by D J DuMont
But Willow found herself wishing that she had spent more time with Alexis at school. Alexis often made her laugh so hard that she couldn’t breathe, and Willow forgot about the stress that normally weighed on her. For the first time since she’d started high school at Birch Point Academy, Willow felt like a normal teenager.
All too soon, the two week break drew to a close. The night before they were scheduled to go back to Maine, Willow and Alexis sat on oversized recliners in Alexis’ family’s giant media room, eating popcorn and only half-watching a chick-flick marathon that was running on a local television station. They talked a lot about their teachers, and about which classes they liked most. Willow didn’t have strong feelings on any of her classes, since she usually focused most of her energy on the Dragon Heart Program. But she played along with Alexis, discussing the merits of English Composition versus Algebra I. At some point, Alexis decided to ask Willow about her family.
“So, I don’t mean to pry, but are you not that close to your mom? Don’t get me wrong, I’m thrilled that you came out to California with me. But I’m surprised that you didn’t want to spend time with your mom over the holidays.”
Willow chewed her lower lip for a moment. She almost said that she didn’t want to talk about it. She knew Alexis wouldn’t push the issue if Willow asked her to change the subject. But the truth was that Willow did want to talk about it. The whole situation confused her and left her feeling so lonely at times. It might be nice to bare her heart to someone, and Alexis seemed like a trustworthy confidant.
“Things with my mom have always been complicated,” Willow said, trying to keep her voice from shaking with emotion. But since my dad disappeared, it feels like we haven’t been able to see eye to eye on anything. She’s nice enough to me, I guess. But she always keeps me at arm’s length, and she was all too happy to send me off to boarding school. Apparently my dad had been saying since I was a little girl that he wanted me to go to Birch Point. Now, I believe that. But at first, I thought it was just my mom trying to get rid of me. It’s totally the kind of thing she would do.”
Alexis sighed. “I’m sorry things are so tough between you guys. It must be really hard to have a strained relationship, especially with your dad missing.”
Willow frowned. “Yeah. I think I remind her too much of my dad, actually. That’s part of why she doesn’t like to be around me. It’s too painful for her.”
“Do you think your dad is still…alive?” Alexis asked in a gentle voice.
Willow considered how to answer the question. She wished she could tell Alexis about Clove, and about how as long as her father’s dragon held out hope that her father was alive, she wasn’t going to give up. But since she couldn’t explain all of that, she just shrugged sadly.
“I have to keep my hopes up, as long as there’s still a chance.”
Alexis nodded. “I get that. I wouldn’t want to give up on my dad if I was in a situation like that, either.”
Willow turned to look at her friend. “Now it’s my turn to ask you a personal question.”
Alexis laughed. “Okay. Shoot.”
“You seem really close to your parents. So why are you going to boarding school on the other side of the country.”
“Fair question. I do miss my parents like crazy. But the schools here in Silicon Valley are really high pressure, and my dad didn’t want my teenage years to be filled with that kind of anxiety. He offered to send me to boarding school, and I chose Birch Point because I wanted to see a new part of the country, and because it has a strong international studies program. One of the best in the nation, actually. I’m hoping to study international studies in college, so Birch Point seemed like the best choice.”
Willow blinked in surprise. “The international studies program is one of the best? I guess I glazed over that part when I was reading the school’s website last summer.”
Alexis nodded. “Crazy, isn’t it? Who would have thought that a random boarding school in the middle of Maine’s wilderness would have a good international studies program? But they do, and I’m going to take full advantage of all the international studies classes they offer.”
“Wow. Cool,” Willow said. But what she was really thinking was of course the school had a good international studies program. Why wouldn’t it, when there was a major CIA top secret program being run at the school?
“What’s wrong?” Alexis asked.
“Huh? Nothing.”
“That’s an awfully big frown,” Alexis pointed out. “And you look quite confused.”
Willow sighed. “It’s just that—”
Willow never got to finish her thought. All of a sudden, the movie that had been playing was interrupted by a loud, long series of beeps. The movie disappeared, and a harried looking news reporter suddenly appeared on the screen.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, we interrupt this broadcast to bring you breaking news. There has been an attack on the White House. Details are still coming in, but preliminary reports say this is a terrorist attack.”
Willow and Alexis looked at each other, their eyes widening.
“Oh no,” Willow said, already reaching for her phone. “My mom is in D.C. I hope she’s okay.” As the news reporter continued to talk, Willow attempted to call her mom, but only got a busy signal.
“The lines must be overwhelmed or something. I’ll send her a text for now and try again in a few minutes.” Willow was trying her best to sound confident, but on the inside she felt terrified. No, her mother and she weren’t all that close at the moment. They never had been, really. But her mother was still the last member of her immediate family. She couldn’t lose both of her parents! After sending a text, Willow tried to call again, but the line was still busy. Reluctantly, she turned her attention back to the television screen, which Alexis was watching with her jaw dropped in shock.
“That’s right, Rob,” a field reporter was saying now. “We’re being told that about forty-five minutes ago, a large group of individuals wearing dark black suits attempted to fly directly onto the White House’s front lawn. The group was somehow able to remain invisible until right before they got to the White House, although no one seems to know what kind of technology they had that allowed them to do that. Law enforcement is also unsure of how they were able to get past security so easily. The attackers launched several explosive grenades toward the White House itself, although these only did minor damages. The attackers were nearly into the White House when a special group of secret service agents was able to stop them.”
“Jeez,” Alexis said. “The White House must be one of the most protected buildings in all of America. It’s not very comforting to think that some random group was able to get that far in an attack.”
Willow only shook her head in disbelief. The television was showing footage now of the White House’s front lawn, which was still smoking. Flashing lights and yellow tape were everywhere, and when the camera pulled back you could see that helicopters were hovering overhead.
“We can confirm that neither the President nor the Vice-President were in the building when it was attacked,” the field reporter was saying now. “And here with me is Tony, one of the special agents called in to help secure the situation. Thanks for being with us Tony.”
“No problem.” Tony looked like he’d been in a serious fight. His face was scratched and bloody, and his plain black uniform had several large slashes in it.
“So, my understanding is that the attack is being labeled a terrorist attack, but that law enforcement is saying they think it is an isolated incident and they have everything under control.”
“That’s right. Unfortunately, this group was able to take us by surprise, but we’ve managed to get everything secured now. We don’t want any of you folks at home to panic. Backup law enforcement and Secret Service has come in, and trust me, no one is going to be able to do a repeat performance of this attack.”
“How can you be sure?” the reporter asked.
“Well
, our security methods are all highly classified information, as I’m sure you can understand. But trust me when I say that we have the best of the best taking care of the situation.”
“Alright, Tony. Thank you for your encouraging words, and for making sure everyone is as safe as possible in this situation.”
“My pleasure,” Tony said, then turned to leave as the reporter started jabbering on about the three confirmed casualties and numerous injuries of White House staff members. But Willow hardly heard a word that was being said anymore. She had seen something that made her heart start pounding in her chest.
As Tony turned to walk away, the news camera panned across a large section of bare skin on his arm, made visible by one of the tears in his uniform. And there, plain as day, were the telltale three dots that Willow would have recognized anywhere. Almost involuntarily, her hand went to cover her own upper arm. Even though she couldn’t see or feel the scar through her sleeve, she knew it was there. The same three dots, indicating she had been injected with the Dragon Heart Virus. The “special” secret service Tony had referred to had, in fact, been a group of Dragon Heart Agents. Willow felt a sudden surge of pride in her chest as she realized that she was part of a group that was, quite literally, saving lives and protecting the country’s most prominent leaders.
Willow looked over at Alexis, wishing more than anything that she could tell her what she’d seen. But, of course, she couldn’t, and so she picked up her phone to text Sylvie. Alexis still had her eyes glued to the news program. Just as Willow picked up her phone, a text came in from her mother.
I’m fine. Can’t talk now, in a work meeting. But all is good.
Willow wanted to roll her eyes. That was so like her mother. A major terrorist attack had just happened a few miles from where she was, but she could hardly be bothered to pause and let her own daughter know she was okay. So typical.
Willow tried to shake off the annoyance she felt toward her mom as she began searching for Sylvie’s number. But Sylvie must have been watching the newscast, too, because before Willow could start typing a message, she had a new incoming text, this one from Sylvie.
Oh my god, did you see? They brought in the Dragon Hearts.
Chapter Fifteen
The mood the next Monday at Birch Point Academy was somber. Even though the President himself had assured the nation that the terrorist attack had been an isolated incident and was being dealt with, most of the country was reeling from the fact that the White House had somehow been vulnerable to an attack. Who had managed to get in? Why had no one stopped them before they reached the front lawn?
As for Willow, she was eager, along with Sylvie, Locke, and Cara, to hear what Anjali had to say about the attacks. All of them had noticed that Tony, whose news interview had been replayed dozens of times now, had the Dragon Heart scar. Would Anjali be willing to tell them more about what had happened?
Willow’s morning classes felt like torture. She dragged herself through them, wondering how anyone could expect her to care about solving equations or analyzing literature when the Dragon Hearts were involved in something so huge. After an agonizing wait, the morning was finally over, and the four Dragon Heart trainees sat in the alchemy classroom. Anjali stood before them, drumming her nails on the desk as she considered what to say. Willow wanted to yell at her to just spit it out and not keep them in suspense anymore, but she restrained herself. She knew Anjali didn’t like to be interrupted when she was thinking. In fact, even Locke, who usually had some smart aleck remark to make, was quiet today.
Finally, Anjali looked up at them and smiled. “Welcome back, everyone. I hope you all had a good break. We have a lot to cover today, so I’m going to dive right in. First of all, I’m sure you’re all wondering about the attacks on the White House a few days ago.”
She paused, and Willow held her breath. Why was this taking such an excruciatingly long time to explain?
“As you probably noticed, if you’ve seen the newscasts and the interview with Tony that has been replayed over and over, the Dragon Heart Agents were responsible for taking down the terrorists who attacked the White House. You should all be very proud to be part of such a brave group.”
Another pause. Willow chewed on her lower lip to keep herself from blurting out some annoying comment about how Anjali should hurry up. Anjali was approachable and down to earth, but she was still Willow’s superior. Willow needed to be respectful, so she sat on her hands and waited.
“Seeing a Dragon Heart Agent on a newscast was probably quite thrilling for you, but I have to tell you that you will see this often as the years go on. Unfortunately, acts of terrorism against our leaders are on the rise. The Dragon Heart Agents are being called in more frequently to protect our nation. Soon enough, you might be the one on television, telling a news reporter that everything is under control. So be proud of yourselves and of the organization you are part of. Now, on to the next order of business…”
Willow glanced over at Sylvie and caught her eye. Sylvie shrugged, but Willow mouthed “What the heck?” Willow had been expecting more. She had wanted to know who the attackers were and what was being done to secure against more attacks. She’d hoped for some sort of insider information. What Anjali had given them was barely more than what the news reports had said.
Locke must have felt the same way, because he raised his hand and blurted out, “Is that really all you’re going to tell us? Shouldn’t we get some sort of insider information on who these attackers were and how they managed to stay freaking invisible?”
For once, Willow was glad for Locke’s big mouth. She turned to watch Anjali’s reaction. Anjali had paused once again, and for a moment Willow thought she was going to tell Locke to keep his mouth shut and that he knew all he needed to know. But finally, Anjali shrugged.
“Very well. I struggled with whether to share more details with you, but perhaps it is best that you know the truth.”
Willow exchanged another glance with Sylvie. That sounded rather ominous.
“You see, the men who attacked the White House were able to remain invisible thanks to magic.”
Gasps rose from all four students.
“But, I thought only the Dragon Heart Agents had access to magic,” Cara said.
“We thought this as well,” Anjali said. “But the Dragon Heart Agents who responded to the White House attack found magical residue at the scene. The way that the attackers were invisible was also more consistent with an invisibility spell than with other types of cloaking technology. These findings lead us to believe that some of our enemies have unfortunately discovered a way to use magic.”
“But how?” Cara asked, her voice coming out in a nervous squeak.
“We don’t know,” Anjali admitted. “But there’s no need to panic. Our magical abilities have been refined over decades. Whoever attacked the White House had only a very basic understanding of magic, and their wizarding methods were very crude. We are far more advanced than them, and should be able to find and destroy the source of their magical powers quite easily.”
Sylvie raised her hand, then spoke up when Anjali pointed to her. “I don’t mean to sound like I don’t trust our leaders, but this seems pretty serious. Should it really be brushed off so casually? How do we know for sure that their powers are all so crude? Or that their source of magic can be easily destroyed?”
Anjali sighed. “Well, we cannot know for sure until we actually find the source of their powers. But we can make a pretty good educated guess. And I can assure you that any and all spare resources that the Dragon Heart Program has right now are being put toward resolving this security crisis.”
Willow felt like her heart had stopped in her chest as the full impact of what Anjali had just said hit her. Did that mean that the search for her father had been called off? Feeling a growing sense of dread, Willow raised her hand. Anjali looked over at her sadly. Without even giving Willow a chance to voice her question, Anjali said, “Yes, Willow. All resources. A
ll other searches have been called off.”
Willow sat back, feeling defeated. She had worked so hard to improve her magical abilities, but none of it mattered. Her father, if he was still alive, would probably never be found. Angry tears threatened the backs of her eyelids, and she tried her best to force them away. But she knew she wouldn’t be able to maintain her composure for long. Desperately, she raised her hand again.
“Yes, Willow?”
“I’m not feeling so great. May I be excused for a moment?”
Willow did her best to ignore the curious looks from her classmates. Anjali considered for a few seconds, then nodded. “Of course. Come by my office when you feel better and I’ll catch you up on all the information from today.”
Willow nodded and then flew out of the classroom. She ran out of the building and onto the Dragon Heart Academy grounds, then into the deep woods beyond. She didn’t know where she was going, only that she felt trapped and desperate to get away. She ignored her burning lungs, and kept going until she reached another clearing. Then she collapsed and burst into tears. She had never felt so alone in the world. Somehow, knowing that the Dragon Heart Agency had given up on her father made her feel like he was really gone. How could she hold out hope for him when no one else did? When there were no signs, after all this time, that he might possibly be alive still? Yes, Clove seemed to think her father still lived, but Anjali was right—it had been a long time since Clove came back alone, and there hadn’t been a single clue as to where Clove had left her father. There had been only silence.
Willow wept, wondering if it was time for her to finally accept that odds were good her father was dead. But if he was dead, how was she supposed to go on? What was there to live for anymore? Willow cried such loud sobs that her whole body shook. She was so lost in her grief that she didn’t notice the large beast approaching her until its face was right in her face. She got the sense that something was watching her and looked up, startled.
There, right in front of her, was a giant red dragon. Willow hadn’t realized that she’d run straight into the clearing where the dragons lived, and now she froze, unsure of whether she should be afraid or not. She tried to remember what Sam had said about interacting with the dragons, but her mind felt like mush right now. The only thing she could remember him saying was not to startle them, so Willow moved and spoke very slowly.
