Chapter 12
CHAPTER TWELVE
I couldn't help but poke my head out the carriage window for the two-dozenth time. The vehicle was a large affair with two seats opposite one another. Raines sat atop the box with a pair of fine brown steeds to pull us along.
The scenery was completely unfamiliar to me and so was all the more exciting to behold. We passed through the forest where I had been kidnapped by the trio and their traitorous horsemen. I couldn't help but study the spot where their wagon had been parked and look over my shoulder at my host.
"How did you get their wagon to the border of your land?" I asked him.
Thorn smiled at me. "The muscle in my original form is not merely for show. I could have pulled a dozen of such wagons without issue."
A thought struck me and I cocked my head to one side. "How far do your lands go?"
He nodded at the tops of the hills ahead of us. "To the peaks of those mountains. There's a small village nestled at the foot just past the groups of rocks described by the man named Sergio. We can rest for a spell before climbing the steep trail, and the waterfalls that surround their homes are a treat to behold."
I lifted an eyebrow. "So they're on your land? Then do they pay you rent for their homes?"
He shook his head. "I don't ask for money and my kind has little need for food. What I ask for is for them to guard the roads that pass through their villages, and if the threat is too great then I ask that they contact me so I might handle the matter."
"Have you had to do that?" I wondered.
Thorn pursed his lips. "Only a few times, mostly in matters of those creatures who are like me."
"You mean other dragons?"
"I refer to other fantastical creatures such as those we call unicorns and trolls," he revealed.
My mouth dropped open. "You have unicorns and trolls?"
He lifted his eyebrows. "You know of them?"
"Is one like a horse but with a horn, and the other a really ugly tall man-like creature?"
"Just exactly right. One might cause mischief whenever it passes through an area, and the other nearly always threatens to wreak havoc on the populace by capturing and eating them."
I winced. "Wow. That's. . .that's bad, but what kind of mischief can a unicorn cause besides overgrazing an area?"
A ghost of a smile touched his lips as he shook his head. "The trouble with unicorns is not that they cause a scarcity of grass but that they cause an inundation of the same. The fields bloom with grass and flowers, so much so that the roads and even thatched roofs become thick with the plants. Houses have been known to collapse under the potent power of the horned horse."
I stared ahead with wide eyes. "I had no idea they were such a menace."
"Not always, but one must be weary around a creature that exudes the natural elements."
I couldn't help but examine him. "So are you that kind of creature? And are there other fantastical creatures that can take the form of humans?"
"Some unicorns may take the shape of humans," he admitted as he brushed a hand over one of his horns. "But like many of my dragon kin, they also have difficulty removing the evidence of our true forms."
I lifted my eyes to his horn and imagined someone walking around with a horn protruding from their forehead. A snicker escaped me before I could purse my lips shut. "That must be awkward for some of the funnier creatures."
A crooked smile slipped on his lips. "The basilisk often have problems hiding their fangs which gives them the appearance of having a rather noticeable overbite."
The creature he mentioned rang a bell. "A basilisk is some kind of snake, right? And it can turn people to stone?"
"They are very large snakes, but the ability to turn to stone is merely a myth. The deadliness of their venom, however, is not a myth."
"And when they're human their fangs still stick out from their upper lips?"
"Slightly protrude, yes."
I snorted. "And I thought you had it bad."
His gentle eyes studied me. "On the contrary, I find myself very fortunate."
I blushed under his attentive gaze, which also brought a question to my mind. "Do the other mythical creatures look for brides? Or grooms?"
Thorn shook his head. "No. Dragons are, as far as I'm aware, the only ones who search for mates among humans, and as there are no women born to us we need only look for brides."
I blinked at him. "None at all?"
"Unfortunately, no."
I stared ahead and knitted my eyebrows together. "Wow. An entire species of men."
"We don't consider ourselves as such," he countered with that gentle look on his face. "Our brides are a part of us. We are whole only after we have found them."
"And after they've drunk your blood?" I guessed.
"There is an intimate connection after the bride has tasted her dragon's blood, but the wooing process is also important." He leaned close to his window and looked out the glass. "But it appears we've nearly reached Ainsley."
"The what?"
"The small village I mentioned. You can see it just on the horizon of the road."
I scooted close to him and leaned toward the door to catch a glimpse. The heavily wooded forests thinned some quarter mile ahead of us on the straight road and I glimpsed the tops of high-peaked roofs with wooden shingles. Smoke streamed out of stone chimneys and the din of life rang in my ears.
The carriage hit a bump in the road and I lost my balance. I let out a yelp and dropped into Thorn's lap. A soft chuckle rumbled through me and I twisted my head around to find myself staring up into Thorn's bemused face.
I sheepishly smiled up at him as he helped right me. "Sorry about that."
He shook his head. "On the contrary, the pleasure was all mine."
We crested the short hill atop which sat the picturesque village of Ainsley. About four dozen houses occupied the quaint town, all situated at different angles from one another and with the road being the singular straight point. Each was slightly different in size and shape from the others, but they all had stone walls and thatched roofs. Simple glass windows offered a peek into small but comfortable family rooms with bedrooms jutting out at different points in the walls. Many had small gardens out back and a dozen even had paddocks where sheep, pigs, and horses munched on their feed.
The carriage stopped in front of the largest building in the village which I assumed was their community center. Thorn helped himself out when he turned and offered me a hand.
I stepped down from the carriage and wrinkled my nose. "Does it always, um, smell this fragrant?"
I expected to smell the usual odor of animals and dirt. What I didn't expect was a stench as stale as two-month-old bread and with all the charm of an ultra-stinky cheese. The smell didn't come from any particular point, either, but seemed to linger to the entire village.
A dark cloud settled on Thorn's brow as he studied the small village. "Quite the contrary. I've always known the residents to keep their paddocks and houses clean, but I see no sign of laundry and the paddocks are in desperate need of-"
"My Lord!" The shout came from down the street. A man on the wrong side of middle age hurried over to us. He was dressed in a soiled fur coat and his face was unwashed. Even his shoes were stained with a week's worth of mud. He reached us slightly out of breath, but still made the effort to bow at the waist. "Your visit is most unexpected!"
"It's a pleasure to see you again, Mayor Helmsley," Thorn returned as the man straightened. "But what has become of the village?"
The old man sighed and all the spirit seemed to leave him. "My sincerest apologies, My Lord. You see, there is a, well, a problem at the Falls."
I noticed Thorn tense a little. "What sort of problem?"
"Harpies have taken them over."