my only chance.

  She threw a leg up over Gold Digger. The dragon twisted beneath her, and she almost slipped off, but she grabbed his horns, gripped with her knees, and held her breath. The door to the stall flew open. “Go!” she shouted.

  Gold Digger exploded from the stall.

  Baxter hit the ground with an “oomph.” The ceiling spiraled towards Cora. The dragon twisted and bucked. Her legs slipped, and she hung from his horns. A few kicks and she managed one leg over, then the other, but she still had no idea how to steer. The dragon dropped downward. His body snaked like a ribbon in the breeze, fluid and graceful. The wind whipped her face. Get to a door … or a window … get outside!

  The dragon’s thoughts seemed to mirror Cora’s as he crashed into one too small window after another, shattering the glass but turning away when he couldn’t even fit his head through. A gunshot rang out. Gold Digger roared and twitched but kept flying.

  Cora got her bearings. She glanced down. Baxter leveled his revolver towards her.

  “Gold Digger! Dive!” She threw her weight forward, against the dragon’s head. He tilted and barreled towards the floor. The bullet whizzed overhead.

  Gold Digger didn’t stop. He plowed into Baxter, knocking the man back into the wall. The gangster gave a moan then lay still. Gold Digger, however, continued his panicked flight. He bounced against walls and crashed into windows. Cora’s insides felt bruised and battered. She gasped for air, longing to let go but fearing the drop.

  Light flooded the warehouse, and Gold Digger charged the source only to have the door slam shut in his face. He skidded to a halt.

  Cora rolled off his back and lay, sucking air.

  “Cor!” Strong arms encircled her.

  “Daddy?” she whispered. A fluttering touch and warm breath tickled her cheek, and she opened her eyes. Cricket nuzzled her. She sat up and stared.

  Mr. Algernon and another man, a brawny fellow with a hunting rifle at ready, rushed past her. Mr. Algernon somehow managed to pacify Gold Digger, making calming sounds and rubbing the animal’s head.

  “How did you find us?” she asked.

  “I saw the mess in the greenhouse and your note on the floor, and ran to the main house. When Mr. Algernon told me about Xavian being missing, we began to piece it together.” Dad helped her stand. “When we got down to the warehouse district, though, it was like Cricket was a bloodhound. He led us right to you.”

  Mr. Algernon opened the stall, and Xavian rushed into his arms. The two hugged. Parker slouched out, followed by Abry, who shot Cora’s dad a weak smile. “I knew you would find us. Do my parents know what happened?”

  “I’m not sure. We came straight here,” Dad said. “They might not have had time to realize you’re missing yet.”

  “My dad?” Parker's voice came out raspy.

  Mr. Algernon dropped his eyes. “He was in the back of the car outside, Parker. He … I'm sorry.”

  “I kinda knew already,” Parker whispered. “Where am I going to go?”

  “You’re coming home with me.” Abry squeezed his shoulder. “I’ll explain to Mom and Dad. We can look after you until your aunt gets here.”

  The man with the rifle bent over Baxter. “He’s unconscious but alive, sir. What do you want me to do?”

  Mr. Algernon separated himself from his son. “We have him on attempting to steal Gold Digger. I want to keep Jeff and his daughter out of this … and my own name as well, if at all possible. Just say you caught him br
eaking into the warehouse with a body in his car. Anything else and it will be his word against yours, and I'm guessing his word isn't worth much. Wait to call in the authorities until we’ve dealt with things.” He nodded towards the bird cage on the floor. The drake and the queen rested inside, seemingly oblivious to the chaos around them.

  “I’ll take care of him, sir.” The man dragged Baxter out the door. A few minute later he returned.

  “After you’ve dropped the criminal off at the police station, see that the children are taken home,” Mr. Algernon said. “I have some things to take care of.”

  Cora’s stomach fluttered. “I don’t want to leave! What … what’s going to happen to the dragons?”

  Mr. Algernon and Dad exchanged a glance.

  “I’ll see to it that they are all right, as we spoke of, but you really should go home …” Mr. Algernon began.

  “I don’t want to leave them! I need to see this through. I can’t go home!” Cora’s breath came out ragged. She stepped closer to the cage. “Please, Mr. Algernon, this is just something I have to do.”

  “It wouldn’t hurt to bring her,” Dad said.

  Mr. Algernon raised his eyebrows. “You too, Jeff?”

  Dad shrugged. “She started this. She should finish it. Perhaps Abry too …”

  Abry shook her head. “I’d like to, but … Parker’s been through a lot, and I don’t think he should be alone. This is really Cora’s mission, so to speak.”

  Cora glanced at her friend. “Are you sure?”

  Abry nodded. “Yes. I mean, I love Cricket and the little dragons, but they’re your dragons, Cor. They always have been. You’re the one who should set them free.”

  Xavian stepped forward. “Can I come too, Dad?”

  A faint smile played across Mr. Algernon’s lips. “Of course, son. Come on. We’d better get going before the police get here. I don’t think we want to answer too many questions.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Freedom

  Mr. Algernon’s long black town car waited outside. He opened the back door and motioned for Xavian and Cora to get in. He then cracked his knuckles. “I haven’t driven myself anywhere in years.”

  Dad came forward, carrying the birdcage. He got into the passenger side of the front seat. “I’d offer to drive you, but I never learned.”

  “No, I’m looking forward to it. It’s nice to do things for myself for a change. Everyone get comfortable. We have a long drive ahead of us.”

  The city rolled past, quickly followed by rolling green hills and farmlands. Cricket curled up in Cora’s lap, and her eyelids grew heavy. The motion of the car plus the fading excitement of recent events lulled her to sleep.

  She jerked awake to the sound of car doors slamming. The sky was dark, and tall trees loomed in every direction. Dad opened the door and smiled down at her.

  Cora rubbed her eyes. “Is this where we let the queen go?”

  “Not here, and not now. All that can wait 'til tomorrow. Let’s get you inside.” He slipped his arms around her and carried her through the dark into a dimly-lit cabin, not much bigger than their cottage. Mr. Algernon knelt by the fireplace, and Xavian rested on a cot with a blanket pulled up to his chin. Cricket fluttered along with them and nested on the pillow when Cora settled onto her own cot. Her eyelids dropped shut.

  When she awoke the next morning, Dad and Mr. Algernon sat across the table from each other, eating peaches out of tin cans. She blinked several times. Were rich people allowed to eat out of cans?

  She stood up. “Where are the dragons?”

  Mr. Algernon pointed to a door. “I put them in the back room. They were making a lot of noise.”

  “Sick of being in that cage, I suppose.” Dad pushed aside his can. “Can’t say I blame them.”

  Xavian moaned and rolled off his cot.

  “Hungry?” Mr. Algernon asked. “It’s been awhile since we’ve had breakfast together.”

  Xavian smiled. “Yes, sir.”

  Cricket flew over and stuck his head in one of the cans. He guzzled the syrup, his wings fluttering like a humming bird’s.

  “It’s hard to believe such a tiny dragon caused such a ruckus.” Mr. Algernon stroked Cricket’s neck.

  “Small things often have big impact.” Dad smiled, his eyes catching Cora’s. A warmth stole over her. It was good to know he was proud of her.

  “Yes …” Mr. Algernon cleared his throat. “Well, I have a lot to make up for. I can’t help but think that if I’d given Malloy the advance he wanted, none of this would’ve happened and he’d still be alive.”

  “You had no way of knowing how desperate he was. Besides, if he was involved with folks like Baxter, he was digging his own grave.” Dad’s brows furrowed.

  “Hopefully we can keep the Dragon Regulatory Agency from asking too many questions. Malloy and Baxter kidnapped my son, had a falling out, and Baxter killed Malloy. Case solved. Baxter will have no proof about the queen, and bringing it up would be admitting guilt.”

  “What are we going to do with the queen dragon, though?” Xavian asked.

  “We’re going to make things right, and hopefully give this world a fresh start.” Mr. Algernon touched his son’s hand. “And I’m going to make things right with you, too. I promise.”

  Cora could barely swallow her peaches. Something chewed at the back of her mind, eating away at what her brain told her should be a happy moment. She pulled Cricket away from his peach-syrup feast and held him against her chest.

  After their meal, Mr. Algernon dug out hiking supplies: a backpack, compass, and a map, canteens he filled at the pump behind the cabin and even hiking boots for himself and his son. “Sorry I don’t have gear for you two. It’s only about an hour’s hike, though.”

  “We’ll be fine. I walk farther than that mowing the lawn every week.” Dad laughed.

  Dad carried the cage as they started out. The dragons flew at the bars over and over again, squawking and hissing. Cricket fluttered along with them, sometimes flying up into trees or zipping in circles around the group, but always coming back to rest on Cora’s shoulder. The sky was blue overhead, and the sun-baked needles of the pine trees made the woods smell like Christmas. They walked uphill along a rocky path. A herd of elk grazed in a meadow. They looked up when the humans passed but didn’t flee.

  “Do you have a specific place in mind?” Dad asked after a bit.

  “Yes, and we’re almost there,” Mr. Algernon answered. Xavian walked at his side in silence, occasionally beaming at his dad.

  They crested the hill and stopped to breathe. A valley stretched out below them, filled with patches of great green trees and rocky mazes of canyons. A river poured through the center. The churning white water gave a roar Cora could hear miles away.

  “This land belongs to my family.” Mr. Algernon made a sweeping motion across the horizon. “Everything from the canyon to the state line. No one should bother them out here.”

  Dad set the cage on the ground and opened the door. The queen and the drake shot out. They circled the group, wings flashing in the sun, then darted off down the slope.

  Cricket trilled, shooting after them, and Cora’s heart sank. The dragon got about twenty feet away, then stopped, hovering in mid air. He cooed.

  Dad placed his hand on her shoulder. “You don’t have to let him go. I know Cricket. You can probably coax him back easily enough. Look, I don’t even think he wants to leave you.”

  The dragon fluttered back and alighted on her shoulder. He nuzzled her face.

  “But will the colony be able to survive without a nurse dragon? If the queen and drake can only make mayflies … they won’t have strikers and steamers to do the hunting or racers to protect the lair … they’ll never be able to come back. Yes, the queen will be free, but she’ll never have a colony and dragons won’t really be …” Her voice cracked.

  Cricket chirped.

  “Maybe you can get another dragon,” Xavian suggested.

 
; “And maybe you can go jump off a cliff!” Cora snapped.

  Xavian quailed back. She half expected one of the men to chastise her for the outburst, but both Dad and Mr. Algernon just gazed at her with solemn expressions.

  Cora drew several deep breaths. “Can … Can I be alone with him for a minute?”

  “Of course.” Dad nodded.

  They strode away, and Cora knelt on the ground. She put Cricket down, and he rolled in a patch of grass, his tail twitching. “You want me to come with you, but I can’t. Dragons can’t take care of people, but they do need you, and you’ll be happier here. You wouldn’t be able to take care of eggs at my house without getting us both in trouble. You’d end up in a cage, and I’d do anything to keep that from happening. Even …” She swallowed, trying to dislodge the prickles from her throat. “Even say good-bye.”

  The queen dragon gave a shrill cry, and Cricket’s tail stiffened. His body shook from nose to tail tip. The queen and the drake spiraled higher and higher until they were just flashes against the blue field of sky. Cricket hovered next to Cora’s ear, gave a warm puff of breath against her face, and soared after them.

  Cora’s heart cracked. She stumbled to her feet and ran down the mountain, past her father and the others, into the trees. By the time she stopped, she was out of breath. Sweat and tears mingled in her eyes, blinding her, and she sank against a tree and sobbed.

  Footsteps tramped towards her, and her dad pulled her against his chest. “I’m so proud of you, Cor. So very, very proud.”

  She gripped her shirt, her whole body shaking. “Do you … think he’ll be happy?” she managed to get out.

  “He’s going to have all the eggs he could ever want, young dragons to play with, an entire forest to explore. He’s going to be the happiest nurse dragon in a hundred years.” Dad stroked her hair.

  Cora pulled away and wiped her eyes and nose with her sleeve. “He’s the only nurse dragon in a hundred years. Well, maybe not that long … but close.”

  “Close enough.” Dad smiled but tears glistened in the corners of his eyes.

  She managed to get her breathing back under control. “I don’t really want another dragon.”