"We were only gone a few minutes," the second guard insisted. "She changed her mind."
"When we got back, the door was open and the man inside was gone," the first guard said, his head hanging down.
"How did you get injured?" Elinor asked.
"We didn't," the second said under his breath. "We faked it."
Tressa threw her arms in the air. "Idiots. All of them. No wonder I made it into the Black Guard. These were the type of men I competed against. Cowards. So many cowards here."
"You have to understand! We were as sheltered as the people in Hutton's Bridge. The fog cut us off from the rest of the Dragonlands. We had no reason to train hard..."
But Tressa turned on one heel and stalked away. She had no interest in listening to their pathetic excuses. She headed for Fi's room, not far away.
Tressa knocked as hard as she could. The door swung open. Tressa ventured in "Fi?"
There was no answer.
"Is she here?" Elinor slipped in the room and stood next to Tressa.
"No." Bastian said. "She's not, but she left something for you." He strode over to the table. A note stood folded, the ink on the parchment spelled out Tressa's name. Bastian handed it to Tressa.
She unfolded the parchment, her hands trembling.
I took Jarrett to the Ruins. I'll find a cure for him, I promise you. Go to Hutton's Bridge and protect the children. I knew you'd refuse to do it, so I did this for your own good. Jarrett is safe with me, just as you were. I swear I will not hurt him.
"They're gone. She thought it would be better for me to help you two with the children." Tressa crumbled the parchment in her hand and tossed it onto Fi's bed.
Bastian and Elinor stood silent, neither offering an opinion.
"I won't go back to Hutton's Bridge," Tressa said. She felt sick. No one would get her back there. They'd have to do it by force.
"You don't have to," Bastian said. He reached out to put a hand on her arm, then pulled back.
"What will you do, then?" Elinor asked. Her tone had softened.
"I'm not sure," Tressa said. She sank down on Fi's bed, looking up at Bastian and Elinor. "Where should I go?"
"You could stay here. Relax?" Bastian shrugged his shoulders.
Elinor elbowed him in the stomach. "I don't know you well, Tressa, but I have a feeling you don't want to relax."
"You're right.” Tressa sat up straight. “I can't just sit here while a war brews. I know what I need to do."
"What?" Bastian asked.
Tressa jumped off the bed, pacing. "I could go there, talk to them, ask for their help." She slapped her head. "I can't believe I didn't think of it before." Tressa bent over and hugged Elinor. "Thank you both. I'm sorry I interrupted you for this. Go back to whatever you were doing."
The blush returned to Bastian's face. "Where are you going?"
"It's better you don't know," Tressa said. "If the war comes to you and you're taken, they can't torture you into telling them where I went."
"Smart," Elinor said. "And appreciated."
"I hope it doesn't come to that," Bastian said. "You're a wonder, Tressa. Truly. Back in Hutton's Bridge, I never would have thought you'd end up like this.”
"It certainly isn't the future I predicted for myself," Tressa said. "I can't complain, though. I always wanted out of the fog. And even though we lost each other," she reached up, touching Bastian's cheek, "I think we've gained far more beyond the fog."
Elinor smiled, her shoulders relaxing.
"This is goodbye, then?" Bastian asked.
"For now." Tressa winked at him. "We seem to keep running into each other. Take care and keep the children safe."
"We will," Elinor said.
“We have plenty of horses,” Bastian said. “Please take one.”
“Thanks for the offer,” Tressa said, grinning, “but I have another way to travel.”
While recounting her adventures, Tressa purposely hadn’t told them she could change in to a dragon yet. She knew Bastian harbored a mistrust of dragons. Despite overcoming his anxiety for Connor’s sake, Tressa worried telling Bastian the truth might damage whatever was left of their fragile friendship.
She took her leave of the castle and ran to the edge of the town of Ashoom and jumped. There was no more fear left in her, just a trust that her body would do exactly what it needed to survive. She thrust her arms out to the side and took flight, a little bag of clothes dangling from her ankle.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Bastian stood at the window, watching the sun come up through the trees. Yellow beams broke through the branches, bathing his room in morning's light. He wondered where Tressa had gone and if he'd ever see her again. As for Jarrett, Bastian was glad the man was gone. Hopefully he’d never show his face around Bastian, Connor, or Elinor again. After what he'd put them through, Jarrett was lucky they'd let him live.