That shut her up and hopefully ended the conversation. We continued walking through the evergreen forest in silence, but as we did, she drew slightly away from me, slowly edging away until she was a full step to my side. She wasn’t aware of it. While normally so intelligent and quick to grasp ideas, this time was different. She hadn’t thought it through, which was not like her. She was not embarrassed, but angry with herself. Her jaw clenched, her fingers curled into small fists, and worst of all, I’d been right, and she was wrong. I’d pay for that indiscretion at some point.
Simply because my character is that of a rascal and today I felt the desire to oppose her in a brotherly manner, I puckered in preparation to whistle a cheery tune in hopes of cheering her. My head turned to catch a glimpse of my sister and noticed her scowling at me. My lips suddenly felt too dry to whistle. “Want to tell me what’s going on?”
“You’re butting into my business, that’s what’s going on,” Elizabeth snarled.
She’d taught me to read meaning into posture and tones, beyond bare words. It was not anger she spewed but worry. The subject of me hadn’t bothered her at the palace, so the root was more recent. The only unexpected knowledge we shared came from Lord Kent and Princess Anna trying to race us to Mercia.
No, it was not that, or not precisely the race, but Lord Kent himself. He was five years younger than Elizabeth, and she had always known him as a petulant little boy she could make do most anything with a smile and turn of her chin. Now, he was almost grown and riding off to a strange city—with another princess. Elizabeth was fighting growing pains.
The combination of jealousy, awareness, aging, perception, and reality made for a dreadful soup to swallow on a cold night. It wasn’t me that needed to change. It was her. A fool I might be. However, I would never tell her what was in my mind today and force her ire.
There was also the issue of Avery, the Heir Apparent’s servant sneaking out of the palace on that farm-horse. He’d ridden right past me, and there was no mistaking his surprise in finding me standing there watching him. At any other time, he’d have taken time out from his duties to tease or taunt me. The fact he didn’t, told me more than mere words. I had forgotten to mention all I read into the encounter to Elizabeth and would have to correct that oversight.
Tater still rode, the ugly little dog trotting in front of him for a change. He called back to us, “I’d like to make it a little farther today being it’s the first one, and we’ll be too tired to press on tomorrow.”
Princess Elizabeth grumbled like no princess I’d ever heard, but she waved him on. For me, my tongue had wagged enough for one day. I caught a nod of approval of my silence from Kendra. The afternoon had warmed, but as the sun went down a chill filled the air. My hand stroked Alexis’s neck. Getting a few steps away seemed a good idea, and the nearest blanket was on the packhorse. After fetching the thing, it went over my head like a hood and covered my arms and chest.
“You look a fool,” Kendra said.
“A warm fool,” I snickered in the way only brothers can do with their sisters. She rolled her eyes in the way only sisters can do to brothers, so we were even. In the past, I’d have believed I’d won the war of wits and words, but now knew better.
I took the reins for Alexis from Kendra and climbed into the saddle, blanket and all. Elizabeth still walked, lost in her thoughts of intrigue, power, and probably lust. I believed she had been thinking a lot about that last item in the past months. Every girl of her age in the palace had married, and many were raising children.
While lost in my thoughts about Elizabeth’s lust, I heard the whisper of wings beating and coming closer. The thick forest of evergreens prevented me from seeing another dragon approaching. When it burst into view over us, it flew so low it seemed we could have thrown a rock into the air and struck it.
But what really scared me was not the rows of jagged teeth, the maniacal red eyes, or the sharp talons as long as my forearm. No, what scared me was that it hadn’t looked at me, Elizabeth, Tater, or the dog, or any of the horses. From the instant it came into view, those dragon-eyes were locked only on my sister.
CHAPTER TEN
Kendra watched with rapt attention as the dragon flew over us, almost as much as it paid to her. It was a beast as heavy as a house. When it flew over us so low the wind from its wings was felt. A person like me can be forgiven for forgetting small details like the proper name of the beast or distinguishing the difference in wyverns and dragons. I quickly glanced at Elizabeth and Tater, to see if they’d observed the same things I had.
Neither appeared aware of the dragon’s interest in Kendra, or they hid it well. I made a mental note to find more time alone with Kendra and discuss the incident, the third incidence I’d seen a dragon—and each time it gave the impression it was almost obsessed with Kendra, yet they were three different wyverns.
Tater said, “Just wait a couple of more days, and we’ll see them everywhere. When we get to Mercia, you can see a few in the air anytime you bother to look up.”
I didn’t doubt Tater, but if he was telling the truth, I wondered if all of them would fly closer to get a good look at my sister. My imagination ran wild. In it, I saw ten wyverns flying about their dragon business, and Kendra walking from a building into a courtyard. All ten twisted and swerved in the air to dive at Kendra before flying off.
The daydream didn’t end there. She held up kittens, one at a time. The wyverns swept down and snatched them from her hand, each taking a turn, never doing harm to her, and each wyvern ate the kitten as a snack. She controlled them as they flew to her. They were her protectors. She was theirs.
The daydream took me by surprise, and the images were so transforming I nearly fell from my saddle. Pushing it from my mind proved difficult.
I glanced behind with guilt foremost in my action. Kendra or Elizabeth would mock me for days if they knew my thoughts. Not to worry, Elizabeth rode at ease on her horse, as comfortable as if she sat on a velvet cushion in her drawing room.
Kendra rode stiffly, her fingers white as she grasped the reins too hard in the near darkness. Her back was straight, her lips tight, but her eyes drew me to them. While open, she didn’t see me, or anything around us. A little stream of spittle dripped from the corner of her mouth and ran unchecked down her chin.
If anything, Kendra was more fastidious than Elizabeth, and half the royalty in the palace. I’d seldom seen a smudge on her face, dirty fingernails, or spittle dripping onto her shirt. I pulled to the side of the trail and said to Elizabeth, trying to draw attention to me and away from Kendra, “Is all well with you? The travel is tiring?”
“Yes,” she responded cheerfully, “I’m fine.”
“I’ll go check with Kendra.” My sister’s horse was leading the string of packhorses by a tether tied to her saddle. I pulled Alexis to a stop. Elizabeth rode on past me without glancing behind. My sister’s horse kept pace with Elizabeth’s, but not by Kendra’s efforts. Her eyes were still dull and fixed, and the horses knew what to do.
When she drew beside me, I reached out and touched her shoulder. She didn’t react. I gave her a gentle shove. Nothing. On impulse, my palm slapped her cheek, hard.