Chapter 9
1989 Words
9
We reached the house and went in for breakfast. A plate of fried fish and a stack of soft, fluffy biscuits waited for us on the small but comfortable dining table. The food was soon consumed and the three dragon men rose from their seats.
I stood as well, but Xander gestured to Stephanie. “Perhaps you would like to show your friend the beach and the docks. We will join you shortly.”
I arched an eyebrow. “More secrets?”
My dragon lord smiled. “Merely a matter of business. We would rather not bore you with affairs of state.”
Stephanie curled her arms around one of mine and pulled me toward the hall. “I would very much like to see the beach.”
I pursed my lips, but allowed her to lead me down the hall to the patio. The men followed us halfway down the passage, but turned into a room on the right.
I stepped onto the patio and sighed. “I still wish I knew what they were talking about. . .”
Stephanie smiled and tugged on my arm. “Cayden wouldn’t have let us in the room, but I have another idea. This way.”
“What are you-hey!”
She pulled me down the stairs and around to the right side of the house where we stopped. A line of windows sat ten feet above the sand and grass. The wall below the windows was hidden beneath a couple of stacks of barrels and lobster traps.
I looked to Stephanie and grinned. “I like the way you think.”
She blushed and turned her face away. “It’s nothing, really.”
I changed our roles and took her hand to tug her to the base of the mess. One of the piles climbed up to a window of the room our dragon boys were in. I grabbed a barrel and shook it. The whole structure shifted a little. I cringed and looked to Stephanie. “Let’s go up one at a time. I’ll go first.”
Stephanie shrank back and pressed one hand against her stomach. “I’m not so sure about that.”
“It’s easy. Let me show you.” I eased myself on top of the barrel. The mess shook a little, but held together as I climbed the ten feet to the window. The faint sound of voices floated down to me. I peeked my head over the sill and looked inside. Xander, Cayden and Spiros stood together in deep conversation.
I glanced down and gestured to her. “Come on! They’re already talking!”
Stephanie reluctantly followed me up and together, perched precariously atop the junk, we listened to their conversation.
Cayden pursed his lips. “I am concerned about the consequences of Lord Herod’s death, and have received letters from others in the same vein. What shall be done with his lands?”
Xander pursed his lips. “Unfortunately, that is no easy answer to give to you for I have no answer for myself.”
“Can they not be divided among us as was done after the Red Dragon’s betrayal?” Cayden wondered.
Xander shook his head. “This matter will not be so simple to settle. Herod’s lands are larger and not as well-positioned to disperse among the remaining dragon lords. We may be better rewarded if we allowed the people to choose their new lord.”
“But if the people chose unwisely?” Spiros argued.
“We cannot help their choice, we can only contain any trouble if it were to arise,” Xander countered. He cupped his chin in one hand and furrowed his brow. “What concerns me more is who plotted his demise, and for what purpose.”
The young dragon lord started back. “Was it not the human servant who orchestrated the assassination?”
Xander dropped his hand and shook his head. “No, at least not entirely. Herod’s Maiden mentioned another whom she referred to as ‘Crimson.’” His eyes flickered between them. “The name refers to our enemy, but how they can have such influence so far from their island of exile I do not know.”
Cayden pursed his lips and nodded. “Yes. The Bestia Draconis are not content to raid the other islands. The honor-less cowards have no fear of attacking the northwestern realm when its lord is at a Choosing, nor even the Portal in their old lands.” He turned his full attention to Xander. “Did you ever learn how they attacked your southern holdings so quickly and without warning?”
“No, nor can my men find where they went after they destroyed the villages,” Xander added.
Cayden frowned and stared hard at the floor. “I wonder if my own realm is now being harassed by them. Perhaps they are the true instigators behind these attacks, and the humans are only their pawns.”
Xander slowly nodded his head. “There may be some truth in what you say. We shall know when we travel across the straight to the islands.”
“What of the Maidens?” Spiros spoke up.
“They will remain here,” Xander insisted. “The threat of war looms and we do not know what danger awaits us on the islands. With our ability to protect them in our dragon forms at risk, the danger is even greater.”
Spiros gestured to our window. “They will not be pleased to hear that.”
Stephanie and I ducked down and glanced at each other. Her pale face reflected my own. Our sudden movements added to our troubles when the pile on which we stood shuddered.
“Jump!” I yelped.
Stephanie and I pushed off the house and leapt as far as we could away from the stack. The heap collapsed beneath our jump and crashed into a pile of rubble that littered the sand with nets and broken bits of wood. Stephanie and I landed on our feet, but fell onto our sides. We flipped onto our backs and watched a crate bounce down the rubble and onto the sand.
A couple of shadows fell over us. We looked up and winced. Spiros, Cayden and Xander stood over us. Two were not happy, and the captain was bemused.
I grinned and waved at them. “Um, hi. You guys done talking already?”
Xander stooped and held out his hand to me. “Until we can be sure there are not more in the conversation than we know.”
I winced, but took his hand and let him pull me to my feet. “We just didn’t want to be left out, okay? If we’re your Maidens then we’ve got a stake in making sure these realms are safe, too.”
Cayden did the same for Stephanie and she nodded. “She’s right. We care about these lands, too, and we just want to help.”
Xander caught my gaze and frowned. “We will speak of this later. For the present, I would rather we all enjoy ourselves while the peace lasts.”
I crossed my arms, but nodded. “Fine. We’ll drop it-for now.”
He half-turned away from me and offered me his arm. “Do you still wish to learn how to swim.”
I grinned and looped my arm through his. “I’ll need it on that island vacation you promised me.”
A sly smile slipped onto his lips as he led me down to the beach. The others followed close behind. “You have very crafty ways, my Maiden.”
I shrugged. “I try. And speaking of crafty, who’s this Lady person, anyway? How do you know her?”
Xander turned us left and we strode down the long beach toward the northern cliffs. “Lady Abha is of a royal bloodline, but not a direct descendant of the current ruling house. As such, she has a great deal of time to spend teaching others what she has gathered from the royal library of her people.”
I arched an eyebrow. “She’s not another dragon lord, is she?”
He chuckled. “I shall leave that for you to decide. As for how I became acquainted with her, she is the one who taught me to swim.”
I snorted. “She must be pretty old by now. You sure she can teach us anything other than the dead man’s float?”
He blinked at me. “I am not familiar with that swimming maneuver.”
“It’s where you float face-down in the water. Like this.” I leaned forward to mimic the posture. “You don’t kick or move your hands or anything. You just let the current take you.”
Both his eyebrows shot up. “I see. You refer to the corpse float.”
My face fell. “That name’s a little more morbid, but they’re probably the same.”
He smiled. “She knows a great many more strokes than the corpse float, and while she is many centuries old her appearance is that of a woman hardly out of her prime. Indeed, I would say she is far from fragile.”
“Though perhaps not senile,” Spiros spoke up.
I glanced over my shoulder at him. “So you know her, too?”
He nodded. “Yes. As Xander was taught to swim so was I. We often made it a point to impress our lovely teacher with races where, I am afraid, the lord always came in last.”
Xander straightened and glanced at his captain. “I do not recall having ever lost against you in any swimming races.”
Spiros shook his head. “That is not true, My Lord. Surely you recall yourself floundering in my wake.”
“I do not. It was you who finished last.”
“It was you, My Lord.”
By this time we’d reached near the end of the beach. A single, simple stone dwelling rose up before us. The house was a single floor structure with cozy cottage windows and shutters. Its beach wall also had a stone patio, but with a ramp access instead of stairs. Smooth markings in the sand surrounded the house.
I stopped in my tracks and held up my hands. “You know what, how about we decide this here and now?” I pointed a finger at the gentle bay. “You two can go out there and race however far you want, and the guy who survives wins.”
Xander and Spiros glanced at each other. Sly smiles slid onto their lips. They broke away from us and strode side-by-side to the shores. We other three followed behind and stopped when they paused fifteen feet away from the water and stripped off their shirts and shoes.
“Are you sure this is wise?” Cayden wondered.
“Honor is at stake, Cayden, and honor must be set right,” Xander insisted as he set his folded clothes on the sand.
Spiros did the same and together they faced the calm waters. Xander glanced at his old friend. “To the cliffs?”
Spiros smiled and nodded. “To the cliffs.”
I looked past them at the waters. If the men swam straight ahead they would reach the cliffs after two hundred feet. One way.
I gulped and glanced at Xander. “Are you guys serious about this?”
Xander looked over his shoulder and nodded. “Very serious. Wait for us.” He turned his attention to Spiros. “Ready?”
Spiros nodded. “Yes.”
Cayden, Stephanie and I moved to stand beside them. The young dragon lord stepped forward. “If you two wish to go through with this contest, allow me to start you.”
“We would be honored honored,” Xander agreed.
Cayden picked up a stick and dragged the tip across the sand in front of the two dragon men. “To the mark.” Xander and Spiros stepped up to the line. “Ready yourselves.” The pair of contestants dug their toes into the sand. “Start!”
Xander and Spiros rushed forward at the same time and soon hit the water. They waded through the shallows before they dove into the deeper waters. Their arms pumped up and down and allowed their bodies to cut across the bay.
They were a hundred feet out when I noticed something in the calm waters to their left between the swimmers and the cliffs. It looked like a scaly tube that slithered in an arc out of the water. The tube ended in a sharp-pointed tail that disappeared beneath the waves.
I whipped my head to Cayden and Stephanie. Their focus lay on the swimmers. I rushed to the edge of the water and cupped my hands around my mouth. “Xander! Spiros! Look beside you!”
My voice didn’t carry over the distance as the men continued their pursuit of glory. They swam ten more feet before I saw Spiros yanked beneath the surface. Xander stopped and turned around. Something grabbed him, as well, and pulled him beneath the waters.
- Writer
