Page 59 of Fiendish Delights
The dragon swivelled around then spiralled upwards and away from us, her wings beating hard and fast as she rose into the moonlit sky.
I scrambled to my feet. Hugo did the same, the silver chess box still clutched under his arm. ‘You bloody fool, Daisy!’ he yelled at me. ‘She could have killed you with a single breath!’
I glared at him. ‘I’m not the fool! I had everything under control until you appeared!’
‘It wasn’t me that caused the problems. It was Gordon. In fact?—’
I didn’t get to hear the end of Hugo’s sentence because his words were drowned out by the dragon’s renewed roar. I craned my neck, watching as she executed a perfect mid-air tumble inthe glinting moonlight. Then she turned her huge body until she was facing us again, her snout pointing downwards.
She opened her mouth and blasted a long stream of fire towards Hugo and me. Apparently she wasn’t leaving, she was attacking.
There wasn’t time to think. I leapt to my left and Hugo jumped to his right as the dragon nose-dived at us. I threw myself to the ground, conjuring up a wall of water to protect Hugo and me from the scorching flames. Steam hissed and spat.
I covered my head with my hands until I heard Hugo shout, then I pushed away my instinct to protect myself and leapt to my feet. I was already too late: the dragon was on him.
My arms flailed as I ran towards her. ‘No!’ I screamed. ‘Leave him alone!’ I darted towards her snapping jaws and razor-sharp teeth, and for a second she paused and glanced at me. Then she whirled her head towards Hugo and lunged again.
For a horrifying moment I was certain he was dead, bitten in half by the enraged dragon. When she reared, however, I realised that he was still in one piece. I blinked, confused, until I realised that there was something clenched tightly in her mouth – the silver box. She’d snatched it from him.
The dragon gave me one more warning look before she flapped her enormous wings and took off. This time she didn’t come back.
I ran to Hugo. His clothes were singed and charred, and he was soaking wet from the water I’d magicked into existence. As he gazed at me there was no pain in his eyes, only furious irritation.
‘She took it.’ He shook himself, sending a shower of droplets into the air. ‘The dragon took the chess set.’ He glared at me. ‘And you doused me in a gallon of water. Again.’
I pulled a face. ‘Look on the bright side,’ I said. ‘At least this time it was deliberate.’
Hester was furious. At first I thought it was because she’d been covered in dragon snot, and so did Otis. ‘It could be worse, Hes,’ he said. ‘After all, it’s not from a troll. One quick wash and you’ll be fine.’
‘I don’t care about the snot!’ she screeched. ‘I was making friends with her! I had a connection with that dragon and you lot ruined it! We could have moved up in the world, Otis! We could be working for a dragon now instead of a stupid elf. Now we’re stuck with Daisy!’
I raised an eyebrow. ‘She doesn’t mean it,’ Otis said quickly.
‘I do!’
I folded my arms and regarded her calmly. ‘I’ve said several times that you’re not beholden to me. You can leave at any point.’ I cared for the brownies a lot and I’d be desperately sorry if they left; I hadn’t lied when I’d told Hugo that they were my people. But they weren’t mine to command. They never had been and never would be.
Hester’s cheeks were bright red as she gulped in air. Otis flew close to her and gently touched her shoulder. She flinched, then her body sagged and she looked at me again. ‘Sorry, Daisy,’ she mumbled. ‘I don’t really want to leave. I like you. I do.’ She sniffed. ‘But that was adragon. You know?’
‘Yeah, I know.’ I smiled gently. ‘I don’t want you to leave, either. But you can, whenever you want to.’
Her bottom lip trembled. ‘Thank you.’
The rest of the group circled the area warily, nervous that the dragon might return. I was certain that she wouldn’tbecause she’d already got what she’d come here for. She wasn’t interested in us; she never had been.
‘I don’t think,’ Becky said in a trembling voice, ‘I’ve ever been quite so scared in all my life.’
Miriam patted her arm reassuringly but she also looked pale. It didn’t matter that she was an expert swordswoman; no sword in the world would defeat a dragon.
Rizwan rubbed the back of his neck and tried to look brave but it didn’t last long. Eventually he gave up and shuffled closer to Hugo. ‘You remember what happened to the MacAllens, right?’
The others nodded. I frowned and shook my head.
‘They were a family of treasure hunters,’ Hugo explained.
‘Skilled treasure hunters,’ Gordon threw in.
Hugo’s eyes narrowed but he refrained from making any snide comments. ‘Their feats are legendary,’ he continued. ‘They found extraordinary amounts of treasure. There’s a whisper that they located King Arthur’s sword and it’s now locked away somewhere for safe-keeping. Nobody has ever confirmed or denied it.’
