Dragon’s Empire – 4. Rose for dragon. Natalie Yacobson

but I still dragged all the things from all sides what I thought she could like. My heart rejoiced, Rose would remain in the castle. Why did I need her sculpture’s copy now? I wanted to laugh in the face of each statue found on the way, in the face of my own reflection in countless wall mirrors, but my laughter in an empty castle would be inappropriate.

      It was necessary to disperse creatures, nesting in the dungeons, strictly ordered each harpy and chimera, so that they did not dare to get closer to my guest. And I still really wanted to visit Vincent. Not in order to boast before him, and to check: whether there was no more unusual in Lara. The city, after all, I was already used to consider as mine.

      Vincent was pale and something frightened. He was waiting for the appearance of someone else, but not me. Were there the secret spirits in my house? In the rooms on the second floor everything was inverted, the furniture is overturned, the frame of the paintings were broken.

      «Take it from here,» Vincent, instead of a welcome, pointed to the only non turned over round table in the room as if there was on it the source of all his troubles.

      «Don’t ask me about anything,» Vincent himself looked with regret at the torn canvas, broken vases. «I’ll clean it myself as soon as I am convinced that I am safe.»

      «What a danger can it be here,» I tried to calm him like a child, but Vincent was in rage.

      «Do you think that I myself scratched the walls, broke paintings and my own books?»

      «Well, if you went to a witches’ sabbath before it…»

      «I didn’t go out of the house for a couple of days,» Vincent was justified, or blamed. «How long have you not walked. I thought that I had to watch this damned thing all my life. I swear, no one night I’ll spend alone with your violin.»

      He expressively pointed to the table again. Now I also saw that there was a bundle on the table top, which I had ever kept in my hands and brought home myself. Only blood spots on the taffeta looked more fresh and thick than that night. It was not necessary to deploy the fabric to guess that the violin was wrapped in it.

      From the street came some kind of sound. Vincent swore, jumped to the window and closed it.

      «And what should I do with this violin?» I picked up a bundle and felt like durable strings even through the fabric rub about the skin as if they want to cut my fingers.

      «Throw it out! Dig somewhere in the forest, in the cemetery, in the desert, in general, away from human settlements, where she cannot harm anyone.»

      I did not understand who Vincent meant saying «she», a violin or someone living. He spoke about this cracked instrument as if it was alive. I myself remembered the bloody tears that dropped out of cracks, and I immediately felt them in my fingers. I became somehow not in my own. From the extensions of Vincent, the atmosphere around became depressing, as if fear was punctured in the room.

      «Okay, I will burn it in the forest, you can not worry,» I promised and immediately forgot about my promise.

      «By the way, did you not see the hunchback under the windows?»

      Vincent was tired, he shook his head negatively.

      «Even if he was here, I did not pay attention.»

      «And Henri did not bother you?»

      «He has full of his problems. They say he wants to dig a whole city underground.»

      «And what do you think about this?»

      The expressive, radiant eyes of Vincent flashed.

      «I can say one thing for sure, he will not be a king,» he predicted and grinned, as if he was always ready to apply his hand to overthrow from the throne a not clever and sickly heir.

      «Your scars are not healed,» I regretfully looked at Vincent’s throat. «If I could heal them…»

      «Unlikely. She is still too strong, «Vincent raised his hand to the collar, as if he wanted to fasten it, but he had changed his mind. «Do not worry, I’m already used to the fact that I am marked.»

      He was used to. And I could not get used to the deep stripes with torn edges, which cut his perfectly white, gentle skin. It seemed that some dark strength, with which he concluded a contract, waved with its claws and left its stamp on him. But it was not right, I too went into the study of dark sciences, like him, but one Vincent had a stamp on himself. I, as in life, remained impeccable to the first explosion of rage, until the first awakening of the Evil. As soon as someone managed to arouse anger in me, the dragon broke out.

      «Rustle, scratch… I still think that someone scratched into the window.» Vincent tried to laugh but the laughter came out bitter and weak.

      «I won it, Vincent,» I suddenly wanted to share my joy with him, a moment of my triumph. «You can not even imagine. It also seemed impossible for me, but I won, I saved a girl designed for execution.»

      Vincent stumbled incredulously. From his chest broke out the quiet hysterical laugh.

      «Edwin, you… Do you decide to substitute your beautiful immortal head for an ax because of some girl. I understand, for me there was no evil in jokes with death, I could climb ten times on the scaffold and escape, my life was nothing worth. And you achieved almost everything and now you play with fire.»

      Vincent began to remind me of a concerned, charming Florian, who, instead of doing something of state’s importance, told me to pinch shutters. He also didn’t even dare to explain that the window I should close not from birds, enemy arrows, spies, but from Debora.

      «I don’t play with fire, Vincent,» I explained strictly. «I myself create a flame and the prince should pray that one day it did not hit his head. I hesitated too long.»

      «You think that becoming a deliverer of one victim, you will cross the entire black list of the prince. Be sure he will be replenished.»

      «It is impossible! The ring remained with Rose and at the first opportunity I will destroy it. No ring means no shackles.»

      «Rose? She is now visiting her cousin. I know for sure, I asked for reliable people.»

      Vincent could not believe that for the first time, the reliable informants were not right.

      «I was sure,» he shook his head and chestnut curls fell on his forehead. Over the past time, they have become a little longer and with the slightest movement climbed into the eyes, so Vincent constantly had to tidy his hair.

      «You can not believe anyone, especially me,» I decided to mock at Vincent, but I said the pure truth. I was such a dangerous creation. Rose did the right thing that concerned to me with suspicion.

      Vincent sighed with relief, realizing that I intend to carry a violin with me. I already hid it under the raincoat, trying not to pay attention to the scarlet drops from it.

      «Edwin,» Vincent called me when I was already going to leave. He stood motionless, arms crossed on his chest, and peered at me for a long time and carefully, as if trying to determine if I would take seriously to what he would say. «You have no one refuge, but wherever you are, do not let anyone unfamiliar.»

      I grinned, consider Vincent very naive. Did it really understand that unhappy was the one who would knock at my door. Whether this guest had good or evil intentions, the demon was waiting for him. If suddenly, the midnight killer would attack me, hoping to find a sacrifice, then for him it would be an unpleasant surprise to find himself unexpectedly in the dragon’s claws. So it was with everyone who attacked me. I turned my face to the attacker and, having met with me, he retreated in indescribable horror, understanding that it was too late, because all his fears were standing in front of him, embodied in one half an aristocratic, half demonic creature.

      Coming out of the house, I turned around and noticed that the window frames, really, were scratched.