Ch 34.3 — Matthew ate three bowls of stew, and then a fourth. At last he set the bowl down and groaned. His stomach hurt.
Mary brought out a marvelous cake from somewhere. “You must have some dessert. I baked it this morning.”
Matthew couldn’t think. In the back of his mind, a little voice wondered how a woman alone in the wilderness had cooked up an enormous batch of stew and baked a cake, but he ignored the voice. She cut slices of the cake and watched as they devoured them one after another. Matthew couldn’t stop eating. They kept eating until only crumbs remained.
“Good sirs,” she said. “You are tired. Lay down by the fire and rest. I will care for your horses and watch over you as you sleep.”
Matthew ignored the little voice that screamed at him to pay attention, to stay awake. He was so tired. It had been such a long ride. He gathered his cloak around him and lay down.
What happened next seemed to be part of a dream. The woman stood up, with triumph in her expression. In quite a different voice, she said, “It’s all so easy. Pathetic humans.”
Matthew’s body wouldn’t move. He watched through half-closed eyes as she grabbed Gordon by the collar and dragged him up into a sitting position. She slapped him. “Wake up and talk to me. Where are you heading?”
Gordon answered in a slurred, sleepy rumble. “To the dragon’s cave in the eastern mountains.”
“What will you do there?”
“Kill the dragon, the princess, and Prince Ezra.”
“What princess?”
“The ugly one. Princess Janine of Saltonia.”
“What?” the woman shrieked. “Janine is still alive? Tell me everything.”
Matthew wanted to be alarmed as Gordon told the woman of all their secret plans, but he couldn’t move. He relaxed even deeper. Nothing mattered anymore except to sleep. He closed his eyes.
Carol Nicolas 