Chapter Twenty-Five
Bryn wasn’t sure what to expect at Sanctuary. The words “old mining town” conjured a vision of dirt roads and rundown buildings. In reality, it looked more like a camp, with cabins, in an overgrown forest.
Clint and Ivy rode with Bryn to the front gate where her parents stood waiting.
“Thanks for coming with me,” she said. “I’ll introduce you when you come back from Dragon’s Bluff.”
“Have fun,” Ivy said.
Bryn climbed out of the SUV and approached the guards standing at the admission checkpoint.
“Who are you visiting?” the guard asked.
“My parents, Ian and Sara McKenna.”
The guard made her sign in and gave her a lanyard to wear which had a numbered pass card. “This is so we can keep track of who comes and goes. Don’t lose it.”
“I understand.”
The guard waved Bryn through the gate and she ran to hug her parents.
“There’s my girl,” her dad said.
He looked more like himself, standing tall without assistance. She pointed at his leg, noticing the different brace. “That’s new, and you don’t have your cane anymore.”
“No.” Her dad took a few steps to show how the brace worked. “Your friend Garret is a genius.”
“He is pretty smart,” Bryn agreed.
“Come on.” Her mom hooked her elbow through Bryn’s. “I can’t wait to give you the tour.”
They walked down a dirt road which branched off in three different directions. “Straight ahead is the Community Center, but our cabin is this way.” They walked down the right-hand road, passing several cabins, which appeared rustic but well restored. They reminded her of Valmont’s cabin. The wood was bleached with age and vegetation grew up some of the walls making it look like the wooden structures were part of the landscape.
“Did you have to chop back the plants to find the cabins?” Bryn asked.
“Sometimes,” her dad said. “But we left some of the greenery because it helps insulate the building, and in some cases, it seems to be holding the logs together.”
When they reached her parents’ cabin Bryn understood what he meant. The vines grew up and around the house, looping around some of the logs which gave the whole structure an otherworldly appearance.
“It looks like something out of a fairy tale,” Bryn said.
Her mom laughed. “That wasn’t the case when we first came here. It was more like something out of a horror movie.” She led Bryn up the walk. “Come inside. That’s where you can really see what we’ve done.”
Bryn entered the house. The front door opened onto the living room with a couch and rocking chair. One step up from the front room was a kitchen with an apartment-sized stove and a refrigerator. Shelves above the farmhouse sink held dishes and utensils. Off to the side stood a pantry which looked like it had been partially sunken into the wall. Intricate carvings of leaves and vines decorated the doors in an almost geometric pattern.
“That’s cool.” Bryn pointed at the cabinet.
“Yeah.” Her dad rubbed his chin. “That was one of those make-the-best-of-it moments. I wanted to put in a storage closet, but that was beyond my woodworking skills.”
“He almost brought the whole wall down.” Her mom laughed. “But some neighbors helped us reinforce the area and then they built the cabinet to fit inside the niche that was left.”
“I like to think of it as a happy accident,” her dad said.
That’s one thing she loved about her parents. Their outlook on life was so positive. “Who did the artwork on the doors?”
“A very talented Green-Black hybrid carved the design into the doors. It’s funny, we’ve met hybrids who have such interesting skills.” Her mom pointed down the hall. “The dresser doors are even more amazing.”
Bryn followed her parents down the short hallway to a room which held a bed and a custom-built dresser that extended the length of one wall. The drawers were decorated with carvings of flowers and small woodland animals. Bryn looked closer. “Is that a skunk on the bottom?”
“Yes,” her dad said. “I think a Black dragon would have known that a skunk isn’t something you particularly want in your art, but when I asked why he included the skunk he said that due to his Green side, he felt the need to accurately represent all of the animals that live in the forest.”
“Interesting. I guess you’ll have to be more specific in your requests for art from now on.” Bryn stepped back into the hallway. There was one more door on the other side of the hall. “I’m hoping you have a restroom and not an outhouse,” she said.
“It’s functional, but a little cramped.” Her dad opened the last door. “See for yourself.”
Bryn scooted past him and was relieved to see a pedestal sink, curtained-off shower, and toilet. The blue-and-white striped curtain and towels gave the room a happy vibe.
“It’s cute,” Bryn said.
“Let’s go back to the living room,” her dad said.
Once they were seated on the couch, her mom said, “Some people are having trouble adjusting to the tight space. But it’s not much different than our apartment.”
It was smaller than Bryn’s dorm room, which made her feel guilty. Then again, so was the apartment she’d grown up in and she’d never felt crowded when she’d lived there. It was all a matter of perspective. “It’s really cute and homey,” Bryn said. “How is there so much light?”
“Look up.” Her dad pointed at the ceiling.
Bryn checked out the ceiling. Two rectangular skylights allowed sunshine to flow into the room.
“Since we had to patch the roof anyway, it wasn’t too difficult to add the skylights.”
Her mom laughed.
“Fine,” her dad said. “They leaked like a sieve the first time it rained, but we figured out a better way to seal them and now they’re fine.”
“A lot of this stuff has been trial and error,” her mom said. “But everyone has pitched in for the greater good, and we’ve all learned as we went along.”
“I have to confess, I was a little worried about what it might be like out here,” Bryn said, “but this is really cool.”
“I know my parents probably think we’re living in a slum,” her mom said. “But this works for us.”
She didn’t want to talk about the strained relationship with her grandparents. “How many cabins are there?”
“We’ve restored about fifteen and built another ten,” her dad said. “I have to credit whoever is keeping us supplied with materials because there hasn’t been a shortage. We have enough lumber to build a dozen more. It’s just a matter of time and manpower.”
“What do you do all day out here?” Bryn asked.
“I’m teaching yoga classes at the community center,” her mom said. “And your dad has helped with the building.”
Bryn leaned back against the couch cushion and sighed. “You have no idea how worried I was about this visit. I was afraid you were putting on a brave face about the whole situation, but this is really nice.”
“Our only complaint would be the lack of information about what is going on at the Institute. We’ve heard rumors about the increase in security, but we don’t know why,” her mom said. “Can you fill us in?”
How much should she tell them? She didn’t want to worry them, but she didn’t want to lie, either. “Honestly, we aren’t sure what’s going on. Some college students have been caught trying to siphon Quintessence from other students like some old cult used to do.”
“Why?” her dad asked.
“Apparently, there are some dragons who think extra Quintessence will help them become all-powerful. They apprehended two dragons who were involved in the attacks and they’re holding them for questioning.”
“I don’t understand what they hope to gain,” her mom said.
“Power, I guess. Clint coined the phrase dragon-pire.”
“That’s funny, but not really appropriate,” her dad said.
“What about out here? Have you run into anything strange?”
“Not really,” her mom said. “Why?”
“Ferrin suspects that there are dragons living in the mines, avoiding detection.”
Her dad laughed. “As far as I can tell, the old mine is just a hole in the ground. I wouldn’t even call it a cavern. If anyone is coming and going through there they’d need to be excellent climbers. There isn’t even room to shift and explore.”
“And how would you know that?” Bryn asked.
“It can get a little boring out here, so some of the people tried to go exploring. They didn’t get very far. Said the tunnels made them claustrophobic.”
After being trapped under the library, Bryn had no desire to investigate anything underground ever again.
“There are rumors that there are other entrances,” her mom said. “You’d think there’d have to be, for airflow and safety standards, if nothing else.”
“I wouldn’t ask too many questions about that,” Bryn said. “Since Ferrin is the one looking into it and I kind of pissed him off when I mentioned that I might want to keep my maiden name after the marriage.”
“You said that to him?” her mom asked.
Bryn nodded and laughed. “I couldn’t help myself.”
“That’s my girl,” her dad said, once he stopped laughing.
“It was pretty funny, but seriously, I think the Directorate is watching everyone in Sanctuary—just waiting for someone to mess up.”
“It feels that way,” her dad said. “It’s been a long time since we walked on eggshells like this and I’m not happy to be doing it again. In the human world, we kept to ourselves and people left us alone. Now it feels like we constantly have to be aware of where we are and what we’re saying.”
“I know,” Bryn said. “It can be exhausting but it’s not like there’s another alternative.”
When her mom and dad didn’t jump in to agree, an uneasy feeling washed over Bryn. “Please tell me you aren’t planning on running away again.”
“No,” her mom said. “I mean we discussed it, but I have the feeling we might die in a car crash if we tried.”
Bryn frowned. “That does seem to be a common issue around here.”
“We would never go anywhere without telling you,” her dad said.
“Good.” Bryn’s stomach growled. “I believe you said something about feeding me.”
For the rest of her visit, Bryn and her parents kept to pleasant topics. A knock on the cabin door made her father frown. “Who could that be?”
“It’s probably my friends Clint and Ivy. They said they’d come back and meet up with me since we aren’t supposed to go anywhere alone.”
Her mom opened the door and Bryn sighed in relief. Clint stood there with his Mohawk and lightning tattoos on his arms. Ivy had her wild hair and tattoos. Both looked a little less sure of themselves than they normally did.
“Mom, Dad, these are my friends.” Bryn performed a round of introductions.
“It’s nice to meet you,” Ivy said. “We’ve heard a lot about you.”
“I hear you could teach me how to build better card houses,” Clint said.
Bryn’s dad laughed. “I haven’t thought about that since we’ve been here.”
Clint pulled a deck of cards from the Dragon’s Bluff shopping bag he was carrying. They were new, still in the cellophane wrapping. “Then here’s a housewarming present for you.”
Her dad smiled. “Thank you.”
“Not to cut your visit short, but we should go,” Ivy said. “The driver said he needs to return to campus.”
Bryn hugged her parents. “We should pick a day to put up a Christmas tree.”
“Let’s set up a date to go shopping for Christmas ornaments,” her mom said. “Because the only thing we have access to here is a tree.”
“I’d love that.” Bryn’s throat grew tight. “I know it’s stupid, but I don’t want to leave you guys. I’m afraid you might disappear again.”
“We’re not going anywhere, but why don’t we walk you to the gate,” her dad said.
Bryn took a breath and blew it out. “No. You should probably stay here. I don’t want to tear up at the gate.”
Her mom shook her head. “I recognize those Blue genes, and it’s frightening.”
“Tell me about it.” Bryn gave them another quick hug and then left.
Once they were in the SUV, Ivy started talking rapid fire. “Dragon-pires have been reported in Dragon’s Bluff. A student was approached behind one of the stores. He was buying a Christmas gift so he was by himself. He managed to get away, but he said the attacker was a Green female. He didn’t see her face because she wore a mask.”
She hated letting them believe the Silvers were Green, but she’d promised Jaxon she wouldn’t share. There had to be a way around this situation. “I’m really beginning to hate these dragon-pires,” Bryn said. “Why can’t they be happy as they are?”
“I don’t know,” Ivy said. “Not to mention the fact that this is total crap because it’s almost Christmas.”
“They don’t seem to be in the holiday spirit,” Clint said.
Once they were back on campus Bryn invited Clint and Ivy up to her room. When they were seated on the couch, she paced back and forth.
“What’s going on?” Ivy asked.
Bryn stopped pacing and turned to them. “Here’s the deal. I know something I can’t share because I promised I wouldn’t tell anyone, but I don’t want to keep it from you guys.”
“Interesting.” Clint leaned forward. “You can’t tell us, but what if we guessed?”
That gave her some wiggle room. “I can live with that. Here’s your clue. If the dragon-pires were hybrids, what kind do you think they’d be?”
“They have to be part Green, right?” Ivy said.
“That’s a good guess,” Bryn said.
“Green-Red, Green-Black, Green-Orange?” Clint said.
“Green-Blue,” Ivy said.
Bryn nodded.
“Oh my God,” Ivy said. “The brains of a Green with the drive and desire to rule of a Blue? That makes so much sense in a crazy sort of way.”
Bryn collapsed in the chair. “It was making me crazy not telling you guys.”
“What about Garret?” Clint said. “He should know about this.”
“You can’t tell him,” Bryn said. “And you can’t ask him to guess. I promised Jaxon I wouldn’t tell.”
“I’m glad you’re hanging onto your rebel roots,” Clint said.
Once her friends left, she called Jaxon, partly out of guilt. “Did you hear about dragon-pires in Dragon’s Bluff?”
“I did, which means you won’t be going back there anytime soon.”
He sighed. “Let me rephrase that. We shouldn’t go to Dragon’s Bluff until they find whoever is attacking students.”
“I still don’t like it but saying it that way doesn’t make me want to shoot a fireball at your head.”
“Right.” Jaxon snorted. “I’ll remember that. Good night, Bryn.”
“Good night.”
Bryn hung up the phone. How would this news affect Dragon’s Bluff? The no-loitering issue had already changed how people behaved in town. Now that there were evil Silver dragon-pires running around, what would that do?