Chapter Three

Leasharra was on her way back to the Kingdom of Valdis once again after spending a few months learning all she could about spy craft. She had said goodbye, properly this time, to her parents and friends and embarked on her mission with a clear conscience and eager heart.

Leasharra had really felt something when she'd first sighted little Penny, and she had wanted to pursue it ever since. After spending time in the fair folk enclave and among the snow dragons and their heartmates, she thought she understood what it was that drew her to Penny, but she wouldn't know for certain until she saw the girl again. At that point, Leasharra would make the decision whether to proceed with her half-formed plan or seek another solution.

Either way, she wanted to help the child. And the child's mother, who seemed to Leasharra to be much more misunderstood than anybody believed. Lea had spent time with Loralie's little boy, Petr. Only the fair folk knew who his mother was, and they didn't speak of it openly since the subject was a very sore one with the child's father, Detlif. As Captain of the Guard, Detlif was on the Council of Elders and was from a very powerful family as well. He had raised Petr, with the help and support of his extended family, but his heart seemed hard and unforgiving toward the woman who had dumped his son at his doorstep without much explanation.

Detlif didn't seem to know about Penny. As far as Lea had been able to observe, he was focused solely on his son. She thought, though, that if he knew about Penny, he would take her in as well. He might be a hard man, but he wasn't a monster.

Which gave Lea hope that, if she was able to rescue Penny, she might be able to seek sanctuary with the fair folk and the child's father. He surely wouldn't turn her away.

And so, Lea flew to Valdis Maj, the capital city of the Kingdom of Valdis with a contingent of knights and dragons who were going there to help train the newly-made knights—and ladies—of Valdis, who were starting to partner with the ice dragons that had recently ended their self-imposed exile and returned to the lands of men. The ice dragons had formed an alliance with King Alric of Valdis and brought their ice caves into his expanded kingdom.

But they didn't really know how to work with human partners, which was where the new alliance with Draconia came in handy. Dragon-knight pairs had been flying over the perilous mountains known as the Dragon's Teeth at regular intervals since the alliance had been formed. They had been training the ice dragons and their chosen partners in flight maneuvers and other aerial stratagems for a while now, and all seemed to be going well.

Leasharra was able to tag along with the group going to Valdis to replace the one that had just returned. Lea planned to stay in Valdis only long enough to get her bearings and figure out her next move. She thought, perhaps, she would first check on Penny, to see if the child was still in the same place. Lea thought that by seeing Penny again and taking time to examine her reaction to the girl, she might be able to discover whether that impulse to rescue that Lea had felt upon first seeing the child was still as strong.

If Penny was there, and if the instinct to bond with her was still present, then Lea would look for Loralie. She knew that, if at all possible, Loralie would not be far from Penny. Once Lea found Loralie, and if there was time, she wanted to discuss her strategy with the child's mother. Lea had seen first-hand how protective Loralie was of her daughter. It would be far better to have Loralie's agreement with any action Lea decided to take.

The trip to Valdis wasn't bad. They had to fly very high over the mountains, and it was definitely harder on the knights than on the dragons. The party had to stop often to allow the knights a chance to thaw out a little, eat and rest before pressing onward, but they were in no real rush. It would take a few days to cross the mountains, and then, they'd be within the borders of the Kingdom of Valdis. The flight to the capital would take a few days more.

If not for the Prince of Spies impressing Lea with the importance of treating their new alliance partners with respect, Lea would have headed straight for the last place she'd seen Penny. But Prince Nico had worked closely with Lea while she'd trained in Castleton, and she understood why it was important to defer to the local authority—including the local dragons—when she was operating in a foreign land.

Lea was a loyal citizen of Draconia, and she wouldn't want her actions to put her homeland in a bad light.

After the formal reception by the King at the castle, Leasharra was invited to stay with the dragons Bathshera and Salveer in the newly expanded space between Isolde's glassmaking shop and the old temple that General Brighton had taken to use as his new army headquarters building. They'd been fixing the place up for dragons, and since both Shera and Salveer were closer to Leasharra's age, they had already become friends on Lea's first foray to Valdis Maj.

She spent an enjoyable few days recovering from the trip across the mountains while spending time with Shera, Salveer and the many young glassmaking apprentices who lived in Isolde's glass shop. Each night, they played a game with the children in the large backyard of the glass shop, and some of the townsfolk came to watch and cheer them on from the rear of the shop.

Lea stood out among the snow and ice dragons with her flame-red scales, but she didn't mind. They were nice dragons, and the children were friendly and kind. Lea thought about how Penny should be living this kind of life. Enjoying her childhood with innocent games and not fearing what might come next.

"Penny for your thoughts."

Shera's voice came into Lea's mind, and she started at the first word. Then, she remembered that Bathshera was reputed to have the gift of clairvoyance. Something very rare among dragonkind. "What have you seen?"

Shera's head dropped in embarrassment, but her voice came through clear, if not very loud.

"A little human girl with a lot of magic," Shera said. "I don't really understand where she came from. It's clouded. But you know her, don't you?"

"I do," Lea confirmed.

"She's why you came back," Shera added, nodding.

"She is," Lea replied, wondering what else the young dragon had seen.

"She's very important to your future." Shera kept speaking, her tone soft and solemn. "She's very important to the future of this land and others. You must keep her safe!" At this, Shera looked up again to meet Lea's eyes.

"That's my plan, little sister. Do not worry," Lea tried to reassure the younger dragon.

"It will not be easy," Shera said. "The forces arrayed against the child are more powerful than anything that has been seen in these lands in eons. But the Guardian will stand between you and the evil one to protect the girl. But if she falls, I fear for you and the child as well. I cannot see beyond the confrontation. I cannot tell you how it will go. I'm sorry."

"That's all right. You just confirmed that my instinct to come back here was a good one. I can't leave Penny in the situation she's in. She is innocent. She should not be a pawn. She should have a chance to enjoy her childhood like these apprentices." Lea looked out at the field of playing children.

"They may look happy now, but each of these children has had a sad path that led them here. They are all orphans, taken in by Isolde," Shera revealed.

"They are?" Lea was surprised…and touched by the kindness of the glass artisan to open her home to so many orphaned children.

Shera was nodding. "So, you see, even after bad breaks, there is a hope for happiness. I will pray that your Penny has the same chance to find joy again."

"Thank you, sister. Your words give me some modicum of peace with my decisions to this point," Lea allowed.

"I'm glad," Shera responded gently. "I only wish I could tell you more."

Lea wondered at the phrasing the younger dragon used. Could she not tell more because she truly didn't see it? Or was she withholding her vision in hope of not tainting Lea's future actions? Lea had heard that seers often had to walk a fine line between saying too much and saying just enough. Either way, Lea had to leave it at that because it was Shera's turn to play the goal position in the ongoing game.

Lea watched the game play and thought deep thoughts about her intended actions. She would leave here tomorrow. She was more than ready to embark on the next part of her plan.

*

Leasharra peered through the clouds at the small town far below. She was approaching as cautiously as she could, employing some of her newly learned stealth skills to discover if Penny was still there.

Lea spotted her quarry on her fifth circle of the village, spying Penny walking through the backyard of a property near the edge of town. She was carrying a bucket and headed for the stream that flowed down out of the hills beyond the edge of the tree line. Gathering water?

Lea decided to land and approach through the trees on the opposite side of the stream. Her bright red hide was very visible on the ground, but the bushes and trees would help camouflage her somewhat.

Arriving as Penny filled her bucket and headed back toward the building, Lea crossed the stream and followed to the edge of the trees where she could get a better look. What she saw did not give her much comfort.

The building was run-down. Some kind of inn, though judging by the state of undress of the women lazing about the property, it was likely a bawdy house. What was Penny doing in such a place? She was just a child!

If not for the complicated nature of the problem, Leasharra would have stormed in and taken Penny away immediately. But she knew there were issues that had to be worked out before she acted. That thought firmly in mind, Lea set off to search for her next target. Lea had to find out exactly what was going on from Loralie and get the sorceress's agreement to Leasharra's strategy. That was the only way this would work. Loralie had to be in on the rescue, or she might very well interfere with Lea's plans.

Lea found Loralie, still inhabiting the same cave where she'd taken Lea after her injury. The sorceress didn't seem surprised to see Leasharra, merely inviting her into the cave while she brewed something over her small fire.

"I saw you overhead, though you did a good job of hiding yourself among the clouds," Loralie said as she sat down across from the dragon with a mug of tea in her hands. "What brings you back? Did you not make it home after all?"

"I did," Lea said, somewhat unsure of herself. This wasn't the reception she'd expected at all. "I spoke to my elders about Penny's situation, and I have a plan that I need your cooperation with if it is to succeed."

Loralie looked up sharply, putting down her mug on the stone floor. "What sort of plan?"

"I saw where Penny is living," Lea said first, her tone full of sorrow. "What has happened since I was last here?"

Loralie sighed heavily. "Gebel is trying to force my hand. He wants me to do something that I refuse to do, and he moved Penny from the decent home she'd been in to that place," she nearly spat the word, "just two days ago."

"Then, I have arrived just in time." Leasharra settled back on her haunches. "I propose to take Penny to safety."

"I wish you could." Loralie responded, shaking her head sadly. "But Gebel has his hooks in her, and try as I might to sever the connection, I have failed at every attempt."

"I think I have a way to break that connection," Lea offered quietly.

"How?" Loralie looked both suspicious and hopeful.

"If she bonds with me, that will likely break any other bond. And my magic can hide her presence from any who might seek her."

Loralie was silent a long moment, just staring at the dragon. Then, she spoke, her voice very small and barely perceivable.

"You would do that? You would bind yourself to my daughter for as long as she lives? Do you realize the enormity of what you propose?"

"I do," Leasharra assured her. "I have thought about little else since first seeing Penelope. I talked it over with dragons in my land, including the Prince of Spies, Prince Nicolas. I want to be honest with you so you know this plan has been vetted at the highest level. I also observed your son, Petr, and his snow dragon heartmate."

"Petr has a heartmate?" Loralie asked, her eyes filling with moisture. "How is he?"

"He is well. Thriving now that he has joined his life to a dragon's. The things is," Leasharra said, getting to the crux of the matter, "I believe I can do for Penny what the young snow dragon does for Petr, shielding her existence from those who wish her harm. In fact, I propose to take her to the fair folk's enclave so she can live with her twin and her father, if that is agreeable to you. I cannot do any of this without your consent and cooperation."

Tears were running down the sorceress's face. She looked up at the dark ceiling of the cave, far above.

"Dear Goddess. I have prayed for a solution for so long," she whispered, the tears running out of her eyes and down over her jaw. "Now that it is upon me, I fear for the future. If I do this, I may never see my precious daughter again, but she will be safe." Loralie lowered her face and looked at the dragon. "If we do this, we should time it so that the enemy believes she is dead. That will aid you in both escaping and hiding her into the future."

That was something Lea had not thought about, but she saw the merit in the idea.

"What do you propose?"