The Dragon’s Treasure (4 page)

“Good, now follow me,” he said quickly as he released her arm and began walking down the hallway.

Isabelle stared after the man she had been warned about since birth. She studied his movements, the grace and style with which he walked coming so naturally to him though most people would find the challenge daunting and later impossible. After a few strides the man turned, looking over his shoulder at her still standing behind him. His dark eyebrow, shaped like a hawk’s wing, rose in silent question. In less than a moment, Isabelle was at his side, their strides matched as she went with him through the large passageways of the mountain.

There was a smell to these ancient halls unlike any Isabelle had ever encountered before. It was sour and foul and seemed to penetrate into her skin. The further into the mountain Zorin led, the stronger the smell seemed to be until Isabelle had to hold her hand over her mouth and nose just to escape it as a fit of coughing overcame her every few feet.

“It’s the gases from the mountain, there’s still active volcanoes in this range,” Zorin explained one time when she had been bent over and leaning against the side of the mountain just to hold herself up as coughs raked through her body. “It is the worst this time of year. In a few months the air will be as crisp and clean as it ever is this far from the sea.”

She had only nodded, he’d given her a sparing glance, and they had continued on.

For at least an hour they walked in complete silence. Isabelle had long ago given up any modesty as she trailed along behind him.

Zorin, she knew, was the Dark Prince. Half human and half angel. Those that crossed his path would recognize him by the chill in his voice and the hard, dark stare of those ebony eyes. It was said that his eyes changed color with his mood. It was said that he killed one hundred men in a day with his bare hands. It was said that he could tame griffons and invite the dragons to dance. Isabelle had heard a great many things about the man that she now walked less than a foot away from. She used to ignore them all, passing them off as old wives tales and useless idle prattle. But now, in his presence, she wasn’t so sure about much of anything anymore.

She had asked about where she was, where her brother was, if he was safe, if there were any others in this twisted maze of empty hallways and locked rooms. But the only answer she ever received, if she even got an answer from the solemn man, was that she would know in time. Demanding to know what happened to Caden hadn’t worked either. He had merely ignored her. She had tried yelling at him then, screeching loud enough that she thought she could have probably woken the dead, but he had only turned around, glared at her once, and kept walking. He rarely looked back and Isabelle often wondered if he would notice if she didn’t continue following him. She really had no reason to trust him after all. But any time that she fully considered leaving the man, he would slow down enough that she was shoulder to shoulder with him and once again forced to be by his side.

Soon they came to the mouth of a cavern. The opening was wide, the stone walls worn and smooth to the touch, forming almost a perfect arch above them. They passed through the arch quickly with Zorin leading the pace, but once inside the cavern, Isabelle stopped in her tracks, staring in awe at the room before her. Though its walls were still made of stone, here it seemed to glisten with iridescent light, shimmering with blues and greens and even a few purples as it danced across the smooth stone walls.

The same series of torches that lined the halls on their way to this great room again graced the walls of the chamber, providing their own source of twisting light to the glowing walls. In addition to those was a large chandelier that hung from the ceiling almost a hundred feet above her head. From that distance Isabelle at first thought that it was made of large tree limbs, each covered with hundreds of brightly glowing candles. But upon closer inspection she saw the harsh lines and deep grooves of the dusty white material and in an instant knew that the chandelier could be made of nothing other than bone. Her breath caught in her throat as she realized what the only kind of animal those bones could have come from to create a chandelier of that size.

“Dragons…” she breathed, half in awe and half in something close to fear, though she would never admit it to anyone else.

Zorin turned to her and then followed her gaze upward, nodding once as he made the connection. “These people respect the dragons and live in harmony with them. But when someone betrays them, as this one did, there is no greater disgrace in death for a dragon than to have his bones displayed in such a manner. It is the fate reserved only for enemies and is used as a warning to others,” he explained quickly.

“What people? Have I reached the mountain people? Is that where we are?” she asked in a whisper, though it did little to keep her voice from resonating off the stone walls.

“You’ll see soon enough,” came his solemn reply.

Isabelle shot a glare to the man’s back, but said nothing else.

After a few minutes of silence though, Isabelle began to open her mouth to speak, but a sharp look from him silenced her thoughts on her breath. Before she could try again, heavy footsteps sounded from one of the narrow tunnels that branched off the chamber. Two pairs of eyes turned at once toward the sound as cloaked figures emerged from the once empty corridor.

“Ah, my dear, how good of you to join us. I trust your rest was decent?” the largest of the cloaked figures called to her as he advanced.

Isabelle stepped away from Zorin, her muscles tightening with each step as she stood poised and ready. The man continued to come toward her, but stopped mid-stride as she raised her arm to strike as soon as he got too close. “My dear, what are you doing?” the man asked. His voice was calm and firm, that of a parent speaking to a rebellious child.

“Where is my brother?” she growled, already coiling her arm back in preparation for a strike.

“All in good time. Now though, will you please have a seat? There is something I wish to discuss with you,” the man replied.

“Discussion will come later. Give me my brother and lower your hoods,” she commanded, every word spoken as the royalty she was.

The man took a step toward her, but his face, as well as those of his comrades, remained hidden. “Your brother is safe. Please—”

“Show me my brother and we will discuss. Not the other way around,” she said, her eyes hardening as the man continued to defy her. “I am the princess of Nuer and you will obey me.”

“My, my, aren’t you feisty. I think I much preferred you when you were asleep,” the man mocked. “Your brother is resting. You can see him later. But very well, I shall at least grant you one request.” Fine fingers formed from under his black cloak and pushed the hood back, the thick material laying in folds around his shoulders.

“Good morning, Princess,” he said, his lips twisting into a cruel smile, not unlike the one Zorin had given her earlier.

He was tall and broad shouldered with long black hair. On his right cheek was a mess of scars and although Isabelle could tell he was far older than her, he moved with silent grace across the stone floor. She frowned slightly. She didn’t recognize him even though she assumed she had met everyone of importance in the empire at some point in her young life. His thin fingers brushed the hilt of the long sword at his hip. Isabelle was instantly reminded that she was unarmed. With a nervous gulp, she squared her shoulders and rocked back onto her heel, preparing to strike if necessary.

“Hello,” she squeaked out, cursing her voice for betraying the fear that had suddenly chased away any resolve she had earlier mustered.

“Leave us, I wish to speak to our guest in private,” he called over his shoulder. The men in cloaks bowed low, backing out of the large doorway before disappearing into the darkness of the hall. Isabelle was surprised to see even Zorin leave without so much as a fuss. From what she had been told she would not have thought him the type to readily take orders from anyone.

He took a seat in one of the few simple chairs that stood in the room, motioning for her to join him. After a moment’s hesitation, she did. “I am Thadius, the ruler of these mountains,” he offered. “And you must be Isabelle Falcone, Princess of Nuer. Am I correct?”

She nodded.

“Your brother, Caden I believe is his name, is very sick, but now that he is here my healer will be able to help him. I have no doubt of that.”

“Then you know what’s wrong with him?” she asked, her voice rising with hope.

“My healer will soon enough. Or at least he will know how to cure him if nothing else,” Thadius told her. He glanced toward the open doorway that the cloaked figures had gone through and frowned. Isabelle was about to ask him what he was waiting for when a short balding man in plain brown robes hurried into the room.

“You’re late,” Thadius chided.

The man nodded before coming forward and bowing low to them both. “I am sorry, Sire, the child was being problematic.”

Isabelle straightened instantly. “My brother? Is he alright? Is that the child you’re talking about?”

The man’s brown eyes narrowed on her before Thadius brought the stranger’s attention back to him. “Kylin, this is Isabelle Falcone, the Princess of Nuer. It is her brother that you are treating.” His gaze leveled on Isabelle. “Release my healer, child, and do not further manhandle my men if you wish to have my help.”

She instantly stepped back, her hands dropping limply to her sides. “I apologize, to you both. Please tell me, how is my brother?”

The man paused in the straightening of his robes where she had grabbed him long enough to address Thadius. “The boy is underweight and running a fever. He is also lacking in fluids which I can only assume is a direct result of the journey here. He was filthy, but I have bathed him and redressed him. He has superficial wounds, also presumably from the journey since the girl has them as well. I have given him herbs that will help him recover. For now though he requires rest.”

Thadius nodded thoughtfully as his long fingers stroked his chin. “Very good. And you can cure him?”

“Yes,” the man replied without hesitation.

“And you, girl, are you satisfied with this?” Thadius asked her.

Isabelle could only nod as tears of relief began pooling in her eyes.

“Good. Go now, Kylin. I will talk further with our guest.”

The man bowed quickly to them both before leaving.

“So you can cure him?” Isabelle asked, the relief evident in her voice.

“We have cured far worse than him here. My man can do wonders,” Thadius answered.

Isabelle smiled happily.

“But there is a price,” Thadius continued.

“I thought that you would probably want something of me in exchange for saving my brother,” Isabelle said readily.

Thadius nodded. “Yes, there is something that I seek.”

He began watching her far too closely for her liking, almost as if he was considering her for something. She had the distinct impression that she did not quite meet his standards though.

Isabelle shifted nervously in her chair. “If it’s gold you want, my family is very wealthy.”

He chuckled and shook his head at her. “My dear child, we have plenty of gold and jewels here, whole piles in fact.”

Her stomach tightened. “Then what is it that you wish of me?”

“I have a son about your age, just old enough to be married,” Thadius replied with a quirk of his eyebrow.

Isabelle knew when she was being challenged and this was certainly one of those times. Her chin rose defiantly. She was terrified. But this man would never know it. “Why me? There are hundreds of available women in the empire.”

“None of them ask for something so great as for us to save a life. In our world the reward must match the price,” Thadius replied.

“Is this the only condition you ask in exchange for saving the life of my brother? Only that I marry your son?”

“Yes.”

Isabelle was skeptical. Being Andrew’s sister had certainly taught her that there was always another condition when it came to generosity. “For how long?”

“Long enough to bear his child. Once the child is born you will be free to leave and of course, once Caden is well enough he may leave at any time, even if you have not yet given birth,” Thadius replied.

So that was it, Isabelle thought ruefully. Her eyes narrowed slightly at him. How dare he try to trick her? “A child? That is far different than a simple marriage. And what would become of the child?”

* * * *

He returned her glare. This girl was already becoming more trouble than she was worth. He had not thought that the girl would be this…well…human, for lack of a better term to describe those that he disliked so much. “It would be raised by my son and this clan of course. Does this not meet your satisfaction? Are you unwilling to have a child with my son even though it will save your brother’s life?”

“I will do anything you ask of me in order to save him,” she snapped, a bit more loudly than she had intended.

Thadius smiled indulgently at her. “Very good.” With a snap of his fingers, a guard, dressed in all black, appeared at her shoulder with a roll of parchment. “Please read through this and sign at the bottom. When my son returns home later tonight, I will have him sign it as well and then you two shall be married.”

“Oh.”

Thadius quirked an eyebrow at her. “Does it bother you that there will be no extravagant human ceremony?”

* * * *

She quickly shook her head as she continued reading. “No, this is a marriage in writing only and should not be paraded as anything else.” Isabelle took the inked quill the guard offered her and signed her name in a rush before she could change her mind.

“Very good. Now, Isabelle, do you swear to be faithful only to my son?”

She gulped nervously. “Yes, I do swear.”

“And you will not leave here unless escorted by him or under his direction?”

“I will not.”

Thadius’s dark eyes seemed to bore into her. She shifted under the intensity of his gaze. “And you will not harass anyone here or interfere in our ways or customs at all while you are a guest in my home?”