dragon archives 05 - forever a dragon (17 page)

Lleland took a deep breath before meeting Aaron’s gaze. “I wanted to speak to you and learn what I could about them.”

“Zach told me you hate dragons.”

“Did he also tell you what happened to my father?”

Aaron’s gaze didn’t waver. “Yes. Your father was killed by the black dragon. But that dragon is dead and gone. You’ve allowed your anger to blind you.” Lleland was silent. “Do you hunt dragons?”

“Yes.”

There was a crackling sound in the fireplace, and flames leapt within the hearth. Lleland frowned. He hadn’t noticed a fire there before. Aaron’s face was set when he turned to Lleland. “I’ve allowed myself to be swayed by my family and agreed that you may remain here, much against my better instinct. Perhaps you’ve been sent here by a greater power for some specific purpose. But as long as you remain at Storbrook, you are forbidden from using your weapons against any dragon you may see.”

“Can you vouch for my safety from those beasts?” he demanded.

“I can,” Aaron replied. “You’ll not be harmed by any dragon that you see in the mountains.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“You’ll have to trust me,” Aaron replied. He passed a hand over his brow. “What is your interest in my daughter?”

“What?” The sudden change in subject took Lleland by surprise.

“She’s a pretty and good-natured woman, if a little stubborn. If you choose to remain at Storbrook, I’ll not prevent you from spending time with her, as much as I am tempted to do so. My wife’s mother tried to interfere in her affairs, and in doing so caused a great deal of mischief. I’ll not repeat her mistakes, but will trust Lydia to not act foolishly. She’s a grown woman who must make her own choices. But you must not, on any account, discuss your dislike of dragons with her, nor tell her of your occupation as a dragon-hunter. It’ll only cause her distress.” Aaron’s eyes narrowed. “I’m quite certain nothing will come of your friendship, and that when you leave, she’ll bid you goodbye without any regrets. But if you do anything to hurt my daughter, or take advantage of her in any way, you’ll suffer the consequences. Is that clear?”

Lleland felt a wave of annoyance as he crossed his arms over his chest and met Aaron’s gaze. “I have no intention of hurting your daughter, Master Drake,” he said. “I agree that she is both beautiful and good-natured, but I’m not so cavalier as to toy with her feelings. Nor am I a young boy looking to seduce a pretty, young woman. At this point I’m only interested in furthering our acquaintance, but if my feelings deepen or change, I’m a man of honor and integrity, and would treat her thus. I trust that you know that, despite our difference of opinion regarding the beasts that roam these mountains.”

Aaron nodded slowly. “That difference of opinion sets us completely apart, but I cannot deny that Zach has spoken highly of you, and I do believe you’re a man of honor and integrity. If I thought otherwise, I wouldn’t allow you to remain here.” He paused. “You’re a scholar, a seeker of truth. Don’t allow what happened to your father to blind you to the truth about dragons.” He walked around his desk and sat down. “Thomas will be here soon to write my letters, and I believe Lydia is in the hall, wondering if you plan to sleep the entire day away.” He took up his quill with a nod, then bending his head, applied himself to his notes as Lleland exited the room.

Chapter 18

Lydia was in the Great Hall as Aaron had predicted, and she smiled as Lleland walked into the room. “I don’t know how you covered the distance from Civitas to Storbrook in just six weeks when you spend so much time sleeping.”

“It’s your fault for giving me such a comfortable bed,” Lleland said with a laugh.

“Well, come along. The day is wasting away, and I want to show you the mountains.”

“All in one day? You’re right, no time for a meal!”

“Oh, you’re hungry! We’ll sneak into the kitchen and steal something.”

“Is that something you do often? Sneak?”

“Oh yes, and I’m very good at it, too! Come along.” She waved him forward and tiptoed dramatically across the floor, pausing to place her finger on her lips when Lleland made a sound. “Shh,” she hissed, “we don’t want to be found out.” She led Lleland out the hall through a small door behind the dais, down a steep, narrow staircase and into the kitchen below, where they were greeted with savory aromas that made the mouth water.

“Mistress Lydia, what are you doing here?” A woman of middle age looked up at their entrance, her hands on her hips as she scowled at Lydia.

“Master Seaton, this is Cook,” Lydia said, her tone rueful. “Nothing gets past her. I know, I’ve been trying for years!”

Cook smiled grimly. “I’ve been wise to your ways since you were a wee one, Mistress, as was my mother before me. Now what is it you’re wanting?”

“Master Seaton is hungry,” Lydia explained.

“Dinner’ll be served in an hour,” Cook said, turning to a pot bubbling over the hearth.

“Well that’s just it. Master Seaton is here to explore the mountains. He’s a scholar, you know. And we won’t be here in an hour.”

“Hmph!” Cook turned and faced them once more. “Fine. I’ll give you some bread.” She glanced at Lleland. “Plain.”

“Couldn’t you spare just a little stew,” Lydia pleaded. “It smells so good, and you make the best stew in the world. Better than anything in the city.”

Cook harrumphed again, but Lleland could see she was pleased. “Very well, I suppose I can spare a little. It isn’t quite ready, though!”

“Oh, thank you,” Lydia said, throwing her arms around the older woman.

“Yes, well.” Cook patted Lydia on the back, then pulled out of Lydia’s embrace and reached for a bowl. “I suppose you’ll be wanting some too.”

“Oh, yes please!”

“Of course you do! Never known you to say no to food!”

Lydia threw Lleland a quick grin before taking a bowl from Cook’s hands and passing it to him. “Tell me this isn’t the best stew you’ve ever tasted.”

Lifting the bowl to his nose, Lleland took a long sniff. “It certainly smells wonderful,” he said. He took the spoon Cook held out and dipped it into the bowl. “Delicious!”

“Hmph,” was Cook’s response, but she was definitely smiling. He winked at Lydia and ate another mouthful. It was better than most stews he had tasted – almost as good as his mother’s. He finished the hearty meal and handed the bowl back to Cook with a smile of thanks, waiting as Lydia finished hers.

“Ready?” she said as she scraped out the last remnants of meat and vegetables.

“Yes! Let’s go exploring!” he said. He followed Lydia out the door and into the courtyard. “Where are we going?” he asked when she stepped onto the lawn.

“There’s a door at the back of the gardens,” she said. “Zach and I used to use it when we wanted to sneak out.”

“Are we sneaking again?” he asked. She threw back a grin but didn’t reply. They walked along a winding path laid with stone, past a huge, spreading oak and wide swaths of flowering shrubs and bushes. They had lost sight of the courtyard when Lydia stepped off the path and onto the lawns, leading Lleland beneath a low tree and past a huge rhododendron, beyond which could be seen a high, stone wall with a narrow wooden door set into the stone. Lydia turned the iron ring and pushed the door open, and Lleland drew in a deep breath. The door opened onto a narrow ledge, about ten inches wide, beyond which was nothing but air. Wind gusted through the open door, whipping strands of Lydia’s hair across her face.

Lleland looked at Lydia in disbelief. “You don’t mean to walk out there, do you?”

“And why not?”

“Well, for one thing, it doesn’t seem very safe, and for another, it’s hardly appropriate for a lady!”

Lydia cocked an eyebrow at him. “Master Seaton,” she said, “I have grown up in these mountains, with no companion but my brother, and although my mother is a woman of great determination and strength, the one area she failed in was teaching me some decorum. It is not my intent to impress you with airs and graces. Rather, I prefer to be myself, especially in my own home, and around people with whom I share a friendly acquaintance. Somehow I had conceived the notion that you found the ladies of the city dull and boring, but perhaps I was wrong?”

Lleland listened to this speech in astonishment, then laughed. “Mistress Lydia, my apologies. You’ve put me in my place! I would far prefer you to be yourself, and if clambering over the mountains is what you do, then I’ll gladly join you in your pursuits.” He glanced towards the ledge. “But perhaps we should just use the main entrance?”

“You won’t fall,” Lydia assured him.

Lleland pulled back. “As you pointed out, you were born and bred in the mountains,” he said, “and probably have the feet of a goat. I come from the city, where there are only tiny, little hills, and the ladies are quite happy to flounce along a small stretch of nice, paved road as they go from one store to another.”

She laughed. “Come on,” she said. “You can do it.”

Lleland looked at Lydia, who smiled playfully. Her eyes were glowing, and her hair was mussed from the wind. “Fine,” he said. “But if I fall to my death, these mountains will be forever haunted by my ghost.”

“I’ve always wanted to see a ghost,” she said. “It’s all settled then. Let’s go.” She stepped through the door and onto the ledge, and moved along a few feet to give him space. “Come on,” she said.

Lleland glanced over the edge once more, then taking a deep breath, tentatively placed one foot on the ledge, while his hand gripped the door frame. Placing his other foot next to the first, he carefully slid along until he was standing beside Lydia, his back to the wall. His toes overhung the ledge by an inch, and below them the mountain plunged into a valley, far, far below. Ahead of him lay peak after peak, spreading in every direction. Snow covered the towering summits, while the valleys were blanketed in green. In the distance he heard the thundering of a tumbling waterfall. He looked for it from the side of his eye, but it was outside his line of sight. A blast of wind blew the hair around his face, and he pressed his back against the wall.

Lydia smiled at him encouragingly, then walked another few feet, while he sidled along slowly, pausing whenever a gust of wind whipped his tunic. “It’s not far,” she said. “Just a few yards until we reach the ridge.” Lleland gave a slight nod, his eyes focused on the edge of the ledge.

“Right behind you,” he said. It was a little further than a few yards, but inching slowly along the reassuring face of the wall, Lleland finally made it to where the ledge met the ridge. He took a deep breath as he jumped down to solid ground, and glanced at Lydia. “Perhaps we can return through the front gate,” he said.

She smiled – wickedly, Lleland thought with an inward groan – then pointed to a cliff a short distance away. “There’s a good view of Storbrook from up there,” she said.

“No more ledges?” he asked.

“None,” she promised.

“Lead on,” he said. They reached the foot of the cliff which was covered in scrub and scree. Lydia led him along the base of the cliff, stopping at a crack in the rock face. It was about two feet wide at the bottom, narrowing to a point about three feet from the ground. “There’s a funnel we can climb through,” she said. “We just need to squeeze through the crack.”

“I’m not sure I can,” Lleland said, eyeing the opening skeptically. Lydia turned to look at him, her eyes narrowed as she inspected him.

“Zach can get through with a few inches to spare, and you’re about the same size,” she said. Lleland frowned. “It opens up inside,” she assured him. He nodded and gestured with his hand for her to lead the way. She dropped to her haunches and shuffled through sideways. Following her lead, Lleland also crouched down, but it was immediately evident that he wouldn’t fit. With a sigh he lay down on the ground and stretched his legs through the hole, edging his way over the ground on his back. The gap opened into a small cave and he rose to his feet and looked around. Above his head the roof narrowed into a long chimney that reached all the way to the top of the cliff. It was wide at the bottom, nearly five feet across, but tapered towards the top.

“How do we climb up?” he asked Lydia, gazing into the funnel.

“You have to brace yourself against the sides,” she said.

He looked at her doubtfully. “Have you done this before?” he asked.

“Oh yes, many times,” she said, loosening the ties of her gown.

“What are you doing?”

“I can’t climb in this,” she said, shrugging the offending article off her shoulders and down to her feet. Beneath the gown and over her chemise she wore a shirt and a pair of breeches. Lleland looked at her outfit dubiously. “That isn’t really appropriate apparel for a lady,” he said.

She ignored him. “Lift me up, please,” she said, turning her back to him. He stared at her for a moment, then slowly wrapped his hands around her waist. They settled on her hips, which curved gently. She reached up her hands and he lifted her the full length of his arms. Her hands settled on the stone walls of the funnel, and she lifted her feet to brace herself, then shuffled upwards.

“How do I get up?” he asked.

“Jump.”

“I can’t jump that high! How does Zach get up there?”

She glanced upwards. “If we had some rope, I could throw it down to you and pull you up.”

“You? Pull me up?” Lleland snorted. “Besides, we don’t have any rope!”

“We can use this!” Lydia dropped back to the floor of the cave and picked up her gown.

“No!” Lleland grabbed the gown from her hands, his expression horrified. “Absolutely not!”

She lifted her eyes to his and smiled. “It’s just a gown,” she said. Lleland dragged his gaze away.

“No,” he said, more gently this time. “It’s not right that you destroy your clothes on my account. Maybe we can find another way up. Perhaps there’s a path.”

Lydia shook her head. “There’s no path, but we can try scrambling up the side. There’re a few small bushes that might give us some leverage.”

“We don’t have to make it to the top,” Lleland said.

“You’ll be glad if we do,” Lydia said. “The view of Storbrook is breathtaking.”