by LeRoy Clary
Bender said, “I assume the younger brother, the businessman, had the deeds changed to be convertible?”
Jenkins said, “You catch on quick. Convertible deeds are intended to change hands, so the owner of the deeds has as much as gold in his control. Once he had that wealth, and the buildings, he would have gone to the magistrate and filed the documents in his name, removing the convertible option, and thus he would rule the Cabot family.”
“Which is what you intend to do!” Bender roared.
“In secret,” Jenkins said. “So, I need you three hidden away while I do my work. Any leak of what we’re about will bring on a legal fight I may not win. But if the proper documents are filed before the Cabots know what I’m doing, it will be too late for them to fight. I will, of course, file the most important ones first. Then we will reveal that you are the owner.”
“Like a sucker punch,” Bender said.
“Exactly,” Jenkins said, pounding one fist into his open palm with a snap. “A sucker punch.”
Tyler went down to the second floor where the dragons were chasing the dog, and Prim was chasing all three. She had set up barriers with the available building materials, but Thunder and Rage had obviously already learned to leap over them. Lucky ran around most barriers, and was quicker to turn, but the dragons were faster in a straight line.
The dragons screamed in delight, the dog barked, and Prim yelled and laughed. Never one to pass up a good time, Tyler tried to cut them off at the next turn. The dragons swerved and went around him without effort, so the next time they came near, he faked going left and leaped right. His hand grabbed the leg of a surprised dragon that leaped high into the air. It twisted. Tyler held on and realized a mouthful of teeth covered his wrist, yet as the dragon fought furiously to escape, and not a drop of blood fell.
Thunder, at least he thought it was Thunder, landed behind with a thump and then leaped up while watching Tyler the whole time. It nudged Tyler with its nose as if to order him to reenter the fray. Tyler ran ahead, and the dragon pursued, then at a corner, they exchanged positions, with Tyler chasing them, shouting, laughing, and yelling.
Prim ran to him, with Lucky limping alongside. The dog had sustained yet another injury, a twisted leg, but refused to stop playing. Tyler chased Rage until he arrived at two piles of dragon dung near a corner. If it had been solid, he would have seen it, but it was near liquid, spread into twin pools of slimy, greenish sludge. He pulled to a stop barely in time.
“What have you two been eating?” he asked while backing away and holding his nose.
Prim stood a few steps away, holding her nose, too. “Does it always look like that?”
“Damned if I know. Never seen dragons crap before these two, but it doesn’t look right. Before it was soft, but kind of lumpy. This is almost water.”
“It doesn’t smell right, either. You really need to find someone that’s worked with dragons before and hire them.”
Tyler turned to her. “You’re amazing; you know that?”
She returned the look. “What?”
“Bender and I never thought of that, but, of course, now he will say he thought of it days ago so he can claim all the credit. It’s so simple. We just need to find a trainer, maybe someone that worked with them in the army.”
“So, ask Jenkins to help. It’s what you pay him for, right?”
Again, her observation brought him to a standstill. The dragons were off chasing Lucky, but he ignored the ruckus. “I wonder what we are paying him for when you come up with the ideas?”
“You don’t even know what he charges?”
Tyler spun and headed up the stairs. “Jenkins, we need to talk.”
Jenkins had Girt, his bodyguard, standing at his side, a quill in his thick hand as Jenkins dictated. He continued speaking softly as his eyes shifted to look at Tyler. Bender stood to one side, peering out the window at the street below the gray sky.
Girt was more than muscle, Tyler realized with a shock. He was also a scribe, at a minimum. “What are you charging to do all this?”
Jenkins shrugged. “Considering that you seem to own about a quarter of the city, what does it matter? If I charge one-one hundredth of your wealth, I’d be overcharging you beyond reason. Besides, for me, this is not for a fee. I’m already one of the richest men in the city.”
“Then, what is it about?” Tyler demanded in a tone, so harsh Girt shifted his quill to his other hand so his weapon-hand was unencumbered.
But, Jenkins didn’t flinch. He smiled. “Our king finances his lavish spending with gold supplied by the Cabots. Did you know that? For years, all judgments in court have favored the Cabots, and their transgressions become more outrageous by the day. They act as if they own Aston and perhaps they do.”
“But, you’re going to change all that?”
“With your help.”
“By using our gold.”
“Not really. If the king was to become aware of our intentions, I have little doubt he would throw the lot of us in his dungeons, never to be seen or heard from again. However, if we can have his magistrates rule for the royal courts on the issue of ownership based on possession of the deeds, that will never happen. Once it is established that you own the buildings, and the gold from the mines you closed ceases to fill his treasury, the king will not dare interfere. In fact, you may find him approaching you for financial aid.”
Bender turned from the window. “We’re placing ourselves in your hands. Tyler’s right. You need to draw a document that says what you will charge us—or you may charge us all we own, and we will have no way out.”
Jenkins wasn’t offended. “Girt, do as they ask. The fee will be determined by them after all this is settled. To make it legal, the initial charge is a single copper dram. The three of us will countersign it.”
Girt simply made a note and nodded.
“What else?” Jenkins asked.
“A few things,” Tyler said. “We need a man to clean the first two floors of dragon shit, or none of us will be able to enter the building in a few days. We also want to find a trainer who has worked with dragons, one who knows their diet needs. Then, we want you to dispatch a man or two, upriver to a village above Trenton and speak to Helm and Judge. Tell them we need protection. Ten or more men we can trust to fight the Cabots.”
Jenkins said, “Ten is more than you need.”
“At least ten,” Bender said, leaving no room for argument.
Jenkins turned to Bender.
Bender said, “Before you ask, you have only seen one side of what the Cabots are capable of doing. We have seen another. They are far more dangerous than you know. Then, there is the issue of your king, who might support them.”
Jenkins said to Girt, “Modify that to at least ten men. I also want you to identify another twenty that you personally trust here on our staff in Aston. Have them gather privately and issue whatever weapons are needed to defend this building.”
Tyler liked the way Jenkins spoke, and Girt accepted the orders without comment or question. It was far different from dealing with Bender, but not as fun. He said, “The last thing is food and a cook, as well as a carpenter to block off the stairs.”
Girt said, “Soon.”
Jenkins said, “There is just one more issue, for now. People entering and leaving this building will draw the attention of the locals on this street. Even the candles at night will be noticed because this building stood empty for so long. That can’t be helped. Let me show you the tunnel.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Jenkins took them down the stairs, holding his nose as they descended past the second floor where the dragons still played. On the first floor, he led them to a corner and an iron lever connected to a pipe that looked like it held sewage from the upper floors. The lever would appear as a shutoff valve to others, although why sewage from above would be contained remained a mystery.
Jenkins pulled the lever, and a section of the floor lifted on hidden hinges to settl
e against the wall. Below lay darkness. Girt appeared with a candle and flame. He used it to light one of several oil lamps waiting on a shelf, revealing a wide stairway leading into the depths.
It was clean, solid rock floor, walls, and ceiling, with no sign of the expected spider webs or other unsightly leavings of others. Jenkins said, “The iron doors on the street to the building are now closed and barred. Any who enter the building will use this passage, and it will be closed and secured behind them, with guards at either end.”
Tyler looked at the section of the floor that rested against the wall. It was not wood, but more iron. The lever must control a counterweight to lift it. A series of rings mounted in the floor lined up with more in the removable section, and an iron bar as thick as his thumb stood in the corner telling of the way to secure the trapdoor. When the trap door was closed, the bar would slide through the rings, and nobody below could enter.”
Jenkins had followed his eyes and nodded. “You learn quickly.”
“In the army, slow learners die first. Well, them, and the unlucky. You can’t account for luck.”
“Partially true,” Jenkins said. “But, it seems some people make their own luck. Now, Girt and I will leave. We’ll pause here and call to you when we return, so your dragons don’t attack. Later, we’ll have a guard posted, but for now, we’ll do it this way.”
Bender said, “Just wondering, where are you going?”
Jenkins said, “I’ve already made an appointment with a magistrate by messenger. He will witness a few of your more important filings. I’ve explained that a death in the family has left many of them to file, and in the next few days, I’ll have more. Then, I’m off to file a few more with another. I hope to meet with a third this evening if he is free. That should make you the legal owners of ten or twelve buildings by dawn, perhaps more if one of them is willing to sign them over. You will repay me for the expensive wine the appointments with other clients that you will cost me.”
Girt said, “I will return with a skilled dragon trainer, someone to clean after the animals, and a cook.”
They departed via the tunnel. After closing the trap-door, Bender and Tyler went to the top floor and positioned chairs where they could watch the people on the streets. The dreary gray day drew on, and finally, darkness fell, faster than normal with the smoke-filled air blocking most of the sunlight. Girt returned with the news that Jenkins had done better than expected and had scheduled more meetings for the morning with magistrates, as well as hiring two other solicitors to file similar deeds.
“My master is worried, though,” Girt explained. “Rumors are already being whispered. Soon, they will be shouted from the rooftops. He managed to meet with the last magistrate and secured ownership of nearly half of your deeds only because they are friends from long ago. Less than a third of them still need to be managed, the ones of lesser value.”
“I thought he was going to take it slow and do it over a few days,” Tyler said.
“So, did he, but when the rumors started, he escalated his efforts. The last magistrate was an old friend, as I said, one to be trusted more than others, but not completely, and certainly not with the enormity of the filing. As it was, he almost balked at signing them.”
“What else?” Bender said.
“I have fourteen soldiers I trust with my life at the trapdoor. Another has been dispatched to find your friends, Helm and Judge. They’ll relay the message that you require help. I had food delivered to the location where the tunnel leads, and my men are bringing it here through the tunnel as we speak.”
“What else?” Tyler asked, almost afraid to hear bad news.
“I brought a cook for all of us, and a boy to care for your dragons. He will feed them and clean up after them, but I warn you that he is not right in the head. He loves animals, though, and will do a good job.”
“Why warn us?” Bender asked.
“The boy forms attachments. Once that happens, you will have a hard time removing him from your service, pay or not.” The statement was issued as a challenge.
Bender leaned to Girt, and despite the difference in size, moved closer. He growled, “I think I like this boy.”
“He sounds like a keeper to me,” Tyler agreed.
Girt stood a head taller; his arms were the diameter of Tyler’s legs, and his head was shaved. He reached out and grabbed Bender in a massive hug and lifted his feet off the ground. When he released Bender, he was laughing.
Girt’s face then resumed its normal passive expression. “I also found a man who has worked with dragons. He says that he was a Dragon Master when young, but lost a leg by an infected arrow wound. His army had no more use for him. Since then he has wandered the known world searching for work.”
Tyler said, “Has he seen our dragons, yet?”
“No, I thought you might wish to judge his competence by that meeting. I asked that he remain in the tunnel until summoned.”
“No wonder Jenkins thinks so highly of you, Girt. That is exactly what I’d have asked for,” Tyler said.
They went to the first floor while Prim tried to keep the animals penned in on the second. She had somehow erected a barrier near the stairs and prohibited the dragons from going beyond it, although it was clear that if either wished, it could vault the makeshift structure without effort. But they would have to get past Prim, and the dragons seemed to accept and respect her nearly as much as their mothers.
The area near the trapdoor was stacked high with crates, barrels, blankets, cookware, and sacks of dried goods. Men carried more on their shoulders and deposited it all before going back for additional supplies.
Girt went to the top of the stairs and motioned for a man to climb up. The man emerged, looked around and nodded a greeting. Tyler couldn’t help but look for the missing leg. The man walked oddly but had two feet. He looked at Girt.
“Lost below the knee. The boot is part of the device he wears.”
The man looked forty, moved awkwardly, but had a pleasant smile and attitude. He said, “Made it myself when I got tired of people pitying me sitting around.”
“It’s a wooden leg and foot with a boot over it?” Bender asked with his usual lack of grace and manners.
“Not so much a foot, as a thick wad of leather soaked to make it soft and form-fit to the inside of the boot. A screw holds the boot secure from the underside.”
“Clever,” Bender said. “You limp a bit, but I’d never have suspected. Now, you say you know something about dragons. Tell me what their normal shit looks like.”
“At what age?”
Bender said, “A few weeks old.”
“Not pretty, and always disgusting. Depends on what they eat, which is about anything, but I’d not take this job if I had to clean up after them.”
Tyler laughed, “He knows that much for sure, and now we know also know he’s intelligent.”
“My name is Franklin. I served with the Dragon Masters in a place you’ve probably never heard of, far upriver, for an army called Unity.”
Bender and Tyler exchanged looks and wondered if he knew Captain Torrie. Neither said anything, but it wasn’t the time to talk about that. Bender said, “Why don’t you come upstairs and meet your charges?”
Girt remained behind, issuing orders for the supplies to be relayed to the top floor, and warning the men against pausing on the second floor where the dragons were playing. Bender and Tyler went to the second floor and crawled over the blockade. Prim came to see what was happening and they explained quickly.
Franklin took longer to climb the stairs with his missing leg but didn’t hesitate at climbing over the wood and materials of the barricade. As soon as he stood upright, Thunder and Rage charged him. He stood his ground, arms held wide and high into the air. As they neared, he blew a high-pitched whistle that hurt the ears of all. The dragons skidded to a halt, confused, and wary. They slunk back and reassessed him.
Franklin took one step closer to them. Dragon instinct said he should
run, so they were confused. He blew the whistle again, softer, and for a longer time. Then, he reached into a sack he carried that Tyler hadn’t noticed, and pulled forth a brown rabbit held by the feet.
The rabbit kicked, and both dragons came instantly alert, their ears and noses twitching simultaneously, drool dripped from the corners of their mouths. Franklin lifted the rabbit higher, and their eyes followed intently. Then he swung his arm back and tossed the rabbit underhanded to send it skittering across the floor. The dragons darted after it, but the rabbit recovered and leaped to one side, then hopped twice before abruptly changing directions again.
Rage, at least Tyler thought it was Rage, managed to snatch it from the air on the rabbit’s next leap. It disappeared down his throat while Thunder and Lucky watched. Franklin blew softly on the whistle on the thong around his neck again, and both dragons raced back to him, Lucky tried to keep up, and failed. Franklin pulled the second rabbit from the sack.
This time, the dragons came so alert they trembled in anticipation. However, instead of simply tossing the rabbit, Franklin moved to the dragons, touching each briefly on their neck before skidding it along the floor with a strong throw. The wild pursuit happened again, this time while Bender and Tyler called and cheered on their dragon to win as if they were watching horses race.
Even Prim joined in. Then, after Rage ate the rabbit, she said to Franklin, “You’re here to help me?”
“I am,” Franklin said.
Bender said to Franklin, “We’ll be upstairs. Don’t let those things get free, and Girt has a boy on his way to help clean this place.”
On the third floor, Girt directed the soldiers to deliver the food to the pantry while the three of them went to a sitting room complete with a fireplace, two expensive sofas facing each other, and a table between that probably cost more than everything Tyler and Bender had ever purchased. Bender refused a comfortable seat in favor of one near a window. His eyes were locked on the people and city.
