Dragons of the Watch - Donita K. Paul [127]
As they ate, Bealomondore became quiet.
“What’s wrong?” Ellie asked. “You’re shielding your thoughts. That makes me nervous.”
“I don’t want you listening to me worry. I had expected Wizard Pater to reach in a hollow of his robes and pull out the bottle. It never occurred to me that he would have misplaced it.”
“Tuck is a not as big a city as Rumbard. And I don’t mean in size. It never housed as many citizens as the city above.”
“It is still a sizable amount of territory to search. Once we’ve been through it in this perfunctory manner, we will have to do a second, more meticulous search.”
“Or … we could possibly find it on the first round.”
“Oh, it’s good to hear you being optimistic. I believe I’ve accused you of pessimism. I apologize. Today I’m the naysayer.”
Wizard Pater returned from his distribution to Old One and Yawn’s gang. Although he’d only been in the next room, he appeared tired.
“I shall take a nap. The mental exercise of my duties tires me.”
Ellie stood and hugged the old man. “We’ll try to keep the children quiet so they won’t disturb you.”
“No need for that, dear girl. If they suddenly go quiet, you’ll know I took the matter in hand.”
He waved as he wandered out of the dining room.
Ellie said, “I like him.”
“He’s very different from Wizard Fenworth.”
“How?”
“Fenworth is much older.”
Ellie’s eyes widened, and Bealomondore laughed.
“I know it is hard to fathom, but I think Fenworth might have been around when Wulder created our world.”
“Really?” Her voice squeaked.
“No, not really. He is just terribly, tremendously old.”
Hours later, after more unrewarded searching, Bealomondore and Ellie sat in a small room off the dining room and discussed whether or not some of them should go check on Old One.
Bealomondore didn’t want the group split up. “He’s managed without us for centuries.”
Wizard Pater came out of his rooms. “I had the most pleasant dream.”
They turned their attention to him.
“Don’t we have a child named Cinder?”
“Yes,” said Ellie.
“In the dream, Cinder found the bottle.”
A scuffle interrupted the wizard. The noise came from the hall. A moment later, Yawn appeared in the doorway, his arm wrapped around Cinder’s throat. “Well, he didn’t.”
“Let go of that boy,” commanded the wizard.
Yawn complied, looking surprised, as if his arm had loosened its grip of its own accord.
Cinder stumbled over to Ellie.
“I found it, Miss Ellie, but he has it now.”
“And I’m going to keep it. You were going to leave me and my gang in the city. Alone! Well, now we’ll leave you to rot down here. I’m gathering up my people and walking out of here. I’m going to shut and lock the door when I do.”
“How long have you been down here?” asked Bealomondore.
“Just this afternoon.” He made a face at them all. “We’ve been spying, and we’re good spies. Nobody caught us. We could have kept on spying forever, and you stupid people never would have known.”
“Do you want to go with us?” Ellie asked. “You could come live here. We have good beds, and you could help us search for the bottle.”
“I told you I have the bottle. Don’t you listen?”
“You said you have the bottle, but I haven’t seen it. And I don’t see a place where you could have put it away. You don’t have pockets, do you?”
“Of course I’ve got pockets.” He lifted up his shirt and dug in a side pocket to his pants. He pulled out the bottle and held it up. “See?”
The wizard took a step forward and spoke quietly. “Be still.”
Yawn froze, triumphant grin on his face, bottle held aloft.
Cinder charged forward and tackled Yawn’s arm, trying to pry the bottle from his clenched fingers.
“No need for that,” said the wizard.
“I can get it,” answered Cinder. “He’s letting loose.”
“I doubt that he could let loose in that short of time. It takes five minutes to even begin to move.”
“I—,” Cinder grunted.
The force of his struggle caused the stiff Yawn to wobble.
“I almost”—Cinder grunted again—“got it.”
His breath came out in a whoosh as he slipped the bottle out of Yawn’s fist.
Just as he turned to show his