by Adele Abbott
“Aren’t they very expensive?”
“Brand new, yes, but we picked this one up from a salon that had gone bust. It was an absolute steal.” She looked me up and down. “You always look a little pasty, Jill. You’d look much better with a bit of a tan.”
“I don’t think so. It’s not really my thing.”
“Here.” She fished something out of her pocket. “This voucher entitles you to fifty percent off on your first visit.”
“Thanks, but I really don’t—”
“Got to run. My next client is due at any minute. Later, Jill.”
***
When I got back from Coffee Games, Kathy and Lizzie were waiting for me in the outer office.
“Have you been skiving off again?” Kathy grinned.
“Chance would be a fine thing. I’ve been out on business, and Madeline’s mother waylaid me on the way back. Apparently, she’s had a spray tan booth installed in that nail bar of hers.”
“I wouldn’t mind getting a spray tan. I’m beginning to look like a ghost.” Kathy put her hand over her mouth. “Whoops, I didn’t mean to say that word.”
“You don’t look like any of the ghosts I’ve seen, Mummy,” Lizzie said.
“I thought we’d agreed you weren’t going to talk about those?”
“Sorry, but they’ve all moved out now, anyway. All except for Caroline.”
That was my cue to change the subject. “Are you serious about wanting to get a tan? If you are, Deli gave me a fifty percent off voucher. You can have it.”
“Are you sure you don’t want it?”
“I’m positive.”
“Go on, then. There’s no point in letting it go to waste. I might go over there later today, after I’ve taken Lizzie home.”
“Look what Mrs V gave me, Auntie Jill.” Lizzie held up a bright yellow scarf.
“It’s lovely. Anyway, what brings you and Mummy here today?”
“Lizzie has something she wants to ask you,” Kathy said. “Don’t you, Lizzie?”
“Mummy says because Daddy is fishing with Mikey on Sunday, and Uncle Jack is working away, it would be nice if the three of us could have a girls’ day out. Please say yes, Auntie Jill.”
“Shopping?” The thought of going shopping with Kathy horrified me.
“No.” Kathy shook her head. “Lizzie and I thought the three of us could go to a park, and maybe even take a picnic.”
“Will you come, Auntie Jill?” Lizzie took hold of my hand.
“Why not? I don’t have anything else planned.”
“Yay!” Lizzie bounced up and down with excitement.
Shopping with Kathy would have been a definite no-no, but a relaxing day in the park, with a picnic, sounded like just the ticket to help me unwind after a stressful week.
Just then, a man came into the outer office.
“I’m here about the blinds, love.” He was wearing a blue uniform with the company name: None So, on his breast pocket.
“We’ll get out of your hair, Jill.” Kathy took Lizzie’s hand. “We’ll pick you up on Saturday morning.”
“Okay, see you then.” I turned to the man. “Come through to my office, would you?”
“These look like they’ve seen better days.” He cast a professional eye over the old blinds. “How long have they been stuck like that?”
“Not long. A few weeks.”
Behind me, on the sofa, Winky laughed. “And the rest.”
“Shut it, you!”
“What did you say?” The man glared at me.
“Nothing, I was sneezing. Achoo. It’s my hay fever.”
“Oh? Right. Anyway, these windows are a standard size, so I can fit the new blinds right now if you like. Two-hundred and ten pounds for the lot. That includes fitting.”
“Err—” I glanced at Winky who gave me the paws-up. “That’s fine. Please go ahead.”
“What colour did you want?”
“Grey if you have them.”
“We have every colour under the sun.”
“Great. Grey it is, then. Do you need me to be here because I was thinking of calling it a day? My PA will be in the outer office.”
“No, that’s fine. I’ll crack on with them.”
On my way out, I brought Mrs V up to speed. “I’m going home now, Mrs V. Are you okay to stay until the man has finished fitting the blinds?”
“Yes, Armi isn’t picking me up until just after five. Will the man need paying?”
“No, Winky is—err—I mean, I’ll sort that out tomorrow.”
Chapter 10
The next morning, over breakfast, I told Jack about Deli’s new business venture.
“You should have given me the voucher for the spray tan,” he said.
“You’re joking.”
“Of course I’m joking. Where are you going for the picnic on Sunday?”
“To a park, I think. I’m not sure which one, though. Kathy said she’d come and pick me up.”
“It’s alright for some. I’m going to be stuck in an office all day.”
“It’s your own fault. You will insist on leaving me every weekend.”
“It isn’t through choice, believe me. I’m sick of training courses. It’s not like I ever learn anything useful.”
As Jack and I were on our way out of the door, my phone rang.
“I’d better take this.”
“Okay, see you tonight.” He gave me a quick kiss and then headed to his car.
“Jill? It’s Charlie Cross.”
“Morning, Charlie.”
“I hope you don’t mind my sticking my oar in, but I’ve tracked down the lady who used to clean for Myrtle. I thought you might want to talk to her.”
“I do, yeah. Do you have her number? I’ll call her to see if I can set up a time to go and see her.”
“Actually, I’ve already done that.”
“Oh? Okay.”
“Her name is Freda Bowling, and she said she’d be happy for you to go over and see her this afternoon at three o’clock if that works for you.”
“Yes, that should be okay.”
Charlie gave me her details and I promised to keep him posted.
***
“What time did the blinds man get done yesterday, Mrs V?”
“He’d finished by a quarter to five. I must say, I’m rather surprised by the colour you chose.”
“What’s wrong with grey?”
“Are they supposed to be grey?”
I hurried through to my office, but then stopped dead in my tracks.
“They look good, don’t they?” Winky was sitting on my desk, admiring the new blinds.
“They’re purple! I told you specifically that I didn’t want purple.”
“They’re not purple. They’re grey like you asked for. This particular shade is called Grey au Violet.”
“Don’t give me any of that rubbish. They’re clearly purple.”
Just then, my phone rang. It was Desdemona Nightowl, headmistress of CASS; she sounded panic-stricken.
“Ms Nightowl? What’s wrong?”
“The most terrible thing has happened. We’re marooned. No one can get in or out.”
“I’m sorry, but I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“That’s my fault. I’m so upset by the whole thing I can’t think straight. Give me a moment while I take a deep breath.”
“Sure.”
The line was silent for several minutes, and I was beginning to think we’d been disconnected, but then she said, “Sorry about that, Jill. Have you come across royal dragons before?”
“I don’t think so.”
“They’re only found in and around the White Mountains, which are equidistant between Candlefield and CASS. They’re enormous creatures, but usually completely docile. During my tenure, we’ve had no trouble from them whatsoever, but for some reason, one of them has started to attack the airship.”
“I understood from Reggie that the airship flew too hig
h for the dragons to attack it, and that it was fitted with defences that would ward them off.”
“That’s true, but the royal dragon can fly higher than any other dragon, and it seems to be impervious to the usual defensive measures. As I said before, this has never been a problem in the past because royal dragons were never considered to be a threat.”
“Any idea why it should suddenly have become aggressive?”
“None at all, but at the moment, it’s impossible to travel either to or from CASS. So far, none of the parents are aware of this issue, but it’s half-term in a couple of weeks. If the children are unable to return home then, I won’t be able to keep it under wraps.”
“What about your supplies?”
“Fortunately, we’re well stocked with all the essentials, so that won’t be a problem for a while.”
“What exactly do you want me to do, Headmistress?”
“In all honesty, Jill, I’m not sure what you can do, but I didn’t know who else to contact.”
“I suppose I should start by seeing the problem for myself.”
“Do you mean you want to travel on the airship?”
“I don’t see any other way. Would the pilot be willing to take me up?”
“If I know Bertie Brownlow, I’m sure he will. Let me give him a call now, and I’ll get straight back to you.”
“Okay.”
Was I completely insane? I’d volunteered to go up in the airship, knowing full well that it was likely to be attacked by a giant dragon.
I couldn’t do anything about the blinds now because my head was still spinning from the phone call, so I went through to the outer office.
“Are you alright, Jill?” You look a little dazed.
“Sorry? Err—yes, I’m fine.”
My phone rang again.
“Jill, it’s Desdemona. I’ve spoken to Bertie, and he’s willing to take you up.”
“When?”
“He lives only five minutes from the airship hangar, so he can be there whenever you’re ready.”
“Okay, but I’ll need to make a stop-off in Candlefield first. It shouldn’t take long. Will you tell him I’ll meet him outside the hangar one hour from now.”
“Will do, and Jill—”
“Yes?”
“Good luck.”
“Are you sure you’re okay, Jill?” Mrs V said. “You look very pale.”
“I—err—I think I’ll step outside for a breath of fresh air. I won’t be long.”
When would I ever learn? Of all the things I’d volunteered for, taking a trip in an airship to see an angry dragon had to be by far the most stupid. But, I was committed now, so I had to at least make sure I was forearmed. I wanted to find out as much as I could about the royal dragon, and I knew exactly where to find the information I needed.
“Jill?” Deloris Shuttlebug answered her door, wearing an apron and rubber gloves. “What a lovely surprise. You must forgive the way I look. I was in the middle of my weekly clean.”
“I’m sorry to trouble you Deloris, but I wondered if you had your husband’s manuscript here, or is it with the publisher?”
“They took a copy. I still have the original upstairs.”
“Do you think I could take a look at it, please. It’ll only take me a few minutes.”
“Of course, come in. Would you like a drink?”
“No, thanks. I can’t stay long—there’s somewhere I have to be.”
Cuthbert Shuttlebug had devoted a whole section of his book to dragons. The illustration of the destroyer dragon was uncannily accurate and sent a shiver down my spine. The royal dragon was a much more handsome creature, and well-deserving of its name. Although as large as the destroyer, it was, according to Cuthbert, a much more placid animal. Reclusive, it avoided contact with other creatures, and rarely if ever used one of its main weapons: the ability to breathe fire. Gulp. I had hoped this particular dragon wouldn’t be of the fire-breathing variety.
I put the manuscript back on the shelf, and hurried back downstairs.
“Thanks, Deloris.”
“Did you get everything you needed?”
“Yes, thanks. That was very helpful.”
From there, I magicked myself over to the hangar where a man, dressed in a grey uniform and matching grey cap, was waiting outside the building. He didn’t look even a tiny bit nervous.
“Mr Brownlow?”
“Call me BeeBee, everyone does. You must be the great Jill Gooder. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“It’s actually Jill Maxwell now. I got married recently.”
“Drat.” He grinned. “And there was me hoping for a date later.”
BeeBee looked at least seventy, and was probably several centuries older, but the twinkle in his eye suggested he’d once been quite the ladies’ man.
“I have to say, BeeBee, you don’t seem at all nervous.”
“Why would I be? I’ve piloted this old girl a thousand times.”
“I was thinking more about the dragon.”
“It’ll take more than a dragon to kill off old BeeBee.”
“Have you actually seen it?”
“I have. I was taking some supplies over to CASS when the brute attacked. There was no getting past it, so I was forced to turn around and head back here.”
“Couldn’t you take a different route around the dragon?”
“It’s not that easy. The wind currents between here and CASS can be lethal. The route we take is the only safe one. What’s your plan today, Jill?”
“I wish I had one. As I told the headmistress, I thought I should start by seeing first-hand what was happening.”
“In that case, why don’t I up-anchor and get us underway?”
The pilot’s cabin was located below the main passenger deck, so once we were airborne, the only way I could communicate with BeeBee was through the intercom.
“How much longer, BeeBee?” I asked when we’d been airborne for about fifteen minutes.
“The last time we tried to make the journey, the beast appeared as we were crossing the White Mountains. We’re about five minutes away from there now.”
“Okay. Let’s both keep our eyes peeled.”
“Don’t worry. If it decides to check us out, you’ll know about it. It’s enormous.”
“Over there, to the right, those are the White Mountains,” BeeBee called out. “If it’s going to—” He didn’t get to finish the sentence because the dragon suddenly appeared, and it was headed straight for us. “Hold tight, Jill!”
I didn’t need telling twice. I grabbed the handrail and held on for dear life.
The dragon was even bigger than I’d imagined, and it was on a collision course with us.
“Brace yourself, Jill! It’s going to hit us!”
BeeBee had no sooner got the words out than a powerful impact knocked the airship to one side.
“We have to go back, Jill.”
“Okay.” I wasn’t about to argue.
While BeeBee turned the airship around, I never once took my eyes off the dragon. If it decided to attack again, and caught us full-on this time, it would be curtains. Fortunately, it seemed content to watch from a distance, as we headed back to Candlefield.
“That was a bit hairy,” BeeBee said, once we were back on solid ground.
“Is that what happened the last time?”
“More or less.”
“That only felt like a warning shot to me. If it had wanted to, it could easily have taken us down. A head-on impact would have wiped us out, but it seemed to deliberately give us only a glancing blow.”
“I think we were just lucky, Jill.”
“I don’t think so. The royal dragon can breathe fire. If it had wanted to take us out, why didn’t it burn us to a crisp? And why did it only attack the once? As soon as it saw that we’d turned around, it backed off.”
“You could be right, but one thing’s for sure. While that monster is around, there’ll be no airships going between here
and CASS. What’s your plan now?”
“I don’t have one yet, but I think I should go and update the headmistress.”
“How are you going to do that without the—Oh, wait, I remember now. You can magic yourself there, can’t you? Well, good luck. I hope you manage to sort that dragon out, otherwise I’m going to be out of a job.”
“I’ll do my best. Thanks for everything, BeeBee.”
***
After magicking myself to CASS, I updated the headmistress on my aborted airship journey.
“I really don’t think it was trying to destroy us, headmistress. If it had wanted to, it could have crushed the airship and made charcoal out of us.”
“You may be right, but that doesn’t alter the fact that we’re effectively marooned here.”
“I want to go to the White Mountains to get a closer look at the dragon.”
“That would be suicide.”
“Not necessarily. I’ve battled and defeated dragons before, using my magic.”
“I know you’re powerful, Jill, but the royal dragon is not just any old dragon.”
“Do you have any other suggestions?”
“No, but I simply can’t ask you to risk your life like this.”
“You didn’t ask; I volunteered.”
“If you insist on going, you can’t go alone. Have you heard of the protectors?”
“Some of the pupils mentioned them the other day. Aren’t they the wizards who accompany the kids when they go on field trips?”
“That’s right. There are three of them here at the moment. They’re marooned like the rest of us. Goodness knows how much their bill will be when they’re eventually able to get back to Candlefield. If we’re paying them anyway, they might as well earn their keep by accompanying you.”
“Do you think they’ll agree to do that?”
“I don’t know. It’s over and above their contract, but I can ask them.”
“Okay, but the sooner we get this show on the road, the better.”
Chapter 11
“I’m Hardy, head of this group of reprobates.” The man-mountain gestured to the two men standing behind him.
