Dragon Fire (Dragons of Perralt Book 1) (9 page)

“I see that you are injured,” the Queen said as she indicated his shoulder. “Is it serious? Are you likely to die within the next few minutes?”

Drake almost smiled. “Probably not,” he answered simply.

Elsbeth could feel the tension rising between them. Why? she wondered. Why wasn’t a mother overjoyed to see her son?

“He is seriously hurt, Your Highness,” Elsbeth said. Interjecting herself before things became too intense. “I did the best that I could, but he needs a proper healer.”

The Queen looked at her, then back at her son. “And, how did you become injured this time?” she asked solemnly.

Drake paused for a moment, then said, “A Gray.”

The Queen blanched, her eyebrows rising in surprise. “A Gray? In my forest?”

“Yes mother,” Drake said. Elsbeth could have sworn the man was pleased to have shocked his mother. Oh, what a holy terror he must have been as a little boy.

“I assume you resolved the issue correctly?” she said with a haughty voice.

Drake shook his head. “He escaped, wounded, but he is gone.”

“And you didn’t go after him?” the queen asked.

Elsbeth stepped forward. “Drake returned to protect me. He had no way of knowing if there were other dragons about. And, he really is seriously wounded. He needs to be seen by a healer, as soon as possible.”

The Queen glanced down at where Elsbeth’s hand rested on her son’s arm. Then, back at the woman making demands. She seemed to hesitate before she turned and gestured towards the dark opening.

A young woman, dressed in black with white lace at the collar and cuffs of her dress stepped out of the shadows. She threw Drake a quick smile, sending Elsbeth’s insides into turmoil. That smile spoke of a history.

“Mary,” the Queen said, “please escort our guest down below. Help her dress for dinner. One of Gwyn’s gowns should fit.” The Queen paused and looked at Elsbeth once more, confirming her judgement on the Princess’ size.

“We always dress for dinner,” the Queen said, her voice making it clear there was no choice in the matter.

“As for you, Drake,” she continued, “you know your way to the healer. Heaven knows you have been there enough. I will see you at dinner and will expect a full explanation.”

Drake dipped his head. “Yes, Mother,” he said before glancing at Elsbeth. His eyes seemed to apologize. As if his mother’s attitude where his fault.

“This way Princess,” the servant said, indicating that they needed to hurry.

Elsbeth glanced once more at Drake’s mother, then shook her head. There was a story there. A story she desperately wanted to know. But, for now, it was best to just go along and press the matter later.

She followed the servant into the dark opening. Torches lit the interior with a soft glow. Drake turned off, giving her one last encouraging look. Her young guide looked back and forth between Elsbeth and the back of the departing Drake, her eyes narrowed in concentration, but she didn’t say anything. Elsbeth felt a sudden sadness at the separation. Remember, she reminded herself, you are mad at him.

They continued on, twisting, and turning.

At last, they turned one last bend and stepped out onto a covered walkway.

Elsbeth gasped. She had never seen anything so beautiful. So peaceful. So perfect in her entire life.

A lush green valley stretched out before her. The kind of place that provided safety and comfort. It reminded her of a painting. The kind of painting she would have created if she wanted to show safety and comfort.

In the distance, a village, with smoke rising from chimneys. Square field lay like patches of cloth across the landscape. A stream fed by a rumbling waterfall on the other side of the valley, meandered through the landscape to disappear around a distant bend.

High, snowcapped, mountains encased the valley. The cliff they had just passed through formed a wall blocking off the rest of the world.

She had entered a new universe. A universe without trouble or pain.

Her mind flew to defenses and military matters. It was impregnable, she realized. The only entrance up that narrow staircase and through the dark portal. A few men could defend it against an army.

Elsbeth’s heart skittered with wonder. The place was beautiful. Everything was perfect. As if there was never a problem too big to solve.

She caught the servant, Mary, staring at her. Obviously wondering how the princess would react to the sight of this beautiful world.

“It’s unbelievable,” Elsbeth said. “Almost magical.”

Mary smiled. Pleased. “Yes,” she said simply as she led Elsbeth down an interior staircase.

Her room reminded her of home. Stone walls covered in tapestries. A big bed, and beautifully handcrafted furniture.

Another lie from Drake. He had led her to believe he was a simple huntsman from the forest. Not a prince of a magical land.

“If you will prepare yourself,” Mary said as she indicated a basin and water, “I will go get you a dress for dinner.”

Elsbeth inspected her room. Drake lived here. He had grown up here. He wasn’t a backwoods savage. No one having grown up in such splendor could be. Again, why the falseness? What was it about the man that wouldn’t let anyone see the true person?

The dragon, she realized. With a secret like that, maybe a person just naturally became hesitant about sharing.

She shook off the thoughts about Drake. She needed to get ready for dinner. For some reason, she felt as if she was walking into a wild animal’s den.

Only these beasts were dragons.

Mary returned a few minutes later with a sky blue dress that made Elsbeth melt. It was beautiful. Soft velvet with fine lace. As good as anything she could have obtained at home.

No, these people were not savages.

“Have you lived here long?” Elsbeth asked as she stepped behind a screen to change. Her curiosity was burning a hole inside of her. She needed more information if she was going to deal with these people as an equal.

“I was born here, Princess,” the young girl said as she retrieved her old dress. “My mother was a cook in the kitchens.”

Elsbeth caught a glance of disdain cross the girl’s face as she held the trail worn dress up for inspection. She wanted to tell her about three days on the trail and her hasty departure. But one didn’t explain to servants. It was one of the first lessons her mother had taught her.

“So, you’ve known Prince Drake for a long time?”

“Just Drake, Princess. He doesn’t like the title.”

Elsbeth’s heart fell, the girl must know him well.

“Yes, I’ve known him forever,” the young woman continued, “he saved my life when I was eight.”

“Really?” Elsbeth said, praying the girl would continue.

The young servant began removing the other clothes from Elsbeth’s pack, again shaking her head at their poor condition. Her eyes looked off into the distance.

“Yes, my mother had taken me to the forest to gather berries. She was going to teach me how to make jam. Somehow, we became separated. I was alone, lost. I didn’t know the forest. We never ventured there.

I remember the fear that took ahold of me. Lost, confused. Then, from the trees, a wolf began to walk towards me. Large, a blackish gray, big yellow teeth that looked like they could rip a little girl to shreds. I thought for sure I would be killed and eaten on the spot.”

Elsbeth stopped dressing so she could hear the story.

“I don’t know where he came from. I don’t know what he was doing in the forest. But, just as the wolf sprang towards me, Drake rushed in from the side, tackling him in midair. I don’t know how he did it. He was only a few years older than me.

But, he hit the wolf and they rolled across the pine needles and into the trees. They turned and fought. I remember screaming. But, I needn’t have worried. Even at that age, nothing could defeat Drake.

That was when he received his scar, the one across his eyebrow.” Mary indicated the damage to Drake’s eyebrow.

“He killed the wolf with his bare hands. I don’t know how. But, after you get to know him, you won’t be surprised.”

“I’m not,” Elsbeth said as she remembered the Guardsmen on the road and the giant Gray Dragon.

“Yes, so you can say, I’ve known Drake forever. He is sort of special to me.”

Elsbeth studied the young girl. Her eyes were clouded in memory, and a bitter sweet smile rested on her lips.

“After that,” the girl continued, “I sort of became infatuated about everything Drake.”

“I can well imagine,” Elsbeth said.

The girl laughed. “Yes, well, when I grew older, I thought I might be his mate. Oh how I prayed. Even Drake thought there might be a chance. So we tried, believe me, we tried. But it wasn’t so.”

“His mate?” Elsbeth asked as her brow narrowed in confusion.

The young girl saw her confusion. “Yes, Princess. A dragon’s mate is unique. She calls to his soul. Once he finds her, he can love no other. Oh, how I wanted it to be me. But, it seems, I didn’t call to his soul. So, instead, we are friends. Special friends. But, only friends.”

Elsbeth released a long held breath. Oh such a sad story. Yet, a part of her was pleased with the way it had ended.

The servants knew that Drake was a dragon. So his secret wasn’t completely unknown. Maybe, it was just her he didn’t want to know.

“You should hurry, Princess,” Mary said, interrupting Elsbeth’s wool gathering. “Her majesty does not like to be kept waiting.”

The thought of upsetting Queen Matilda sent a cold shiver down Elsbeth’s back.

Once she was dressed, her hair repaired, and some confidence restored, she followed Mary to the main dining room.

“Here it is, Princess,” she said indicating a heavy wooden door, then, stepped back.

Elsbeth thanked Mary, took a deep breath, and stepped into the room.

A long wooden table, polished to a high gleam dominated the room. Doors at the far end had been opened, leading to a veranda that overlooked the valley. Queen Matilda stood on the veranda with three others.

They each looked up as Elsbeth entered. She wondered if she was interrupting something. The unusual feeling of being an outsider. Of being less than what was expected passed through her.

Screwing up her courage, she gracefully approached, then dropped into a curtsy.

“Ah, there you are,” Queen Matilda said. “Here, let me introduce my children.”

Elsbeth rose to greet the others. She almost gasped. They were beautiful. Each in their own way, remarkable.

“My son, Flint,” the Queen said, indicating the man next to her. He is gorgeous, Elsbeth thought. Dressed in golden leather, that sparkled in the setting sun. Almost as tall as Drake, but where Drake was dark and foreboding, this man was gold and sunshine. His yellow hair seemed to hint at lightness and all that was good with the world. His deep amber eyes sparkled with laughter as he bent and took her hand for a gallant kiss.

“Welcome, Princess,” he said. “If I knew Drake was going to return with someone so beautiful, I would have accompanied him on his journey.”

Elsbeth had learned long ago how not to blush at frivolous compliments. Oh, this one was a smooth one, she thought to herself. He must have the ladies of court lined up waiting for an opportunity. Ruggedly handsome, charming, with a laughing twinkle in his eye. Yes, a smooth one.

She couldn’t help but compare him to Drake. Yes, there was a resemblance in structure, but there, the similarity ended. Drake looked at the world through guarded eyes. This man looked at the world with pure pleasure.

“And this,” Queen Matilda, continued, “is my youngest, Thaddeus.”

The young man appeared to be a few years younger than herself. Rich brown hair parted in the middle. His eyes squinted a little, it reminded her of what the scribes looked like in the scriptorium at home. Men who had spent too much time with their noses buried in books.

But, there was an intelligent, kind look, about him. While not yet fully grown, Elsbeth could tell that, like his older brothers, he would be a large, powerful man.

“Please call me Thad, Princess,” he said as he quickly kissed the air above her hand. He looked at her for a moment with honest appraisal and then smiled, his eyes welcoming her.

She liked him, she realized. He was so unlike either of his brothers. She could trust him, she could be friends with this man and need not worry about being stabbed in the back or pulled into the corner for stolen kisses.

Elsbeth returned his smile and tried to send a message with her eyes that she appreciated it. “Thank you, Thad,” she said.

“And finally,” Queen Matilda said, “my daughter, Gwynevere.”

A strikingly beautiful woman her own age smiled hesitantly at her. “Please call me Gwyn,” she said.

Dressed in a rich forest green gown, the woman could have held her head high at any court in the known kingdoms. Long red hair, and green eyes, like her brother’s. They held back, unsure of her.

Elsbeth took a deep breath, she didn’t blame the woman. She, too, would have reacted the same way. A stranger who claimed to be a princess. Arriving with her injured brother.

Smiling, Elsbeth said, “Thank you, Princess, for the use of your dress, it is so beautiful. Unfortunately, when I departed my home, I was unable to take what I needed.

The memory of Drake throwing her things across the barn flashed into her mind. A fact that she was going to address with him at some time in the future.

“It looks wonderful on you,” Gwyn said. “Welcome.”

Elsbeth smiled to the group and thanked them for their welcome.

“Here he is, at last,” Queen Matilda said as she looked towards the door.

Drake had stepped into the room. Dressed in a simple white cotton shirt and black broad cloth pants. He wasn’t wearing his sling. What were the healers thinking, letting him walk around without it?

He looked out of place in the fine setting. Like a wolf in the kitchen. No, like a dragon in a dining room. His eyes studied his mother for a moment, then came to rest on Elsbeth.

Butterflies erupted in her stomach. What was it about this man that could set her on edge simply with his presence? She flashed back to their night in the huntsman’s cottage. The feel of his hands on her skin, the taste of his lips.

She swallowed hard and fought to stop a blush from betraying her thoughts.

“Let us be seated,” the Queen said, as she indicated Elsbeth should sit to her right. Drake immediately sat across from her on the Queen’s left. Then Gwyn, and finally Thaddeus. Flint pulled out her chair, holding it for her. Once she was seated, he joined her at the table, shooting her a flirting grin.

The Queen nodded to a tall butler in the corner who immediately sent two other servants to retrieve the food.

A gentle breeze flowed in from the veranda. Elsbeth looked around the room. Anywhere, except the man across from her. He continued to stare at her like she were his property. As if he had some claim.

No, she thought, he lost any chance at a claim the moment she had discovered he had lied to her.

It was typical of a castle dining room. Long table, tapestries on the wall to soften the sound. A candelabra in the center of the table. Candles in sconces on the wall.

Her eyes continued to wander when she gasped. A large red shield graced the far wall over the door through which she had entered. The family coat of arms obviously.

A two-headed dragon. Just like her mother’s medallion. Her stomach clenched up into a ball. Why? How? What did this mean?

She quickly glanced at Drake. He saw what she had seen. A guilty look crossed over his face. One more fact he had forgotten to mention. Would the man ever tell her the truth? Her heart broke. No, probably not.

“So, Drake,” the Queen said, as she gently placed a cloth napkin on her lap. “To what do we owe this pleasure? I didn’t expect you until the winter after next.”

“I assure you mother. It was necessary,” he said.

“Drake is helping me,” Elsbeth interrupted. Obviously, his mother was not pleased with him being here. It wasn’t fair that he get in trouble with his family because of her.

“I needed to reach Sinstra so that I might obtain Prince Julian’s assistance in retaking my lands.”

The Queen’s eyes narrowed, “I understand,” she said, “but, the problems of your land are not supposed to be brought into our forest. Nothing good ever happens when they are.”