Dragon Wish

Dragon Wish

by

Judith Leger

Wild Child Publishing.com

Culver City, California

Dragon Wish

Copyright © 2011

by Judith Leger

Cover illustration by
Wild Child Publishing
© 2009

For information on the cover art, please contact Valerie Tibbs.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or

transmitted in any form without written permission from the

publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages for

review purposes. If you are reading this book and did not purchase

it or win it in a sanctioned contest, you have obtained this book

illegally. Illegal copies hurt both the author and publisher. Please

delete this book immediately and purchase it from either
Wild

Child Publishing
or an authorized distributor.

This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to any person,

living or dead, any place, events or occurrences, is purely

coincidental. The characters and story lines are created from the

author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

Editor: Deborah Herald

ISBN: 978-1-936222-90-2

If you are interested in purchasing more works of this nature,

please stop b
y www.wildchildpublishing.com
.

Wild Child Publishing.com

P.O. Box 4897

Culver City, CA 90231-4897

Printed in The United States of America

Dedication:

With Love to Terri, Amber, Linda and Debbie

Dragon Wish

Afraid to blink in case the dragon’s image appeared

behind her lids, Seren glanced around her spotless, steam-

filled bathroom. Eyes burning from fatigue, she repeated the

plea in her mind.
Show me what you want or leave me

alone.
Whatever was causing the dragon to appear needed to

know she’d had enough. She’d force an end to the vision.

Low classical music emanated from the radio. She’d

plugged it into the nearest socket so it sat on the smooth

angled slope of the tub’s lip. The soft, lulling notes did little

to ease her restless thoughts.

She wanted to relax after using her psychic abilities to

help the police solve a string of murders. In the past, the

resulting closure for the families helped her to go forward

with her life too. However, this time, a week before catching

the killer, the first vision struck, leaving her emotionally

drained and physically exhausted. The images of the dragon

dug deep into the darkened sections of her mind. They

stirred old memories of fear and pain she longed to forget.

Terror made her shiver as wispy strands of horrors from

her past drifted through her mind. She couldn’t focus on

anything solid as crimson flooded her memories. Seren

fought against the rise of utter helplessness. In an effort to

escape, she squeezed her eyes shut. The vision appeared,

seeking to destroy her sense of normalcy.

A single dragon, cold and menacing, rested atop a

pinnacle. In profile, under the heavy brow crowned by six

curving horns, one blue eye with its slit pupil watched her.

Wings hung straight at its sides. They concealed most of the

creature’s body. Pearly white scales glistened in a darkness

that swirled with charcoal and silver clouds. With the first

touch of its gaze on her, a tremendous weight settled over

her body. On the outer edges of her awareness, the force of

an unseen entity threatened to drain the life from her.

She snapped her eyes open. The mental pictures

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Dragon Wish

evaporated, but left her trembling. She studied the clear

water gushing in glimmering streams from the faucet. What

was she missing? The message lay hidden, beyond her

comprehension. She rested her head against the back of the

tub.

Sirens echoed outside her apartment, announcing

another emergency on the streets of New Orleans. Eyes

burning from lack of sleep, she hoped the police didn’t call

her to work for them again. She needed rest, but the vision’s

hold on her tightened with each new day.

With a soft sigh she sank lower in the tub, knees bent.

Damp air chilled the bare skin on her knees. Ripples in the

water moved out from her as the liquid covered her

shoulders and the heated wetness licked against her clenched

jaw. The tub’s rim hid the rest of the room from her. A strong

scent of herbal shampoo mingled with the mist rising from

the water.

Seren tried to connect something from her past to the

present—anything to trigger this sort of reaction. She’d

married and became a mother at eighteen. Ten years later,

she was single. Her husband and daughter, the child she’d

loved so much, gone forever. Over the last two years she’d

tried to be happy, or at least content to exist alone.

In a flash, ten years of her life had disappeared along with

everything she’d loved.

She drew in a deep soothing breath and released it by

slow degrees. She’d decided two years ago that she would live

the rest of her life without a man or children. No emotional

ties connecting her with anyone. The thought of love along

with loss sent bone-deep chills through her soul. The very

idea frightened her so much that she’d buried herself in

work. She hadn’t wanted to spread the word about her

psychic ability but word had gotten out, and during the last

few years, her slight psychic ability had increased to the

point where she was called upon many times to aid local law

enforcers with some of their most daunting cases. She’d been

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Dragon Wish

happy helping others find resolution for their own losses

since she’d never found any for her own.

She frowned, concentrating on the last case. Nothing

concerning the murders should have triggered this kind of

reaction. No, the image of the dragon was real, yet not. She

grunted.
Dragons
, they were nothing but myths created by

the over-active imaginations of ancient people. They didn’t

exist—except man-made ones.

The thought ended, and the vision erupted in her mind

with a screeching cry.

Darkness surrounded her. The wind buffeted her with a

constant stream of cold. She stood on a high peak across

from where the dragon waited. Like before, its eye was

focused on her. Moonlit-rimmed clouds drifted overhead.

The sting of salt in the air burned her nostrils. Her breath

caught in her throat. She tried to scream a question at the

beast, but no words came.

In an instant, the bathroom materialized. She jerked,

struggling to maintain control. Water splashed against the

side of the tub, sloshing over the rim to pour down the side

and pool on the floor. She gripped the sloped edges, taking

deep cleansing breaths to control her pounding pulse. Was

this what the vision meant? Had it been warning her of what

to expect in her future—cold emptiness?

Once calm, she raised her foot, and with her toes, pulled

the knob down to shut off the hot water. Determined to

finish her bath in peace, she shoved her troubling thoughts

aside. A slow drip slipped from the faucet, plopping below,

sending ripples in the water to circle outward. Seren braced

her feet against the tub. With a slight push, she forced her

body forward. She reached toward the Sweet-Pea scented

soap sitting next to the radio. Hand trembling, she sent one

last heartfelt plea for release from the vision. When she

picked up the soap, she brushed against the side of the radio.

The radio slipped toward the water.

7

Dragon Wish

* * * *

Age of the Great and Mighty White Dragon

The Crakkintaw Inn boasted the best drink, but lacked

the niceties richer places in the port city of Gilliesport

offered. Numbed by the overindulgence of the potent house

drink, Captain Paladin Fulcan weaved down the dim paneled

hallway of the second floor. Musty clouds of dust rose with

each step from his booted feet. The wicks in the wall lanterns

needed a trim. The blue flames gave off barely enough light

to see by, and the smoke rising from them added to the stale

odor in the building. He grunted. The place needed a

thorough cleaning. He had not chosen this place for its finer

aspects, but for the solitude along with the liquor.

He’d passed on an earlier opportunity to attend a dinner

gathering at a friend’s home. The idea of a night spent eating

a delicious, savory meal and visiting with several high-

ranking men alongside their splendidly robed families

seemed appropriate, but the thought of mouthing platitudes

while whispers swept across the room turned his stomach.

Sympathetic, the guests would have offered comfort, yet at

the same time, averted their eyes, none of them bold enough

to meet Paladin’s steady stare. Everyone would have been

uncomfortable with him there. So instead, he had come here

to drink and mourn alone.

Through the grimy multi-pane window at the end of the

hall, stars glinted in the night sky. Paladin narrowed his eyes,

concentrating on the glittering beacons as he approached his

room. He needed to get to the second door from the end—

almost there.

A shooting star blazed across the sky beyond the window.

At the sight, he stumbled. It was beautiful, so fleeting. Much

like life.

He made a wish, violating the one cardinal rule for all

8

Dragon Wish

dragonseeds of Avaris. The dragons would know and their

decision to grant him a child would, most likely, lead to dire

consequences. What had he done?

Regret flared in his heart. He clenched his teeth to fight

the pain.

Fool.

His wife was gone, lost to him along with his unborn

child. His wish for a son was impossible now. He had no

intention of ever marrying again. To do so meant he must

trust another female, which was unlikely to happen.

He stopped and rubbed the heels of his palms over his

eyes in an effort to erase the horror of finding her along with

their babe. The burning hatred the memory provoked

threatened to overwhelm him. He lowered his hands and

staggered forward, wanting to reach his room where the

comfort of his bed waited. Once stopped in front of the door,

he fumbled with the key.

A brilliant light burst against the window where he’d

viewed the shooting star. He stiffened, surprise rendering

him motionless. The other end of the hall disappeared in a