In the Shadow of the Dragon King (13 page)

David jumped up. “What are you talking about? Who’s been attacked?”

Mangus shoved him down, his gaze never leaving Slavandria. “Yes, you can. You have to. If Master Camden suspects even a smidgeon of rebellious blood in you, no matter how noble, he will throw you into the mage prison at Eisig faster than I can spit. You have to stay put. I’ll contact you as soon as I have secured the royal party.”

“But—”

Mangus touched a finger to her lips. “I’ll see to it the king and queen are safe. Stay here and do what you do best.”

Slavandria searched Mangus’ face as more tears fell. Her shoulders slumped forward in defeat. “Very well. Go.”

Mangus brushed the stains from her cheek, kissed her forehead, and bolted from the room using the way David entered.

Slavandria inhaled a sharp breath and righted herself. She disembarked from the ship and motioned to David and Charlotte. Come with me, please.”

David linked his hand in Charlotte’s and crossed the trestle connecting the boat to land. “What was that all about? Who attacked? What’s going on?”

“All will be revealed soon,” Slavandria said without turning around. “Right now, I must get you to safety.”

“Safety from what?” Charlotte rubbed her arms as if chilled.

Slavandria cupped Charlotte’s chin and said, “War.”

***

A moonlight glow lit the twisting passageway into the heart of the mountain. David ran his hand along the cold stone walls, counting doors as they went. Were there others like him and Charlotte hidden behind them, kids removed from their homes, waiting for someone to rescue them? Behind him, Charlotte ooh’d and aah’d at the living murals of sea life on the walls. Whales, dolphins, and weird creatures with odd shapes and breathtaking colors swam by only to disappear in the distant blue. After several minutes of walking, they reached an arched wooden door carved with mermaids, selkies, and hippocamp. Slavandria ushered David and Charlotte inside, into a round chamber where artificial stars twinkled in a fabricated indigo sky. Brown and green roots and vines wove together, covering the walls in intricate, braided patterns. A carpet of bright green moss covered the floor.

“There are two bedrooms,” Slavandria said, pointing to the left and the right, “and, of course, all the food your heart desires.” Trays of meats, bread, fruits, and tea appeared on a low table surrounded by plush cushions. “I’m sorry I can’t stay and talk. I promise to explain everything, but for now I have to go. You’ll be safe here.”

“Safe from what?” David asked.

Slavandria walked from the room without an answer and locked the door behind her.

Charlotte folded her arms to her chest. “Well, that was rude. No explanations, no nothing, just here’s your room, we’ll talk in the morning.”

“Uh-huh,” David mumbled as his eyes honed in on a round table beside the sofa, more specifically a carved wooden statue of a bull raised on its back legs, an eagle with wings spread perched on its head. He knelt beside it. “Charlotte, do you see this?”

“Yeah, I see it.” Her voice came from the other side of the room. “There’s one over here, too. Are they making anything weird happen, to the, you know—”

“No, but this stinking tattoo has been throbbing like crazy ever since I fell through the rabbit hole.”

“It does feel a bit like that, doesn’t it? Alice in Wonderland? Everything I see is more curiouser than the one before.” She plucked a handful of grapes and sat on a green overstuffed sofa. “What do you think about that Mangus dude? He gives me the creeps.”

“Yeah, me, too.” David sat beside her and popped a few grapes in his mouth. His stomach grumbled with appreciation.

Charlotte ate a few more. “You know he’s sizing you up for something dreadful, right?”

David nodded. “Yeah. I got that.” He paused for a moment, then turned to her, his arm on the back of the couch. “Char, I’m sorry about what I said about Daniel. If you ever want to, you know, talk about it—”

Charlotte waved him off. “Don’t worry about it. No biggie. I’m sorry I snapped. It’s just, this is all so weird, and I’m irritated, and I want to go home. All I can think about is Mom and Dad and how scared they must be right now.”

David grinned. “Your dad’s probably already called the cops.”

Charlotte snorted. “Cops? Try the military police and FBI.” Charlotte nestled up to David and rested her head on his chest.

Tingles rippled through him.

“There is one good thing about all of this,” she said.

“What’s that?”

“Our crazy neighbors can’t kill you.”

David smiled. “True.”

Her fingers drew circles on his chest; opening that secret place inside him he didn’t want to go. Did she know what she was doing to him? She couldn’t. They were just friends. They’d always been just friends. But her touch was so gentle. His heart fluttered. He snuck a glance at her lips. So full. So beautiful.

Her fingers moved to his neck. David froze. That was not a playful touch. She raised her gaze to his face, her blue eyes holding him hostage, her touch tantalizing every inch of him.

“Char?” he whispered, not sure what he wanted to ask her.

She smiled, and her lips replaced her fingers at his neck, gently dragging across his collarbone.

His eyes fluttered. A low moan escaped as her fingers crept into his hair.

An unbelievable pressure built up inside him. He pulled her closer, wanting her, needing her. His skin ignited, melting beneath her touch. He trembled as his heart thudded. Boom, boom, boom, boom. All of him ached. Everywhere.

“David.”

Her breath fell over him like a warm, sweet embrace. Her lips pressed closer to his. He inhaled her intoxicating scent.

Her hand slid beneath his sweater, her skin like fiery satin against his. “David,” she whispered in his ear.

His fingers traced messages only he understood on her body. His hands glided down her sides and slipped to the small of her back, her hips, her thighs.

Their lips touched, and he knew any moment he would explode.

Her hands wove through his hair, her body pressed tight to his he could feel every contour, every muscle, every heartbeat pounding in time with his.

He gasped, her lips hot on his neck. He pulled his sweater over his head. He could hardly breathe. His eyes closed. “Charlotte.”

Her lips moved to his chin; her hands searched the slopes of his body.

He pulled her to him, his kiss urgent. Searching. His hands slipped beneath the thin fabric of her shirt, her skin hot and soft. She moaned.

He frayed and fell apart. She wanted him as much as he wanted her.

Sweet pleasure spread through him. He could hardly breathe. His heart had taken flight without him. He was soaring. Floating.

He rolled her over, his hands firm on her hips. She wrapped her legs around him. “David.” She tilted her head back and moaned as his lips found her neck.

Something like a leather strap snapped his brain.
No! This isn’t right. What are you doing?
He leaped off her as if burnt, and scrambled away.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry,” he said, looking around, stammering. “Oh, God. What was I thinking?” He pressed his palms to the sides of his head. “I wasn’t thinking.” He stood with his back toward her, gasping for breath. His body shook in agony. “That will never happen again, I promise.”

“What are you talking about?” Charlotte said. “I’ve wanted you to kiss me like that for years.”

He closed his eyes, the ache for her unbearable, but he couldn’t risk losing her. He’d lost so much already, if he lost her to a stupid moment of lust, he could never live with himself. Yes, it might be perfect now, but what if this messed it up? No. He wasn’t going to risk losing the best thing in his life.

His voice was thick when he finally spoke. “It went too far, Charlotte. We’re scared. Life is weird and if I—we did, you know,
it
, I think we’d regret it. I also think there’s something in those grapes.”

Charlotte looked at the table and laughed. “Are you kidding?” She got up and strolled over to him. “Don’t be silly. I’ve never heard of a grape that makes you horny.” She touched her fingertips to his back.

He shivered under her touch and jerked away. “No, Char. I care too much about you to screw things up. I can’t do this.”

Charlotte stared at him as if he’d lost his mind. She scratched the back of her head and sighed. “I don’t believe this. You’re serious, right?”

“I’m sorry.”

“You’re sorry? We both ran to second base, almost third, and you’re sorry? What’s up with that? You didn’t like what you felt?”

“No. Yes. It’s not about that.”

“Then what is it about?”

“It’s—I—I shouldn’t have touched you. I can’t allow—I can’t—”

“You can’t what?”

David snatched his sweater from the couch. “I can’t lose you like I did my parents. I would die. Is that explanation enough?”

He stormed off, barged into the bedroom to his right and slammed the door. He fell onto the canopied bed, the billowy mattress so soft it seemed to swallow him whole.

I’m such an idiot. What is wrong with me? What am I so afraid of?

Charlotte knocked gently on his door.

“David. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. It’s just,” her voice choked with emotion, “I love you so much. There. I said it. I love you. And if you’re worried about me leaving you, don’t. I’ll never leave. I promise.”

David’s insides twisted and jumped.
Tell her you love her, idiot! Give her something for spilling her guts!
He wiped the tear from his cheek and said, “I’ll never leave you either, Char.”

He squeezed his eyes tight. Waiting. Listening.

Finally, her voice slipped through the door. “Good night, David. Sweet dreams.”

The overwhelming sadness in her words ripped at his soul. He’d hurt her when all he wanted to do was protect her. He knew in his heart she’d forgive him, but how could he forgive himself?

He lay on his back and stared at nothing, the events of the last forty-eight hours playing over and over like a needle stuck in the same groove of an old vinyl record. He spun the ring on his finger and slipped into an uneasy sleep.

***

David woke to Charlotte’s frantic whispers.

“David, get up! You’ve got to see this.”

David moaned, his brain still in a dream fog. He yawned and rolled over.

Charlotte shook him again. “No! You’ve got to get up. We have visitors. Twelve of them. Come on.”

David’s pulse quickened. “What?” He fumbled out of bed and followed Charlotte into the common room engulfed in a shimmering green light. Along the walls stood a dozen slender beings with slanted eyes and pointed ears, their backs to the wall, their eyes straight ahead, focused. Each of them, cloaked in their green aura, was dressed in one-piece garments of green leather, strips of brown leather fingering through it like branches of a tree. Longbows and quivers were strapped to their backs.

“What the heck?” David asked. “Who are they? What are they doing here?”

“I don’t know,” Charlotte replied. “I got up to pee, saw the green light, and came out here to see what it was.”

David walked up to the closest one on his left and peered into his crystalline, lime-green eyes. The stranger didn’t blink.

“Do you think they’re elves?” Charlotte asked.

A palpable tension saturated the air. The hairs on David’s skin stood on end as if rubbed by a balloon.

Charlotte slapped at her arms and yelped. “Ouch! Something shocked me.”

David glanced down at the small green sparks dancing at her feet, swirling stronger and faster like a tornado. “What the hell?”

“Da-vid! I can’t move!”

David’s eyes fixed on her terrified face. He tried to lunge, but his feet remained planted to the ground. His pulse raced as panic rippled through him. “Charlotte!”

“David, help me!” The few sparks turned to hundreds, then thousands, wrapping Charlotte in a glowing cocoon. As if pulled by an invisible string, Charlotte lifted from the ground and tilted until her body was parallel to the floor. Like a guided missile, she shot across the room into her chambers, the door latching behind her.

Panic back flipped in David’s chest. He willed his legs to move, but they failed. Anger reared its ugly head and raked its fingernails down his neck.

Strands of electricity arced through the air. The elf creatures clicked their feet together. Gold armor sprang from their leathers and snapped over their shoulders, all the way down their bodies. Their auras grew brighter, blinding.

David shielded his eyes. A strange sensation, like hundreds of needles poking his skin, swarmed around him. A cocoon of energy enveloped him and flung him into bed. The door slammed shut.

David struggled to sit up, but a great weight sat on his chest.

“Let go of me, and don’t you dare hurt Charlotte!”

“Quiet!” A male voice replied in his head. “Be still and silence your mind. It is imperative you listen. Many lives are in peril, including your own. An enemy seeks you, and he will stop at nothing until he finds and kills you. He is on his way. His dark magic approaches. Sleep while you can. Gather your wits and strength. Everything you are and have been is about to change. There is no turning back. Your time is nigh. Be brave.”

Sleep swept over David like a great swooping wing. A shadow man appeared in his dreams, his face hidden in darkness. He entered a thatch-roofed home, dragged its owner from the dinner table, and beheaded him in the street with a blade of light from his fingertip. He moved on, going home to home, ransacking each one and killing those who lived inside.

Women, children, it didn’t matter. Afterward, the killer walked out of town and made for the neighboring forest, thrashing through the woods, his breath raspy.

“Where are you hiding, David? I know you’re here. I can sense you. Smell you.”

David yelled in his dream, “Who are you? What do you want from me?”

The man turned, changed his direction. Shadows played on his face. His eyes shone like two blue moons. “Keep talking, boy.”

A soldier from the common room appeared in David’s dream, blocking his view of the cloaked man.