There Be Dragons Read Online Free PDF Page B

thought, in my heart, I suppose, when I did think of marriage, and the future.”
    “I’m afraid that
I
would take the six-by-six, wrinkled, pruned, mustached, old hag—to improve my holdings,” Antonio told him cheerfully. “Good heavens, man! You’re getting married. What has that to do with love?”

    “Nothing, so it seems,” Michelo said, dusting his gauntlets against his thigh, then heading toward the horses. His own great warhorse, Alexander, named for the powerful Greek conqueror, awaited him. They would be truly allying the lands of the duchy, and those of Lendo. And there was no argument with his father’s logic. The great duke had it all figured out; Michelo would marry Daphne, and apparently Carlo, Count of Barristo, would marry the other daughter of the house.
    He couldn’t help but think of Carlo with a certain weary displeasure.
    But then …
    At least the man wasn’t being married to Adriana, his own younger sister!
    So. It was all carefully planned. It was logical. It spun ties between everyone in the duchy, right and proper.
    It was just …
    Just what?
    There had to be more.
    Aye, it seemed …
    There just had to be more!

    Marina staunched the flow of blood from the falcon’s wing. “Let’s see if the bleeding begins again,” she murmured, resting the creature back on the rock.
    “You’re not leaving me without this bandaged properly, are you?” the creature demanded.
    Marina smiled. “No … I just want to make sure you’re not going to bleed to death in the imminent future! We may need more pressure for a few minutes. It’s a miracle a bone wasn’t broken. That your body wasn’t … well, that it wasn’t more serious.”
    The flow of blood staunched, Marina sat back, assuring herself that the bleeding would not begin again. Weary then, Marina rested her head against the rock as well for a moment, wishing that she could stay, and sleep, and then wake, and find her world had changed.

    This was it, apparently. Life had become too much for her. She had assumed she could manage whatever came, that she was strong and determined, and would never leave Lendo completely in the hands of such a man as Carlo Baristo.
    But now she knew. She wasn’t that strong. She was losing her mind. Hearing words come from a falcon. Perhaps it was a good thing she should lose her mind. Carlo wouldn’t want to marry a lunatic. Ah, but then again! He might marry her, and have her locked up. Carlo coveted Lendo, and marrying her would eventually bring him the land. Her stepfather coveted his social standing more than property, and thus Daphne would marry Fiorelli’s son.
    She needed to fight this, because insanity wasn’t going to save her.
    “You know, I’m not really a falcon,” the bird said.
    Smiling, Marina lifted her head. “You look like a falcon.” She was somewhat amused, still not certain she was in her own right mind.
    “How many times have you seen animals talk?”
    “Never, we’ve established that. But animals do, in their way, talk all the time. We usually just have to listen differently.”
    The falcon sighed with feigned patience. “How many talk, as I am talking now?”
    “None, but I don’t believe you’re really talking.”
    “What?”
    “This is a figment of my imagination. I’m choosing a dream world over the travesty of my reality.”
    For a moment the falcon was silent, dark eyes hard upon her.
“What?”
    “
I’m dreaming this whole thing up.”
    “Snap out of it, young woman!” the falcon said impatiently. “My dear child, if your life is that distressing, I may be able to help you. If I can actually get your full attention,” the bird said with another sigh, this one very openly impatient. “My name is Thomasina. And I’m really a rather talented fairy.”
    “Oh?” Marina smiled. “Of course.” She peered closely at the animal’s wing again. “I just want to see that wound. I think the bleeding has stopped completely.” With fabric torn from her