Silver Dragon Codex (14 page)

“I’m sure, ringmaster,” Belen said through tight lips. “I won’t reconsider, and neither will my friends.”

“Very well then,” Worver sighed, guiding them to
a long red wagon with very thick beams holding up the flat ceiling. “Here, let me get the door.” He held it open for them, letting them pass him by and climb the stairs into the wagon.

“A pity that it has to be this way, really,” Jace heard Worver mumble grimly as the acrobat climbed past the ringmaster and up the stairs. “And I had such glorious plans.”

t was dark inside the wagon, and only the light of the open door shed any detail on the inside. Jace’s first thought as he went through was that the ringmaster had put too much straw on the floor. He felt about in the darkness for any kind of chair or cot to sit on, cursing Cerisse’s shadow that blocked the majority of the sunlight streaming in the bright doorway. It wasn’t until the sunlight vanished behind them that he realized Worver had thrust Belen to the side, through another door, and clanged that shut before slamming the entryway.

Jace spun, nearly tripping over Cerisse, and realized that the inside of the wagon was lined with bars. “Worver!” he yelled, jerking on them in shock and frustration. “What are you doing?”

Now that his eyes had adjusted to the darkness, Jace could see that they’d been guided into one of the big animal wagons. There were two cages in this wagon—one
now contained Cerisse and Jace, while Belen sat up on the straw of the other where she’d been shoved. Jace panicked, grasping for his sword only to realize it’d been snatched before Worver shoved him. There were no animals in the cages—a small blessing—but the condition of the straw indicated that both sides of the wagon were normally occupied. It was likely that whatever lived here was performing in one of the rings—and would return whenever Worver said so.

“Worver!” Jace yelled again.

“Terribly sorry, dear boy.” Worver opened a slat in the rear of the cage, and Jace dived toward it. It was too small to slip through, but he wedged his hand in, hoping somehow to grab the ringmaster’s throat and throttle him. Worver easily dodged, and instead stung Jace’s hand with the little whip used to tame animals. “But there really is no other choice. A beastly pity! Your father was such an earner for the circus. I’d hoped you would be the same.”

“What is this?” Cerisse wailed, scrabbling along the bars of the cage inside the wagon, looking for another way out. “What are you doing, Worver? I thought you were our friend!”

“He’s going to kill us,” Jace snarled, jerking his hand back and leaning close to the open slat. “Or, at least, he’s going to try.”

“Why?” Belen pounded on the wall. “Worver, you’ve always protected me, always helped me! What are you doing?”

Outside, Worver sighed. “I have no other choice. You’ve pushed me into a corner, and I must act in order to save my livelihood—my circus, you see—and if I don’t, there are more than a few families that will be out of a job. Think of the Flying Wingates! Harwell, the clown family extraordinaire! The lions, the bears, the dancing dogs and their puppies—can you let them starve?”

Through the slat, Jace could see Worver placing a hand over his heart in mock sorrow. “Someone has to keep this circus going, and you were about to place a nail in our coffin.”

“I can’t believe it.” Belen sank to her knees, covering her face with her hands. “I trusted you!”

“I cared for you, my dear girl, like a daughter! But I cannot allow you to return those werewolves—nor, in fact, can I allow you to leave the circus.” His voice fell to a dark hiss. “Ever.”

Jace felt his stomach sink. “Worver, you can’t get away with this. People will notice!”

“Who will notice? Did you speak to anyone before you left the tent with me?” Worver laughed.

Jace admitted to himself that he had not, and the
realization dried his throat, making it feel as if it were filled with ash.

Worver continued, “Hautos found those wonderful beasts—he was following your trail when he came across them in the forest. Luckily for us all, Hautos relishes a good fight. He managed to to catch a few and bring them here for the show. They’re better off in the circus, you see? We’ll take care of them, ensure they’re fed, and keep them from any harm.”

“Worver!” Belen burst out, shocked. “You can’t do that! Those are people!”

“So you say, but they’re not people right now. They’re revenue, dear Belen. And now that you have betrayed me, so are you.” Worver frowned, steepling his hands around a trinket that hung from a chain around his neck. He twirled it back and forth, rolling it between the pads of his fingers thoughtfully. “I’d make this easier on us all, my dear, but I’m afraid you’re a dragon. You’re immune to my usual tricks—blackmail, threats, mesmerism, the standard things I use to keep all the acts working under my big top. I’m forced to use something more vulgar—like your friends.

“’I don’t enjoy this, my dear, I hope you understand that. I’m not the kind of man who would abuse a delicate jewel such as yourself, but you’ve pushed me to the limit!
My entire circus is at stake, and quite frankly, that means more to me than your good humor.”

“You’re horrible!” Belen burst out.

“Tut-tut, my dear! Come, I’m asking you again to change your mind. Just think of the money we’ll make! Can you imagine how famous we’ll be with you in our midst? Worver’s Amazing Celestial Circus of Light—now, with a real dragon! People will ride for miles in every direction just to attend the shows. Children will plead to return again and again. Ticket sales will go through the roof, and still, people will pay hard-earned steel just to catch a glimpse of you! I tell you what, Belen. I’ll give you, hmm, three percent of the entire take per season. What do you say?”

She clenched her fists and spat back at him, “Never!”

Cerisse’s jaw hung open, and she and Jace shared a look of horror. They’d known Worver was a greedy man, but they’d never suspected the lengths he’d go to just to make a profit. Unfortunately, now that they knew, they were in serious trouble.

“I won’t do it,” Belen said through gritted teeth. “I’m not a circus animal!”

“You’re a performer, Belen. You were when you danced in the big top, and you were just as much one when you came in from the woods, weeping and moaning and claiming
you didn’t remember anything. A magnificent performance, my dear, a sign of true quality. At the end of these last five years, even I was beginning to believe you. You have a sincere dedication to the bit, and I commend you for your fortitude!” Worver chuckled deep in his throat. “I’ll speak to Mysos about it, convince him that the best punishment for you is to stay right where you are. We might have to call it a charity function—give a little bit to the people of the area, so on, so forth, but still! Extremely lucrative, I’m sure you’ll see. Best of all, if you refuse, I can convince the White Robes of Palanthas to swoop in and take you away.”

Jace shuddered at the sight of Worver’s toothy, mustached smile beyond the thin opening in the wagon slats. He wasn’t sure if the ringmaster would go through with his threats, but at this point, Jace wasn’t sure of anything that had to do with Worver. The ringmaster twisted his hands together as if he were already counting the coins.

“We will earn glorious amounts of money! Hand over fist!” Worver chuckled. “In time, you’ll be glad I did this, Belen. If not for me, this circus would have failed a hundred times. Our headliner, Jordan the Undaunted, was gone! No one will come to see a circus without a headliner.” Worver twisted his mustache. “In any case, I must bid you farewell. The trapeze act is about to end, and they need me to introduce the contortionists.”

“Wait, what about us? Are you just going to leave us here?” Cerisse pounded on the wall of the wagon.

“Oh, goodness no.” The ringmaster chucked. “I’m going to kill you. I do regret it. It’s a terrible pity that Belen won’t agree to my terms. Jace will never redeem his family name, and Cerisse, I really will miss your exceptional act. When you juggle those little flaming rods—magnificent! I don’t expect to replace you quickly, that’s a certainty.”

“What’s to stop me from just turning into a dragon and tearing out your throat?” Belen bristled.

Worver smiled at her through the thin opening. “If you change form now, Belen, you’ll crush this entire wagon—and make your friends little more than stains against those bars.” His smile faded, and his dark eyes were sad. “I’m afraid I must, my dear. Killing them is for the best. Not only will it convince you that I’m serious, but it will also prevent anyone from telling the White Robes what’s gone on. By the time this is over, I’ll have a writ from the White Robes to keep you here under my control, and if you should break that writ or attack me … well, I think that being hunted down by the White Robes of Palanthas and destroyed should be deterrent enough.”

“I’ll tell them what you’ve done, Worver, I swear it!” Belen screamed in anger.

“Go ahead, my dear. No one is going to believe a
murderous dragon who’s lost her memory. This is probably just another episode, you see.” He sighed and looked up at the sun to gauge the time. “Now, I’m afraid I really must go. Farewell, all. Belen, I’ll see you when you’re feeling a bit more reasonable.” The sliding window snapped shut, and Jace heard a latch being thrown on the far side of the wall.

Jace heard the back of the wagon slide open. Beyond was another cage, one of the mobile ones, now locked against the wagon’s side. Jace could see Hautos levering the front panel of iron bars aside so that the monster could enter the traveling wagon safely.

And what a beast it was! Clicking its horrible crab claws together, the creature scuttled forward into the wagon on thin, clawlike legs that were serrated like dagger blades. Thick, chitinous armor, like the carapace of a lobster, covered its upper body.

“Arcox,” Cerisse choked, backpedaling. “That’s the arcox!”

With a snort of laughter, Hautos slammed the wagon bars shut once more, lowering the side of the wagon swiftly to seal them inside the dim cage area. Jace could see the bars through the other cage, past the arcox where the mobile cage’s bars were open rather than wood. Worver waved his high black hat at them. “Good-bye, dear friends,” Worver
bellowed. “Belen, we’ll discuss the terms of your first performance after I speak with Mysos. I’m certain he’ll be very understanding.” From Worver’s smile, the ringmaster was certain that his victory was just a matter of time. Tsusu, his horrible monkeylike pet, did a flip on Worver’s shoulder as the arcox stepped in and the big wooden door of the wagon slid closed between the mobile cage and the creature’s rear. Outside, Jace heard the sound of locks being shot all around the wagon.

“Cerisse!” He backed up, keeping an eye on the gigantic monster at the far end of the wagon. “Do you have any weapons?”

“I set my backpack down in the big top. I didn’t think I’d need it!”

He gulped. “Don’t you keep spare daggers on your belt? For practice?”

“Well, uh, let me see what’s in my pockets. I’ve got an apple, three darts … a couple of candles, and some pocket lint. You?”

“Not even that much.” They took a few more steps back as the monster turned to face them, clicking its horrible claws in eager anticipation of a meal. Belen gripped the bars of her cell, shaking them and calling to the creature. For a moment, it turned toward her, snapping claws on the bars, but it was unable to reach through them to hurt her.
Bored with prey it couldn’t attack, the arcox moved back toward Jace and Cerisse.

Jace scanned the bars, hoping to climb them, but saw no handholds. Even if he were pressed against the ceiling, the arcox’s long claws could probably reach him. Frustrated, he moaned, “This is it. We’re done for. Worver wins.”

“Wait a second,” Cerisse blurted out. “Where’s Ebano?”