Dimwater's Dragon (6 page)

She had always been prepared for them to come for Kyra. It seemed that monsters spawned from demons and hell always hunted out their ilk, even if they were only half-bloods, as Kyra was. She had been so careful to hide and protect her. How was it that the monsters seemed to have found her now? Or was it truly the dagger they sought?

Lady Caspen closed and locked the window. She took in a deep breath and calmed her nerves. If they were after the dagger, then surely they would stop coming around the manor now. If it was possessed by some evil enchantment, then the scent of its magic would no longer taint Caspen Manor.

Lady Caspen heard a scream from down the hall. It was one of the servants.

She rushed out and nearly threw herself down the main stairs, but when she reached the entryway she saw her husband standing with a perplexed look on his wide-eyed face holding a poker from the fireplace. To his right, Hilda, the maid, was standing on top of a chair and flinging her fingers about as she nervously chewed on her lower lip.

“What is it?” Lady Caspen demanded.

Lord Caspen pointed with the poker to a rather large rat cornered against the wall.

Lady Caspen was so relieved that she broke out into a soft laugh and turned to go back up the stairs. Her husband could deal with a rat, she had wards to finish that would ensure no more monsters came to the manor.

“Are you feeling better?” Lord Caspen called out after her.

Lady Caspen shook her head and continued back up to her room.

A week after the incident with the vampire, Lady Caspen found herself in the south parlor offering tea to the very man who had come to rescue her from the vampire those many years ago. Janik was a handsome man, albeit now disfigured. His left leg dragged behind him stiffly, and his left hand was curled backwards at the wrist like a fleshy hook. Perhaps that was why he wasn’t asking for Kyra’s hand himself. Instead he was negotiating with Lord Caspen to arrange the marriage between Kyra and Janik’s younger brother Feberik. If Janik was handsome with his dark hair and green eyes, Feberik was more so with eyes the color of the sky and dark brown hair with streaks of reddish blonde running through it. Feberik was large, and much wider at the shoulder than most other men. His black silk shirt only barely managed to cover his chest and shoulders without ripping at the seams. His smile was soft and kind and his voice was so deep that it almost resonated inside Lady Caspen’s chest when he spoke.

He was a fine catch for any woman, Lady Caspen knew, but it was highly unlikely that he would be suited for Kyra. For starters, although he was several years younger than Janik, Feberik was still twenty years older than Kyra. It wasn’t highly unheard-of for matches to be made with such differences in age, but Kyra was anything but the average young woman and she was not going to like it one bit. Still, Lady Caspen kept her mouth closed knowing that in this instance her silence would serve Kyra better than any protest she could offer.

Janik scooped a small teacup into his right hand and brought it up to his lips. “I do love mint tea,” Janik said just before taking a small sip.

“Yes, my wife has a way with mint tea.” Lord Caspen reached up to push the gold rimmed spectacles higher on the bridge of his nose. He then flattened the front of his shirt with his left hand and brushed a pair of crumbs off his left leg that he had somehow inadvertently dropped while eating a biscuit. “I must say that just last week we had several suitors come by,” Lord Caspen said in his nasally voice. He shook his head as if doubtful an arrangement could be made and then he leaned forward placing his empty teacup on the mahogany table before him. “The offers that were presented were, substantial.”

“More substantial than rescuing your wife?” Janik asked.

Feberik put a hand on Janik’s shoulder, and even from a distance Lady Caspen could see that Feberik was squeezing his brother’s shoulder to quiet him.

“Of course we have an offer to make as well,” Feberik said.

Janik slipped out from under his brother’s grasp and nodded. “Yes, of course, I only wish to remind Lord Caspen that some connections are deeper than gold.”

“It is true we go back quite a long time,” Lord Caspen agreed. “In part one could say that I owe not only my wife’s life to you, but my daughter’s as well. However, I should like to remind you that you were paid for your task. You do recall that I gave you title and deed to all of my wife’s properties that she brought upon our marriage, do you not?”

Lady Caspen hated sitting through these negotiations listening to her husband, the one man who should still be overjoyed at her return, casually talking about her as if she were nothing more than an artifact or perhaps a book that had been lost and then returned to him. No, she knew that was an unfair comparison. If he had a book lost and returned he would likely have spent more time with the book after it had been found. Still, she reminded herself that she wasn’t here to support him. She was here for Kyra. As smart as Lord Caspen thought he was, he needed her help negotiating a proper dowry.

“Yes actually I remember the property very well. I had thought that the property itself might make a good gift.” Janik said.

“No, that won’t do. Why, my husband had planned on giving those lands to our child, don’t you remember dear?” Lady Caspen offered a soft smile to her husband accompanied with a short, sly wink.

Lord Caspen nodded. “Quite right, I had intended that those lands would go to our future child from the day that I married my wife.”

Janik was about to say something, but before he could get the words out Feberik jumped in. “Then it is settled, the lands shall be returned in full to Kyra, as they had always meant to be. That is not the only thing that we offer, is it brother?”

Janik bristled, his face reddening slightly. He took another sip of tea and set the half empty cup the table in front of him. “No, it is most certainly not the only thing we bring to offer.”

“I do hope it is something fairly substantial,” Lord Caspen said. “Because Lord Higbee was here last week and he made an offer that I cannot in good faith refuse, except you are able to match it. Surely if you can match what he offered, no one can deny the balance to be tipped in your favor for services rendered in the past to House Caspen.”

Services rendered in the past.
Lady Caspen stifled her emotions as she had learned to do, taking in a deep breath through her nose and letting it out quietly so that nobody could see nor hear her displeasure.

“I can do better than that,” Feberik said. “Whatever Lord Higbee offered you, I will offer you an additional fifty percent more.”

Lady Caspen saw her husband’s nostrils flare and his eyes went wide for a fraction of a second. The only thing he loved as much as his books was gold. Lord Higbee had offered a lot of it. Still, Lady Caspen was not here to sit idly, she was here to broker a good deal for her daughter. So, under the guise of a sly, supportive wife she continued to bargain before her husband could open his mouth and accept the offer as it was.

“So if I understand correctly, you are offering to put the title and deeds to the property that used to belong to me into Kyra’s name. Then you will pay one hundred and fifty percent of the offer Lord Higbee offered.” Lady Caspen smiled and took a small sip of tea making sure her pinky stuck out from the cup as is proper. She then gently rested the cup back into the saucer and held it in her left hand. However, as she brought the cup away from her mouth, she whispered the words of a minor charm spell. All three men turned to listen to her. “It is a handsome dowry to be sure, but I wonder if it is a little dry. Kyra has four years at the Academy before she will be able to wed. It might be prudent if her future husband were to contribute to her expenses directly as well. Perhaps if you could find it in your ability to double Lord Higbee’s offer, then the additional fifty percent that I’m suggesting could be given directly to Kyra.” Lady Caspen looked to her husband and smiled sweetly before continuing. Then she glanced back to Feberik. “It is proper that the lady of the house should be able to administer all matters of the house. This additional amount to her dowry could be paid now in an effort to help her learn how best to manage funds of such a nature. Then, naturally as she is going to be your wife, whatever remains from her portion of the dowry by the time you wed returns back into your home and your treasury. It will show Kyra how much she means to you, and in turn it will help your wife become trained in the matters of home economics.”

Lady Caspen slid closer to her husband and placed a gentle hand on his knee. “I know that our finances have certainly benefited from me having a proper education on how to handle such matters. It leaves the husband free to work his profession without worrying about a steward who is unrelated. Isn’t that right darling?”

“Quite right,” Lord Caspen said. The greedy dog was almost salivating.

Even with the charm spell over the room, it took several minutes for Janik and Feberik to agree to the terms. In the end it was Janik, and not Feberik, who finalized the arrangement.

“I’m sure it will not be a problem.” Janik smiled and rose to his feet, thanking Lady Caspen for the tea and Lord Caspen for the hospitality. “We will send the portion of the dowry that is meant for Kyra upon our return home, including the titles and deeds to the land.”

Lord Caspen stood and nodded his head with a slight bow of his back. Lady Caspen remained seated and smiled as she nodded farewell. She watched her husband slowly show them to the door, accommodating Janik’s terrible limp. She couldn’t help but feel pleased with herself, for Lord Higbee’s offer was one of the largest dowries that had ever been negotiated in all of the Middle Kingdom. As much as Lady Caspen hated the thought, she knew that a beautiful young girl with magical abilities was a rare find among the nobility. The fact that she managed to not only double the monetary gain but include the lands she had lost when she married Lord Caspen made the negotiation very successful indeed.

Lady Caspen smiled wide and finished her tea, congratulating herself on Kyra’s behalf.

*****

Kyra stepped out from the coach and waved goodbye to Lucas, her family coach master. She turned a longing eye to the inside of the coach and wished that her mother had come with her. Kyra had never envisioned going to Kuldiga Academy alone. Her mother had assured her that her inability to attend the first day with her was due to events beyond her control. She had said there was business and matters of the utmost importance she had to tend to, but she hadn’t explained beyond that.

A pair of porters grabbed Kyra’s luggage and whisked the bags off to some place through a side entrance in the great, stone building before her.

She looked around and saw scores of young apprentices rushing about. Some with their parents, and others obviously returning to the academy after summer holiday and fully aware of where they were going.

The sea of students might have swallowed her if Feberik had not found her.

“I have been waiting for you,” he said with a warm smile.

Kyra returned the greeting with a forced smile. The man was huge. Each of his arms was larger around than her waist. Without warning or reason, the image of her being crushed under him on their wedding night exploded into her mind and caused her stomach to flip. She must have frowned or grimaced, because Feberik was there in a second, putting his arm around her.

“Are you alright?”

Kyra nodded and slid out from his embrace. “I am fine,” she said. “Just a bit tired from the road.” Feberik nodded empathetically and motioned to the large, open doorway.

“Come, I will show you into the auditorium. The headmaster will give the formal welcome soon.” He placed his massive hand on her back, covering far more of her back with his giant paw than allowed her to feel comfortable. “I won’t be able to stay long. I have some matters I need to attend to, but I should be back in the morning to check on you and make sure you are settling in alright.”

Kyra maintained a stoic expression on her face, but inside she was screaming for air. Couldn’t he wait until after she graduated to smother her? Was she to be watched and guarded for the next four years to ensure she was safely delivered up to the altar?

At least he stopped talking. He finished guiding her to the auditorium in silence and then bade farewell after showing her to a seat in the very front row, staying with her just long enough that she was more than certain everyone coming into the auditorium saw it. It was all she could do to look at the podium a few yards in front of her and pretend as though she were somewhere else.

She didn’t bother listening to, or even looking at the headmaster during his welcome. He wasn’t really saying anything she didn’t already know anyway. He started by explaining that Kuldiga Academy was founded to train a corps of wizards to fight necromancers and shadowfiends many centuries ago. It was then expanded to train scholars, healers, swordsmen, and archers as well. Every child in the Middle Kingdom knew that. It was the subject of many bedtime tales and ingrained in every noble. Kyra slumped forward and leaned her head onto her hands and waited for it to end. She was probably as well versed in the history of Kuldiga Academy as the headmaster himself, maybe even more so. Her mother had always made it a point to recite the training program to Kyra ever since she had shown aptitude for magic.

All those years she had waited to share this moment with her mother, and now she was here alone. Except she wasn’t really alone, she had a giant fiancée chaperoning her around like some prized animal taken in a grand hunt.

This was not how it was supposed to be.

It wasn’t about to get any better for her either.

Over the first couple of days there, news of Feberik’s betrothal to her spread through Kuldiga Academy faster than a wildfire in dry brush. The apprentices who didn’t outright ignore her teased her mercilessly. It was more than difficult to maintain control over her anger. Kyra had always had a problem with her temper, but now she was finding it harder than ever to regulate. She kept thinking on her mother’s words that she had often repeated during Kyra’s early childhood. Even when she was able to put on a stoic expression and let the teasing roll off her back, she found herself imagining blasting the snobby brats into a wall.

She tried to tell Feberik about the others, but he seemed not to hear her complaints. She asked him to give her some space, but every morning he came with flowers to her room, and every night he came to make sure she had found her way to her dorm. His routine only served to fan the rumors of impropriety.

On the last day of her fourth week, she decided she was going to let Feberik have it. Once and for all she was going to end the rumors, and demand her space. She knew she was betrothed, but that didn’t mean she was shackled to him, not yet anyway.

Kyra paced back and forth in her dorm, mumbling to herself as she recited the words she was going to say. The other three girls in her room just watched her silently, sitting on their beds.