I’d begun thinking of the dragon as a her, almost a friend. Now it was like seeing that friend change into a dangerous, murderous animal.
“Serves it right,” Kendra murmured, sounding satisfied.
Without turning to look at her because of fear of giving away my thoughts, I watched the body of the wyvern sink and imagined thousands of fish feasting on it. Those thoughts didn’t erase the thoughts that swirled around inside my head concerning my sister.
She had displayed affection for the beast. More than affection. They were somehow connected in a manner I didn’t understand. There are times when it is best for all to remain quiet, and this was one of them.
She said, “We need to pack.”
We’d come aboard with a change of clothing, our weapons, and food that we’d already devoured. The sun was high in the sky and Flier’s boat was due at midnight. I thought I’d have all of mine packed and ready within minutes.
Still, it gave me an excuse to go to my cabin and think things out, as well as taking a short nap. The getting ready part wouldn’t take long. Against my expectations, I slept long and hard. Kendra tapped on my door to remind me to eat because the galley was going to close. The porthole told me it was dark outside.
“Have you spoken to Elizabeth?”
“I have. She will sail with the ship and not go ashore here. We are to meet her in Dagger or make our way back to Dire after delivering the message to Avery.”
“That is making a lot of assumptions.”
“Meaning?” the tone of her voice warned me to be careful.
My reply was cautious. “We may not make it to Dagger—or she may not. What is the alternative plan? We also have Anna and Emma to think about, plus Flier. There are mages and sorceresses trying to stop us or kill us. There is a Council of Nine we know nothing about, we have no authority from our king to agree to anything, even if we ever face the right people. We don’t even know why we are going to Dagger.”
She slumped. It was not like her to be defeated without even trying, but since her first encounter with the damned dragon, her entire personality had shifted. The only reason we were on the ship was because we’d seen Elizabeth go aboard and believed she wanted us there with her.
She said wearily, “I have to go back to our cabin and get the girls ready.”
I watched her leave without comment. A few moments later, a tap at the door made me call to her in irritation, “Come in.”
It wasn’t Kendra, but a young boy who ran messages for the crew of the ship. He snapped to attention. “Sir, you have a guest at the gangplank.”
“Who is it?” The question was fair because the only person I knew in Trager was Flier, and if it was him, he would have come on board because he had paid passage. If it was anyone else, especially one who wanted to speak to me ashore, I saw no reason to talk.
The boy said, “He sent a message. He said, ‘I told you I’d see you in Kondor.’ You are supposed to know what that means.
I raced from the cabin, down the passageway, and paused when I caught a glimpse of a man wearing a robe that fell to his sandaled feet, a hood pulled over his head so low his eyes were obscured. He carried the crooked staff of office signifying a Wanderer priest.
Why would a priest want to speak with me? I didn’t know any. There had been a few passing through Dire over the years, but my memory couldn’t find a single instance where we’d spoken. As I approached, his stance was familiar.
The purser turned at my footsteps. “This priest says he knows you.”
It was Avery, my old nemesis from youth, and the personal servant of the next king of Dire. We were supposed to deliver a message from Kendra. He’s arrived in Trager but hadn’t had time to continue on to Kondor as intended. Now he was dressed as a priest, an occupation far from his tangled and unscrupulous background.
“Yes, we have met,” I told the purser carefully. Whatever Avery’s intentions, he was always loyal to his master and the crown. “Can he come aboard to talk to me for a while?”
“Certainly. Just make sure I remove him from my visitor list when he leaves. Keep him on the main deck, please.”
I said I would, thinking he might be the only visitor during the ship’s stay, so he would be easy to keep track of. With a nod, Avery was invited to stroll the main deck with me. He said nothing as we moved to an empty place near the anchor windlass where the deck was clear enough to ensure nobody was close enough to listen. Will lurked in a shadow. Avery probably didn’t notice him.
Avery said, “Your ship was turned back by a storm.”
I nodded.
“My ship sailed while the palace guards of Trager questioned me as a spy.”
“Did they recognize your robes?”
He smirked. “How could they not? I maintained my poise and admitted nothing of being a spy sent here by the evil Kingdom of Dire. More to the point, I have never seen a dragon and am not sure they exist, let alone a woman who commands one. Who would believe such nonsense?”
The last took me by surprise. The glint in Avery’s eye told me enough to guess at more. “They are searching for Kendra?”
“It appears the local king has appointed a small number of confidants to carry out the daily drudgery of ruling this decaying city. They are concerned about anyone traveling from the north to Kondor, and they are talking of a blockade to prevent interference from the north.”
“I think it is more than talk,” I muttered.
He settled himself on the deck in the cross-legged position common to penniless priests. His hand clutched the coiled staff cut from a thick vine that twisted and turned as it grew, then hardened into wood as solid as metal after cutting. Avery played the part well.
He continued, “A similar council rules Kondor.”
“The Council of Nine,” I filled in for him.
He seemed surprised by me knowing that. He said, “Certain information leads me to believe the King of Kondor is dead, as are all who would inherit the crown, and his power has been replaced by that council. The mages rule the council.”
“That coincides with what I’ve managed to find.”
He said wistfully, “I visited here once, and the yet-to-be king visited me at Crestfallen, this all happened when we were very young. With my master’s permission, we hunted and when not in the forests, chased after the most beautiful women in two kingdoms.”
I’d never heard rumors of that. Likewise, I’d never heard rumors of him lying. There was more to the story, and my eyes scanned the pier and shadows beyond while waiting. It was not long.
“I often posed as a priest while traveling. He was my acolyte, a private joke between only us. Nobody else knew of the ruse.”
Now, he grew agitated, as if waiting for something to happen. It was like tossing popper nuts into a campfire and waiting for them to explode from the heat. One might pop right away and send hot coals and sparks flying, another might last half the night—but sooner or later it would. The longer it took, the more the tension increased.
He said, “He was my friend. Is my friend. The man I know would never allow his city to fall into disrepair like this, yet all the information I glean tells me he is alive. I will remain here and attempt to make contact or rescue him.”
“And you want me to carry that information back to your master and king. Of course, I will.”