The Fourteenth Key (The Chronicles of Terah Book 3) (82 page)

“Actually, sir,” Marshall said hesitantly, “I was hoping I could talk to you for a minute, if you have the time.”

“Sure, come on.” Chris walked over to Kevin’s office and opened the door. “Let’s talk in here.”

Marshall walked into Kevin’s office and looked around, not sure whether he should sit or stand. Chris sat down, and motioned for Marshall to have a seat, too. “What’s the problem?”

“I was wondering if you could find someone else to take care of Nikki for Myron.”

“Why? I was under the impression you and Nikki got along pretty well while you were at Kyle’s. Have you changed your mind about working with dogs?”

“No, sir, and you’re right. Nikki and I get along great. That’s not the problem.”

“What is the problem then?”

“I don’t think Myron wants me to take care of her, sir.”

“What gave you that idea?”

Marshall paused a moment. “The way he looked at me whenever he dropped by while I was at Kyle’s. It was like he didn’t want me anywhere near his dog, and if he feels that way, you need to find someone else to take care of Nikki.”

Chris sat back in his chair and looked at the teenager. “I didn’t see the look, but I have a feeling I know what you’re talking about. I think you may be misreading it.”

“How, sir?”

“I think he was envious. You were staying with Kyle. Myron loves to go up there. He usually can’t manage to be there for more than half an hour at a time, and he can’t go very often, but it’s one of his favorite places in the world, and you were spending a whole week there.”

Marshall frowned, but he didn’t say anything.

“And you were spending all day with his dog, something he hasn’t been able to do yet, and you did it for a whole week.”

The corners of Marshall’s mouth quivered like he wanted to grin.

“And because you were there with Nikki and Kyle, you know more about how to handle her than he does, and I know that doesn’t sit well with him. He wants to be the one taking care of her, playing with her, teaching her.”

“And he should,” Marshall said. “I didn’t mean to take over. I’m sorry.”

Chris shook his head. “You’ve only done what you were asked to do. He knows he can’t always be around to take care of her. He doesn’t like it, but he knows it.”

“I understand what you’re saying, but maybe someone else would be better, someone he knows better than he knows me, someone he trusts. I think you need to find someone else.”

Chris shook his head. “It wouldn’t make any difference.”

Marshall didn’t look the least bit convinced. “I think you’re wrong, sir. When I got back I saw him out at the stable one day, so I showed him a crate I’d made for her. It’s pretty large, with slats like we have for the horses, so she can see out. I had a blanket over a bed of straw and a water bucket tied to the side, same as I do the feed buckets for the horses. I thought it would be a good place for him to leave her when he goes across the river to work out in the mornings, or if he needed to leave the castle and I wasn’t in the stable. But Myron said he didn’t want her stuck in a cage and walked off before I could explain.”

Chris took a deep breath and sighed. “Would it make you feel better if I ask him outright how he feels about you working with Nikki?”

Marshall nodded. “And if he’s as against the idea as I think he is, will you find someone else?”

“Yes, but I think you’re wrong. I think you’re the perfect choice, and that crate was a good idea.”

“Kyle said I needed some safe place for her in case of an emergency, that she wouldn’t just stand there in the stable and wait for me to get back if I wasn’t there. He knows I work with horses too, so he knows I might be out exercising one of them when Myron has to leave. The crate was the safest thing I could come up with.”

“Well, I think it’ll work just fine, and once Myron slows down enough to think about it, so will he. Trust me. It’s all going to work out.”

~ ~ ~ ~

Kevin was in no mood for a practice session with Glendymere. He was much more interested in getting to Kyle’s and picking up Nikki. Today was the day when she was going home with him for good.

He missed her, and that surprised him. She’d only spent three nights at the castle, but when she wasn’t there he missed having her stretched out on the rug at his feet while he and Chris talked about the day. When she was around, his mornings started off with a smile as she jumped up, ready and eager to greet the day. Even his magic was better on those mornings.

Too bad this wasn’t one of them. He’d already messed up a couple of returns, missing his target by what felt like a country mile. If he kept this up, Glendymere was going to insist on extra practice, and he still had to work with Rhianna on tornadoes after he finished with Glendymere. He never would get to Kyle’s to pick up Nikki.

As his frustration grew, so did the number of mistakes.

Finally Glendymere just quit.
“What’s going on with you today? You’re acting like a complete novice!”

“Sorry.”

“So? Are you going to answer my question?”
When Glendymere didn’t get an answer, he opened his mind and let Kevin’s thoughts flow in.
“Ahh, you pick up your dog today.”

Kevin grinned. “I’ve wanted a dog all my life, and Kyle found one for me. Glendymere, she’s terrific! You have to meet her.”

“For some reason, I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”

“Why not?”

“Myron! I’m a dragon! Dogs don’t like anyone with big sharp teeth hanging around their humans. I’ll settle for the picture of her I see in your mind. What is she? Four or five months old?”

Kevin nodded as his grin spread from ear to ear. “She’s so full of life, and so much fun to have around. I can’t wait to get her settled in for good.”

“Chris feels the same?”

Kevin nodded.

“Good, because I have a feeling he’s going to be the one looking after her.”

“No, we’ve got someone to take care of her when I’m away. Kyle took him home with him for a week and taught him how to work with Nikki.”

“And checked him out to see if he’d be a good match for both the dog and you, no doubt,”
Glendymere said with a nod.
“All right. Let’s call it a day before you end up getting yourself killed. We’ll try again Tuesday. Are you working with Rhianna today?”

Kevin nodded. “From what she told me, Landis has found her connection with the wind and doesn’t need storms anymore. Rhianna wants me to teach her to calm a tornado down.”

Glendymere frowned.
“I didn’t realize Rhianna knew how to make a tornado.”

“She doesn’t. Today will be her first experience with them.”

“So you’re going to make one for her to try to calm down?”

Kevin nodded.

“Where’s Chris? Did you drop him off at the cave?”

For a moment, Kevin didn’t know what Glendymere was talking about, and then it hit him. Chris. He couldn’t build a tornado without a lookout. He needed Chris. He knew that, but it hadn’t even crossed his mind this morning. Not good. Not good at all. “Uh, no. He had some work to do. I’m going by the castle and pick him up before I get Rhianna.”

Glendymere gave him a look that said he wasn’t fooled at all.
“Are you sure you’re up to working with her? I don’t want my canyon lands destroyed by some rogue tornado you let get out of control.”

“I’ll be fine. Honest,” Kevin said. “Chris will be here.”

Glendymere looked Kevin up and down again.
“I want a word with him before you head back out here.”
Glendymere turned his key and left for home.

A couple of minutes later, Kevin was in his office back at the castle. He wiped his hands over his face and shook his head. He had to focus. He couldn’t afford to let his concentration slip. He opened his door to see if Chris was in.

Chris was at his desk going over the most recent letters from aspiring sorcerers, marking the ones he wanted Elin to send applications to and setting those to the side. The others he divided into two stacks. The first stack was letters that had all the information they needed so a formal application wasn’t necessary. The second stack, the larger of the two, was for the ones he would send a short note to stating there were no vacancies at this time, but feel free to write again next year. Maybe most, if not all, would either find something else or gain a little experience during the intervening year.

“Chris, can you help me with something?” Kevin asked from his doorway.

Chris gathered the letters, crisscrossed the stacks, and put them back in his bottom drawer. He headed into Kevin’s office. “Sure, what’s up?”

“I’ve got to make a tornado for Rhianna, and I need you to spot.”

Chris nodded and put his hand on Kevin’s arm.

Glendymere was waiting for them when they got to Willow Canyon.
“Chris, I’d like a word with you,”
Glendymere told Chris privately. Then he told Kevin to go get Rhianna. After Kevin headed into the cave, Glendymere said,
“Keep a close eye on him today. His mind isn’t on what he’s doing. It’s on the pup.”

Chris broke into a big smile. “Nikki. She’s a terrific dog, Glendymere.”

Glendymere sighed.
“Not you, too.”
He shook his head.
“Keep your mind on what you’re doing and keep an eye on him. You better not let him destroy my canyon lands. And make sure his focus is better at our next practice. Another day like today, and it may be his last!”

Chris’s smile faded. “Understood.”

“Good!”
Glendymere stood up.
“Now I’m going to take a nap.”

~ ~ ~ ~

Kevin focused a lot better with Rhianna than he had with Glendymere, partly because he didn’t want to give her any more reason to find fault with him. She was still angry with him for not locking up the informants.

He made three tornadoes in all, letting her watch him build and calm the first one, and then letting her try to calm the other two. She soon realized the same thing Kevin had when he’d first started working with them. She could try to control them, or attempt to calm them, but not both. In the end, Kevin ended up calming both. But it wasn’t bad for a first try.

When he and Chris made it back to the office, Kevin was ready to go get Nikki, but Chris stopped him. “We need to talk.”

“Now?” Kevin frowned. “Can’t it wait?”

Chris shook his head and told Kevin about Marshall’s concerns, mentioning the feeling he’d gotten while he was at Kyle’s that Kevin didn’t want him anywhere near Nikki.

Kevin sat down in his chair and closed his eyes. “I have no idea how I was looking at him. I know I was jealous as all get out, but that’s not his fault. He didn’t do anything wrong, and they seem to get along great, which is another thing I’m a little envious about. He can do more with her than I can.”

“At this point, yes, but in time …”

“I know. It’s not his fault I don’t want to share her. And it’s not his fault I have a job that always gets in the way. I’m grateful he’s going to be there to pick up the slack.”

“Maybe you should let him know that.”

“How? Just tell him? He’ll know you told me what he said.”

“I told him I was going to ask you point blank if you wanted someone else. He wanted me to. He wants to take care of her, but only if it’s all right with you. Kevin, he’s a good kid, and he doesn’t want to offend you.”

“I’ll take Nikki out to see him this afternoon and find a way to let him know I’m glad he’s willing to watch her for me.”

“And you might take a moment to look at the crate he made for her and tell him it’s a good idea,” Chris said. When he saw Kevin start to argue, he added, “Which it is, by the way.”

Kevin started shaking his head. “I don’t want her spending her life in some cage.”

“You didn’t give him a chance to explain, did you?”

Kevin hesitated. “I don’t guess I did. The word crate jumped out at me and I had this mental image of a dog languishing away in a small cage, out of the way, off by herself, no one caring about her except when it was time to show her off.”

“Some memory from your childhood?”

Kevin nodded.

“Well, that’s not what he has in mind. Ask him about it. Let him explain. I think you might be surprised.”

“All right,” Kevin said as he stood up. “Now, can I go get my dog?”

Chris laughed. “Go.”

Chapter 68

Meanwhile at Mikos's Cave

By Sunday morning, Mikos had three large boxes of cargo ready to take to Camden. If his mother refused to take them, they’d find something along the way to use for cargo. Stealing wasn’t his strength, but with his life in the balance, he’d do it. He wanted to find out who had the key and get back to Landoryn as fast as possible.

Devron, on the other hand, was looking forward to the trip. He’d known Mikos since they were boys, and had been his assistant since he’d taken over the slave business. But Devron had never been out of Landoryn. Until they’d come to the mines, he’d never been out of the town he’d been born in. And since they’d come here, he’d lived underground. He wanted to see something besides cave walls. He wanted sunlight.

Over the past few years Devron had watched Mikos come and go. He’d processed the slaves that were brought in, matched them to requests for manpower, and sent them on their way. He’d considered persuading Mikos he needed someone to supervise the raiders, but he didn’t want to be a slaver. The thought of a prison cell was enough to squelch that idea. The caves were bad enough. At least here he had the hope of getting out one day.

And today was that day. Devron was excited. He’d been waiting since daybreak and it was nearly dinnertime. “When do you think Gwendolyn will show up?” he asked Mikos for the umpteenth time.

Mikos shook his head. “I have no idea. She may not even show, but if she does, don’t forget your manners.”

“We haven’t been stuck out here that long.”

Right after Devron said that, the air shimmered and Gwendolyn appeared. Devron fell to his knees with his head bent. Mikos, on the other hand, stood up. “Mother.”