The Crown and the Dragon by John D. Payne

Author:John D. Payne [Payne, John D.]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Literature & Fiction, Fantasy, Epic, Sword & Sorcery, Science Fiction & Fantasy
Amazon: B00EUF39UY
Publisher: WordFire Press
Published: 2013-08-27T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty

Aedin pinched her cheeks, but Elenn did not wake. She was cold as a stone, but still shivering, which meant that her body was still fighting against the water’s chill. He had to warm her up. She had been under a long time, and she looked deathly pale—even in the dim light of the cave.

Her wet clothes weren’t helping, but knew she wouldn’t be happy to wake up naked, given everything that had happened to her. Rotten, stinking Leif. And me, too, he thought. Never should have left the two of them alone.

Fire would provide heat, but it was dangerous. The cave had a natural vent somewhere, but the liquid curtain of the waterfall kept out most of the good air. Smoke would accumulate if he was not absolutely vigilant.

As he retrieved the flint and firewood that he had stashed here months ago, he wished that Elenn’s little songbird had not been lost. Watching the bird would have let him know if the air was going bad—a trick he had learned from brothers and cousins slaving in the mines for the Scales, fearing the chokedamp even more than their brutal masters.

After the fire was lit, Aedin dug a homespun wool blanket out of his cache, along with a couple of wolf skins. Aedin sniffed them. The dampness of the cave had not been good for them, but as far as he could tell they were free of fleas and lice. Laying down the skins near the fire, he set Elenn down on them and covered her with the rough blanket.

The fire was growing a bit large, so he removed two sticks. The stones near the fire were starting to warm, so he laid his own wet clothing there to dry. Shivering in his underclothes, he returned to the cache. The only thing left was a stained and threadbare linen tunic more Elenn’s size than his own. With difficulty, he tugged it on.

Stamping his feet and briskly rubbing his hands and arms to get the blood flowing, Aedin looked down at Elenn. In her tossing and turning, she had pushed off the blanket.

“Not what you’re accustomed to, Lady Adair,” muttered Aedin, “but they might save your life, so you’re just going to have to put up with the stink.”

He put the blanket back on her and lay down behind her and held her tight. She struggled weakly for a few minutes, but eventually slipped into a deeper sleep. He stayed beside her, thinking of the path ahead and getting up periodically to tend to the fire. When her warmth returned, perhaps an hour later, he got up and left her sleeping.

Aedin sat down and examined his sword and the two daggers. He wiped the blades clean and dry, and did the best he could with the scabbards. As he warmed up, the wounds in his shoulder and leg began to ache.

Somewhere outside the cave, he heard the distant cry of the dragon, out hunting. He wondered what it was hunting for.

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