Heir of Dragmoore- The Veiled Haven

by Jennifer Ann Schlag

  “I believe it would be improper for a lady to share a tent with a man that she is not engaged to or married to,” the Marksman says.

  “You know that my father had intended for us to marry. You could say we were practically engaged.”

  “But you aren’t now,” the Marksman adds.

  Talen goes into the other tent.

  “I’m sure that my father indicated that she and I were going to be married soon.”

  The Marksman warms himself a little more by the fire before grabbing a blanket and wrapping it around himself.

  “Don’t even think of coming into this tent,” Remy says as he closes over the flaps.

  Bessy laughs under her breath.

  The Marksman looks back at the tents. “What’s so funny?”

  “You. Don’t trust the prince?”

  “Keep your thoughts about that to yourself.”

  “You think the prince might get somewhere with her despite her abhorrence for him?”

  He lays back against the backpacks and nods off.

  Morning breaks and Dahila is up and about. She is engaged in swordplay with Remy. Bessy is sleeping. The Marksman is making breakfast. He has bread on a stick over the fire to warm it up and make it a little crisp. In an iron skillet he has eggs and sausage cooking. Talen comes out of her tent wrapped up in her cloak.

  “How did you keep the eggs from breaking?”

  “Magic,” the Marksman replies.

  Talen nods, giving him a knowing grin. Of course he’d know how to carry eggs on a horse without them breaking. He was experienced in all things. She grabs an apple from her backpack and nibbles on it. “Can you believe that he asked me to share the tent with him?”

  “He did consider marrying you at one point.”

  “Well we aren’t going to play husband and wife.”

  “My prince, come eat. You too, Dahila.”

  The two stop their playtime and walk over.

  “He is not bad.”

  “She’s being too kind.”

  “Yes. If you knew the real Prince Remy, you would not say such things,” Talen says.

  “Is it unrequited love?” Dahila asks.

  “For who?” Talen asks.

  “Between you and Remy.”

  Remy sucks in air and gags.

  “Absolutely not,” Talen says.

  “There is no love,” Remy says.

  “I’m going to find my dragon.” Talen starts off for the forest. She has taken a dagger with her.

  Seeing that she didn’t take the bow and quiver, the Marksman is sure she means to go on a killing spree. She isn’t going to be smart about her kills. “I suppose I better go with her.”

  “Let me,” Remy says.

  “She needs a friend. Sit this one out.”

  The Marksman finds Talen wandering around the forest with no sense of direction. Feeling like he’s failed her, all he can offer her is help, but she doesn’t want it. She is bent on doing this alone. He admires that about her. A strong independence like her father. He knows a thing or two about her mother, something she doesn’t know, and he’s been asked to keep it a secret forever. Now it seems pointless to keep it hidden, except that Talen is broken. Fracturing her more is cruel and unusual punishment.

  “Go back to Dragmoore. The city needs you more than I do.”

  “You don’t know where to look, which direction to go in. Brandies cover a lot of distance in a short amount of time. They could have taken the dragon anywhere.”

  She plops down on the ground. “It’s hopeless.”

  He sits down next to her, careful to keep some space between them since him being close to her before upset her. “The king ordered me to kill the dragon. He wants the Masters to come down from their haven because he is dying. The king needed to see you broken.”

  She looks up at him with primal rage burning through. “Broken for what purpose?”

  “He needed someone who could convince them to come to Dragmoore. Once he knew what you could do, it became obvious to him.”

  She slaps him across the face. Gets up. Stands before him with her hands reaching out, like she’s reaching to strangle him. And he’d welcome it. He has been a lousy friend to her, if he can call himself that.

  “He couldn’t ask me? He had to charge my father with murder first?”

  She stares into his dark eyes. He is staring into her pretty emerald eyes. Feels himself getting lost in them. He looks away for a second. When he goes back to looking, he sees her anguish fade.

  She doesn’t like that he is getting under her skin. How can he change her emotions with his beautiful and mysterious eyes? The way he is looking at her, she believes he may kiss her.

  He tries to look away from her again. But she is drawing him in. It’s more than falling into her eyes—it’s her. The lies and secrets that he is keeping, she is slowly chipping away at. He won’t be able to hold onto it much longer. His resolve will break. The way he is staring down at her, he almost thinks he may kiss her. He’d be lying right now if he said he never imagined kissing her.

  “I deserved that slap.”

  She lowers her head, ashamed of her behavior. “That dragon is my only friend.”

  “No, no. You have me.” He puts his hands around her shoulders.

  Remy watches them.

  “Why couldn’t you tell me this sooner?”

  “It’s done, Talen. He will be freed. The king has assured me of this.”

  “My father? He’s going to be free?”

  “Yes. But you have to continue onward to the Veiled Haven. There’s a lot at stake. Plus it will be a comfort to you.”

  “I know.” She throws her arms around him. “Thank you for freeing my father.”

  He moves his face inward, against her neck.

  Remy is ready to throw the Marksman to any creature who wants to eat him.

  “I didn’t free him.”

  She pulls away from him. She licks her lips. He opens his mouth. She leans in and kisses his cheek.

  Remy almost explodes. He feels a hand on his shoulder. Bessy shakes her head and tightens her grip on him. She doesn’t want to see them go at it over a woman. Especially one that may not like either of them. Remy walks away and goes back into the tent.

  Bessy continues watching. Much like how she often holds back tears whenever an animal is killed, because she knows it must be done, she is holding back tears once more. Her heart breaking from the love she feels for the Marksman. He can’t give her the love she wants.

  Looking at Talen, he is overcome with emotion. If she doesn’t move away from him soon, he won’t be responsible for his actions.

  “You played your part well. If what you say is true and my father will be released, I must appreciate your help now. However you want to give it. I am glad that you are here.” She moves away from him.

  “I am sorry that Bessy couldn’t free your father when she freed me.”

  “She is a sea druid?”

  “So am I.”

  Telling her too much can build trust, but at the same time it can build distance. He isn’t sure how far he can divulge his past to her. Saying what he truly is, is a big step for him. That’s not something he goes blabbering to anyone. Few people know of what he is and what he possesses. Of all those people, he wishes Talen was one of them.

  “What else do I not know about you, Desmond, the brave and unbeatable Marksman of Dragmoore?”

  “That’s all. Although, careful with saying my name. Keep it mostly the Marksman.”

  “You are from Welsa then?”

  “The two druid cities technically count as one seeing that only one person rules them. But we are from Welsa. The regular druids, the boring ones, are from Nalaren.”

  “Which one is considered the most beautiful place on earth?”

  “That would be Nalaren, although Welsa is very pretty in its own right. Some say it’s like paradise, but the people of Grecia would disagree. They believe their island is paradise. I was
actually born outside the city. Bessy left when she was around five.”

  “Did you grow up with her?”

  “Talen, she’s almost ten years older than me.”

  “Druids are immortal.”

  “They can achieve long youth through elemental magic. We aren’t immortal.”

  “Did you take that route?”

  “I chose to live as a normal human. I will age like you. Now, shall we go and get your dragon back?”

  She shrugs her shoulders. “I don’t see how.”

  She isn’t clueless to what druids can do. She knows that they can shape-shift.

  He walks over to Bessy. Exchanges a few heated words with her, then walks back over to Talen with Bessy.

  “Are you going to ask me to jump on your back?” Talen asks the Marksman.

  “What?”

  “You’re going to shift into something that can fly, right?”

  “Ah, you should know that I haven’t been successful with shifting. That’s why Bessy is going to do it.”

  “I haven’t done this in a long time.”

  “See, this is why we have to get to Deegus. He is the most powerful druid I know.”

  Bessy stands with her knuckles burying deep into her sides. “Oh, so you think I can’t do it?” She looks Talen over. “Hmm… I guess you don’t weigh that much.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “I gather Talen would be more comfortable riding on me than you, Desmond. A friend that keeps secrets doesn’t inspire affection.”

  “Bessy, just keep quiet on that.”

  Remy interrupts. “I’d like to hear more about it.”

  Bessy takes Talen’s hand into hers. “Don’t be alarmed by this. And so you know, you will not be able to control me.”

  “I don’t control animals.”

  Bessy stands back from everyone. She flaps her arms a few times.

  “How does a druid shift?” Talen whispers to the Marksman.

  “It takes a great amount of force from within. Some druids never master the shifting talent. Most stick with healing and other forms of magic. The druids of Nalaren have to teach the sea druids how to shift. You see, we are interested in other things. You don’t need to know about that right now.”

  She has spent too much time alone with him. She fears the wrong impression being made with Remy and the Marksman. Especially Remy. She isn’t blind to his jealousy. But for the life of her, she can’t understand why he is jealous. They aren’t betrothed.

  Bessy inhales and exhales loud and fast. A greenish-blue light glows inside her chest. It takes on its own heartbeat. Her skin starts to crack but no harm is being done to her. The light bursts out of her and engulfs her. The struggle gets real. She cries and screams. The screaming turns into a screeching. When the light fades around her, it reveals a beautiful white owl. Large enough for a human to ride on.

  Talen gasps. She has always wanted to be a Master, but right now, she wishes she was a druid. She steps up to the owl. It’s twice her size. “Bessy?”

  The owl hoots and flaps its wings.

  “She’s going to get irritable if she has to stay transformed. Better hurry.”

  “This is so amazing,” Remy says. “When will my turn come?”

  The Marksman grabs him by the back of his neck and tosses him into the tent.

  Before Talen can make a move, the owl gets under her and puts her on its back. It takes off with one huge flap.

  Talen has never felt the wind on her face like this before. She wonders what it will feel like when Kip is older and she can ride on his back. She isn’t sure what to hang onto so she gently wraps her arms around the owl’s neck.

  The owl lets out a hoot.

  The owl doesn’t take Talen far up. Just above the treetops. The way the air smells, the way the trees smell far above the ground. Everything is clearer, cleaner, more wild and free. The water looks like a giant mirror from up here. Their reflection gives Talen butterflies in her stomach. Not for the height, but for the exhilaration of seeing herself on an owl flying through the air.

  The owl cocks its head and turns downwards. “Have you caught the scent?”

  The owl descends and lands on top of a boulder. It shakes Talen off and then transforms back into Bessy.

  The transformation back to human is subtle compared to the transformation to animal. Still, Talen is impressed.

  “Have you got the scent, Bessy?”

  Bessy goes to the ground, places her hand on it. Vibrations are coming through. “He is underground.”

  “Bessy, that was the most amazing thing ever.”

  “I’d give anything to have your gift, Talen.”

  “No, I’d give anything to have yours.”

  “Unfortunately, you can’t be made into a druid.”

  “And unfortunately, you can’t be made into a Master. You are born with the ability to talk to animals, or you’re not.”

  “At such a disadvantage we are. We both want what the other has. With more than one thing.”

  Talen has an idea what she means. She wishes she could tell her that the Marksman means nothing to her. Somehow she feels Bessy wouldn’t believe her. She may not even believe herself. She has already caught herself tempted to kiss him.

  Bessy’s sense of smell isn’t as acute in human form as it is in animal form. She has no intention of transforming again until exit time happens. They look for openings that may get them underground.

  “I got a few scents before we landed. I can’t pinpoint the exact location where the dragon is. I don’t know if the multiple scents are here because they were planted to throw us off.”

  “You suspect someone of nefarious doings?”

  “Obviously. We are in the Wilderness.”

  Talen puts one hand on her hip and the other moves about in the air as if she is drawing a layout of a room. She points at imaginary things then pretends like she is erasing them.

  Bessy watches Talen making a spectacle of herself. “He can’t be that stupid.”

  “Who?”

  “The prince. There must be a brain in that head.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “What were you doing?”

  “Trying to imagine what our escape might look like.”

  “But you don’t even know…”

  “Ah-ha.” Talen puts her ear to a boulder. “I can hear animals calling out.”

  “The prince may be insane if he likes you that much.”

  The Marksman sits in between Remy and Dahila. She has been staring at him the whole time. The Marksman hasn’t noticed. Remy, on the other hand, has been observing the body language between them.

  “You clearly want to have sex with him.”

  “What?” she says.

  The Marksman barely twitches.

  “I know that look. You desire the Marksman.”

  “Is that the look you give Talen?”

  “I have seen the nobles stare at women. I know what that look means.

  “Jealous?” the Marksman asks.

  “No. Why would I be jealous?”

  The Marksman leans on his one arm to stare at Remy and be somewhat comfortable at the same time. He wants desperately to read his mind. He can’t, of course, but he wants to try anyway.

  “Why don’t you go into the Wilderness and get it over with?”

  “Honey, this whole place is the Wilderness,” Dahila says. She grabs the prince by the top of his tunic. “Would you like to be first?”

  Remy gulps hard.

  The Marksman lets out a laugh. “Don’t scare the little prince. He does not know the ways of lovemaking.”

  “A virgin prince. How old are you?”

  “Twenty-five. I didn’t even get a birthday celebration.”

  “Well, I think you deserve a present.”

  “Leave him be.”

  Dahila looks at the Marksman like he is kidding around. But there is no humor on his face.

  “I said release him.”


  Remy is astonished. Why is the Marksman looking out for him?

  She releases the prince but hesitates on leaving empty space between them. Remy straightens his clothes out then grabs the wineskin bottle to drink down all of the water.

  “You think he is saving himself for Talen?” she asks.

  Remy chokes on the water.

  “She will not have him.”

  “You think she is saving herself for you,” Remy croaks out.

  “You do well to keep your tongue silent or I shall take it from you. There is no law outside here to protect you.”

  “You just admitted what I suspected.” Remy gets up. “He’s in love with her.” Remy goes into his tent.

  Dahila sits down in front of the Marksman. “Is he right?”

  “I owe her a lot. It’s my fault that her father is in the dungeon.”

  “Is he right?”

  “No.” He does care about Talen. He has been friends with her father since he was a teenager, when he first became the Marksman. For whatever reason, he doesn’t want anyone knowing how he truly feels.

  The king of Dragmoore lurches over his bedpan. Blood comes out. His advisor stands before him. “We must find you a healer.”

  “No. No healer can help me. Stop pretending that this is an easy fix. I need my half of the heartfruit mended by a Master.”

  “You really think your son can bring one of them back? You know that Miss Dragniss is your only chance at getting one of them. You shouldn’t have made it Remy’s task of worth to kill her.”

  “You’re right. What have I done? Remy may do it. His desire to please me and earn my respect will overwhelm him. I have been foolish. So damn foolish.” He lays down on his bed. “Am I going mad, like my brother?”

  “We must get word to your son and tell him of your changed mind. We must make it official so that you can’t go back on it.”

  “I can’t trust anyone to deliver the message.”

  “There is one that you can trust. Someone that she will believe.”

  The king’s eyes light up.

  The king comes down into the dungeon. “Gavin?”

  Gavin comes to the front of his cell. “My king.”

  “I am going to release you. I have been a foolish king.”