Broken Bonds (Valerian's Cove Book 2)

by H. C. de Cossy

  Devra stood, stretched, and headed out the back door, her bodyguards following her. She looked out at the field, choosing an area in the back corner about the size of a football field. Moving to stand in the center of it, Devra closed her eyes. Every young dragon learned how to shield their hoard. It was a mixture of protection magic and illusion. This was easy.

  Devra envisioned a sphere of energy encasing the whole football-field sized area. She wove in elemental energies from all four elements, then included a strong golden energy for protection. She then raised a further shield over that. This shield acted as a mirror, reflecting interest in the area away. Unless you were invited and meant to be there, you would suddenly find yourself going in the opposite direction. You wouldn’t even remember why you had been there to begin with.

  Declan checked the shields and found them perfect. Even so, he added his own layer of protective magic. They wanted to keep harmful magic out as much as they wanted to keep Allie’s Fire magic in.

  When they were finished raising the shields, they tested them. Declan and Sean attacked from outside, while Devra Shifted and threw dragon fire around inside, directed at the shielding. Not surprisingly, it held. Having seen Luc in the field when she was younger, Devra added another layer of protection, then declared herself satisfied. The shields were done, the area secure. Allie had a safe place to train.

  Dusting her hands off on her pants, Devra left the practice area.

  “We can add each person’s energy to the shield’s as they arrive, so that it recognizes who is allowed in,” she said. “Let’s make it so that only we can add people, though.” She looked around.

  “Now, let’s go talk to the Fae.”

  18

  Devra found Nathaniel and Ciaran seated on the ground next to the patio, deep in meditation. Deciding to leave them to it, she found Celine in the kitchen. Devra sat at the table and placed her chin on her fists. She looked at Celine.

  “It will be interesting to see who among your children is able to master the Guardian shielding techniques,” Devra said.

  “I am excited to find out, as well. I have a question, though, if you don’t mind. I thought that there were several Guardians coming, including one from the Guardian Council who could tell us what is in the vault the Thorndikes are in charge of protecting. Do you have that information?”

  “No. Someone else will be along today, probably around lunch time. Which is in, like, soon, right? I’m starving. I decided to come early to get a head start. And like I said, I really wanted to meet you all.” She grinned up at Celine. Celine smiled back. Glancing at the clock, Celine saw that it was almost noon.

  “Do Dragons eat like normal people, or are we talking a feast here, my dear?” Celine asked.

  “We eat like normal Dragons. Half a cow each should do it,” Devra replied with a straight face. She ruined it by bursting out laughing at Celine’s expression.

  “We eat as much as two or three people, usually. The boys are bottomless pits. You’re lucky we are still in human form. We really would need almost a whole cow each in Dragon form. Declan could probably eat two.”

  Declan growled at her. She grinned back up at him, completely unrepentant.

  “Is there anything you prefer, or anything that you don’t like?” Celine asked.

  “No, we eat pretty much everything.”

  “Well, that makes it easier. I’ll see what I can do.”

  Glancing into the fridge and the pantry, Celine decided to lay out sandwich fixings, fruit and veggie plates, salads and chips. She drafted Sean to grill vegetables tossed in Italian dressing, and mixed up a batch of fresh hummus, and another one of raita for the veggies. Devra helped her set everything out. As they were slicing Celine’s excellent homemade bread and setting out plates, the doorbell rang. Answering it, Celine found Rose waiting outside.

  “I hope you don’t mind my stopping by unannounced,” Rose said.

  “Of course not. I was just setting out lunch. Would you like to join us?”

  “Thank you, that would be lovely. Are Mr. and Mrs. Senior here?”

  “No, I haven’t seen them yet this morning.”

  “They weren’t at the bed-and-breakfast, either. I hope that everything is ok.”

  “I’m sure it is. This is all rather a lot to handle. Maybe they just needed some time to process.”

  Celine introduced Rose to the Dragons. Rose bowed deeply to them. Devra waved her off.

  “We don’t stand on ceremony much,” she told Rose. “How are you connected into all of this?”

  Rose filled them in on her part of the story.

  “So you had contact with Clarice, too? I think the Fae Mages should check you for hooks and compulsions as well. Just to make sure.”

  Rose agreed. “I haven’t seen that Clarice for almost thirty years, though,” Rose said. “I don’t know why she would want anything from me.”

  “You were working for the Thorndikes. She might think that you know how to find that vault and get into it,” Devra suggested.

  “Well, she’d be wrong. I don’t. No one except Mr. and Mrs. Senior ever went down there, unless it was another Guardian, and they would have had the Thorndikes go with them.”

  “You can’t expect rational thinking from someone with a history like Clarice’s. It’s better to have you checked, just to be safe.”

  Devra told Declan to check on Nathaniel and Ciaran. They had finished their meditations and were talking to Sean near the grill.

  “Devra wants to know what you found, and what you think needs to be done,” he told them. They followed Declan back into the kitchen.

  “Oh, good,” Devra said.

  “You know pretty much all that we have found,” Ciaran began. “Until we know what the Fae we suspect is involved is after, there is not really much more we can do, except for the shielding lessons. I think that is the most important thing to start with.”

  “I agree,” Devra said. “How many people so far have been affected?”

  “Everyone who has come into contact with Clarice, in varying degrees, so far. We do not know how she got to Marissa and her children. That’s rather disturbing. Though, she could have made them forget meeting her and whatever she did to them. Or she could have done it without their knowledge, if she was able to get close enough.”

  “Does anyone know where this Clarice is now?”

  “She was seen in San Francisco recently. And someone who gave her name as Clara called to make an appointment with Marissa. She should be coming to town in about two weeks for that. If it is the same person. Marissa had a strange feeling about the woman who called her, so she checked up with a friend in the City. It does seem like this woman could be Clarice.”

  “So she is close by, then. We may or may not have those two weeks to train everyone. Lovely,” Devra said. “I love a good challenge. Celine, can we take the children out of school for a few days? I think that everyone’s focus needs to be on this right now.”

  “I will talk to their mothers. That decision is up to them.”

  The doorbell rang again.

  “Darling, we have arrived,” Rosalie swept into the house. “Where are these Fae and these Dragons that are helping my family? We must meet them at once.” Rosalie carried on into the kitchen, barely stopping to kiss Celine on the cheek as she breezed by. Celine’s father, Paul, followed after her, with her grandfather, Luc, just behind him. Paul kissed his daughter, then took their luggage up the stairs to their room.

  “Grand-père, how lovely to see you!” Celine exclaimed, kissing her grandfather on both cheeks before he wrapped her in a powerful hug. “I am so glad that you were able to make the trip. How is Grandmamma?”

  “She is well, my dear. Marthe has stayed behind to run the farm. She would love to visit with you soon. It has been too long. I hear that we have great-great-grandchildren now, yes? I am very much looking forward to meeting them.”

  “They will be very excited to meet you, as well. Our Allie is turni
ng out to be a strong Fire Mage. The Dragon Guardian who has come to help is going to train her. We would love if you would be so kind as to help her as well. She is only just coming into her Gifts. Her best friend is a powerful Fire Witch as well. Imagine what they could do if left to their own imaginations!”

  Luc laughed. “I would be happy to help with Allie’s training. Now, introduce me to your Dragon. Is it someone I know?”

  “She says she met you when she was young and new to her posting with the Guardians. Her name is Devra Drake.”

  Luc laughed again. “Does she still have those two boys following after her? The three of them caused no end of mischief during their first few years. I have to say, the Guardians were better for it, though. We had become too staid and stuck in our ways. Those three hatchlings certainly shook things up.”

  “I am glad that you remember us so fondly, Guardian Benoit!” Devra said, coming to the door of the kitchen.

  “I used to have a good laugh over your exploits, you imp,” Luc told her, smiling. Devra laughed with him, stepping forward into a hug.

  Luc followed Devra back into the kitchen where he was introduced to Rose. Sean came in from the grill, carrying an enormous platter of grilled vegetables. Declan, Ciaran, and Nathaniel followed.

  Luc grasped the forearms of the two male dragons, then Celine introduced Luc and Rosalie to the Fae. Paul came back downstairs to be introduced as well. Soon everyone’s plates were full. They filed back out to the patio and sat at the picnic tables there. Siofra joined them from the greenhouse, sliding into a seat between Nathaniel and Declan. Nathaniel kissed her and rubbed at the dirt on the end of her nose with his napkin.

  As they were finishing up, the doorbell rang again.

  “My goodness, it’s starting to feel like Grand Central Station around here!” Celine exclaimed as she went to open the door. The Thorndikes had arrived, along with two other Guardians, a man and a woman. Both were older, around Luc’s age. Celine welcomed them all in.

  “Please come in, everyone. We are having lunch out on the patio. It’s simple fair, today. Sandwiches, vegetables-picnic food. We have quite a sizeable group, and many of them aren’t even here at the moment.”

  They followed Celine into the kitchen, and, after filling their plates, to the patio to meet everyone else. The female Guardian looked surprised to see Luc.

  “Luc Benoit! My goodness, I haven’t seen you in ages! What are you doing here?” She exclaimed.

  “Susan! Quelle bonne chance!” Luc stood and hurried over to envelope her in a deep hug.

  “This is my family,” he told her. “My son, Paul, his wife, Rosalie, their daughter Celine. It is Celine’s daughter, my great-granddaughter, whose mate has become caught up in this infernal mess.”

  Susan looked at the Thorndikes in surprise.

  “Lucille, you didn’t mention that Theo’s mate was from a line of Guardians! Well, that makes this all so much easier. And that she is Luc’s great-granddaughter! Well, it will be a pleasure working with you all, that’s for sure.” She turned to Celine.

  “My name is Susan Beckett-Montoya. Guardian Council member. This gentleman with me is Frank Richards-Cabot, also of the Guardians. He is my bodyguard, and a formidable Air Witch in his own right. I see that you have already met Devra and her bodyguards. Tell me, are they behaving themselves?” Susan glared at the three Dragons.

  Celine laughed. “They are behaving extremely well. In addition to the shield training, Devra has offered to help train our granddaughter Allison, who is coming into a strong Fire Mage Gift, as well as her friend Siobhan, a strong Fire Witch. Devra, Declan and Sean have already set up a training area in our field. We are incredibly grateful for their help.”

  Ciaran, Nathaniel and Siofra stood, making room at their table for the Guardians to sit and eat. They cleared the plates of those that had finished, then came back out and sat around the fire pit so they could remain part of the conversation. For a while, no one would have thought that there was a crisis that had brought this diverse group together. It was nice to have an hour or two of peace.

  Malia had gone into town after hearing that Rosalie would be arriving shortly. She needed to fortify herself with chocolate therapy. She stopped in at the Baker’s Delight for a treat. Mollie was there, helping her mother pack up a batch of brownies for the Sweet Delight Ice Cream Shoppe, her own shop of decadent delights.

  “Hey Lia, what’s up?” Mollie asked.

  “Grand-Mère is coming this afternoon. She wants to meet the Dragons,” Malia groaned.

  “Dragons! What did we miss?” Rachel gasped. Malia filled the Murphys in on the morning’s developments so far.

  “Well, things are certainly moving at a fast clip!” Declan Murphy said.

  “We are collecting Declans, too,” Malia joked. “One of the Dragons is named Declan as well.”

  “Ah, but I would bet that it was my name first!” Mr. Murphy joked. “Therefore, it will be his fate to be shortened to something like Deckie, Dec, or Dex.”

  “I am sure we can think of something,” Malia grinned. “I’ll let the kids do it when they get home.”

  “You’re evil, you are!” Rachel told her. Malia laughed.

  “I need chocolate if I am going to face Grandmamma this afternoon,” Malia informed the Brownies.

  “You came to the right place!” Mollie said. “Come with me back to the ice cream shop, and I’ll make you a sundae with one of Mom’s best brownies here,” she indicated the box she was holding.

  “Lots of whipped cream?”

  “Of course! And rainbow sprinkles!”

  Malia spent the rest of the morning with Mollie, taste testing new flavors and savoring the ginormous cookies-and-cream, hot fudge brownie sundae that Mollie prepared for her. At noon time, she left Mollie with an invitation to dinner for the Murphys that night and met Tony at the police department for lunch. They walked to Cooke’s Market together, heading towards the back where the deli and prepared food was. They found Marissa and Theo having lunch there too and joined them at their table.

  “We had to get out for a while,” Theo said.

  “How are you both feeling?” Tony asked them.

  “I feel lighter than I ever have in my life,” Theo answered. “A weight I never knew wasn’t natural has been lifted off my back. I feel amazing.”

  “I feel much more clear. A sadness and an underlying sense of anger and confusion is gone,” Marissa said. “I feel like I am thinking clearly for the first time in ages.”

  “That’s wonderful, Sis,” Malia said. She reached over and squeezed her twin’s hand.

  “What are we going to do about Grandmamma? This is turning into quite a circus.”

  “I plan on ignoring her as much as possible,” Marissa replied. “She will hate that this is not all about her. Watch her try to take over in some way.”

  “I’d like to see her try, with a houseful of Guardians, Dragons and Fae!”

  “I hope Granny Niamh is up to adding more rooms to the house by tonight. We are certainly going to need them.”

  19

  When the children returned home from school that evening, Malia introduced Allie to Devra and her Grandpa Luc.

  “Allie, this is your Grandpa Luc, the one who runs the farm for Familiars in France. He came with Grandmamma and Grandpapa to visit until we sort out this business with Clarice. Grandpa Luc is a Fire Mage, like you. He has agreed to help you learn how to use your magic.”

  “Can I have a Familiar?” Allie asked. Luc smiled at her. His eyes twinkled.

  “What would you do with a Familiar? You don’t even know how to use your magic yet.”

  “Mama says that Familiars help with our magic. They help us control it and keeps us balanced. Isn’t that important? Especially if I really am as strong as everyone thinks I am?”

  “Well, I’ll tell you what. We will practice for a few days and see how you do. If, after that, I think there is a need for a Familiar, and that you could properly
bond with and take care of one, I will see what we can do.”

  “Thank you!!!! Oh, I can’t wait to tell Vannie! She’ll be so jealous!”

  “Allie, a Familiar bond is a very special thing. It is not something to lord over your friends,” Malia scolded.

  “I know! But it’s so cool!” She tilted her head to the side. “Vannie is a Fire Witch. Can she train with us as well, Grandpa Luc?”

  “I think that is an excellent idea,” he replied. “We will see what you can do so far this evening, then I will talk to your friend’s parents about her joining us a couple of times a week.”

  Malia looked at her Great Grandfather. “Just how long were you planning on staying?” she asked.

  Luc smiled. “As long as it takes.”

  Malia sighed and called Devra from the living room.

  “Allie, this is Devra Drake. You may want to sit down.” Looking worried, Allie sat. Devra waved at her with a large, toothy grin.

  “Did I do something wrong?”

  “No, sweetheart. Devra is going to help with your training as well. She is uniquely suited to helping you, and Vannie, with your Fire magic. Devra is a Dragon.”

  Allie collapsed back against her chair, her eyes wide. Recovering quickly, she bounced up again.

  “A Dragon? Like, a real Dragon? For reals? Really reals? No way! Can I see? Can you shift forms? How big is your Dragon form? What color are you? Oh my gosh, this day keeps getting better and better! Wait ‘till I tell Vannie!”

  “You can give her a call in a minute,” Malia said. “I want you to realize how extremely lucky you are to have both Grandpa Luc and Devra teaching you magic. This is an enormous honor. Grandpa Luc is a Guardian. That is a very special line of Witches. He thinks that you may be able to become one as well. It’s in our blood. We need to see if you develop any of the special skills that are inherent to Guardians. All of you children might have them. We will know for sure when we start shielding training tomorrow. The Guardians who have come to help us will test us all.”