"When will you be back? I'm starving," Elia said.

"Soon. Don't leave. I'll send food." Dariel kissed her and headed for the door.

Elia sat down gloomily. "I need to eat now, and if I don't get anything I'm going to be very grumpy."

"As an expectant mother should be," Ermentrude said soothingly. "I've decided to knit you a baby blanket."

Elia smiled tentatively. "Thank you." She moved to sit at the tiny table with Ermentrude.

"Don't worry, all of my yarn is fireproof." Ermentrude dug through her bag and pulled out a skein of fluffy white yarn spotted with ash.

Knot hopped on the arm of the chair and purred at Elia. She ignored him. Coyote sat at her feet like a loyal lap dog. Outside the motel, the cats' meowing escalated.

Keelie covered her ears. "Are you using some kind of elven cat charm?"

"I don't know," Elia snapped. She ran her hands through her golden curls.

The door suddenly crashed open. "Goblin attack!" the elven guard cried. "They've set the motel on fire."

Everyone leaped to their feet. "Ermentrude, can you put it out?" Keelie cried.

"I only start fires," the dragon snapped. "Get your coats and go outside."

Elia was already struggling into her cloak. "I have to pack my ceremonial robes, and my pink gown, too. Keelie, don't forget to get my hairbrush."

"No time." Keelie pushed her out the door. Obviously the Lore Master did not teach fire safety to elven kids.

Outside there was chaos. Armed men rushed back and forth in the motel's smoky parking lot and Keelie could hardly see for the choking, acrid gray billows.

She held her sleeve over her face and Elia bent over, coughing. Ermentrude didn't seem to have any trouble breathing smoke, and she helped Elia get away from the motel.

Three figures appeared out of the gray haze and followed them. Keelie turned to confront them, unsure what she could do to defend herself, when she saw that they were armed elves.

"We are to escort you to a place of safety," one said. His eyes were half-shut against the smoke. A wind arose, clearing the smoke but fanning the flames.

"Why don't we go into town to the Crystal Cup?" Ermentrude suggested. "It's enclosed and you could defend the doors, and maybe the goblins left some food inside."

"Maybe I can call on Herne to send a troll out there with us," Keelie added.

Sean jogged up to them, his chain-mail shirt jingling. "Dariel sent me to help guard you."

"Good," Elia said. "We're going to the Crystal Cup."

"Dariel didn't say anything about the Crystal Cup."

"He forgot my breakfast," Elia cried. "He doesn't love me. I'm going to starve, and my clothes will all be burned to ashes."

"Let's feed the pregnant elf-she's scarier than the goblins," Keelie said. Behind them, flames flickered from the long, low motel and black smoke billowed up and was pushed back down by the wind.

Ermentrude leaned on her walking stick. "It smells a bit like gasoline."

Keelie could only smell smoke. "If the goblins are trying to smoke us out, where would be the most logical place for us to go?" She spoke softly.

The guard elves leaned in. "Back to Grey Mantle," one suggested.

Another nodded. "Or to the City Hall building. It's st.u.r.dy, all brick."

Sean eyed Keelie, a smile growing on his face. "I get what you mean. The roads to those places might hold an ambush, but the way to the Cup won't."

"Right." Keelie nodded in Elia's direction. "Besides the hysterical mother-to-be, we have a dragon on our side. I think we'll be pretty safe, especially with you guys along."

"Let's hurry then," Sean said. "Walk behind the women," he told the elf warriors. "I'll take the front."

Ermentrude went to Elia and put an arm around her shoulders. "Come on, dear, let's get you something to eat. I'm afraid we'll have to walk."

"This is the worst trip of my life," Elia sobbed. "I want to go home."

"I understand, dear."

Keelie stomped after them. She felt the same way, but she wasn't about to whine about it to the world. Warmth for Sean flowed through her. She knew he was doing this as much for her as for Elia.

"Let me give you some relationship advice," Ermentrude said, glancing back at Keelie. "I dated an elf once, and they need time to think about things."

"You dated an elf?" Elia asked in a disbelieving tone.

The dragon chuckled to herself as if she was savoring a sweet memory. "He was very athletic."

Keelie didn't want to know.

When they finally reached the abandoned streets of Big Nugget, Keelie tried to ignore the fact that about fifteen cats and at least twenty crows were keeping pace with them. Knot and Coyote walked at either side of Elia, who seemed oblivious of the animals. "How far to the Crystal Cup?"

"Just a little bit more." Keelie, Ermentrude, and the elves kept a wary watch for goblins.

At the cafe, Keelie and Elia went inside. The building seemed frail compared to the No-Tell Motel. The cats and crows, dragon and guards stayed outside while Elia hunted frantically for food. There were some old bagels under a gla.s.s dome. Keelie would have loved to have some coffee, but the coffeepot had been destroyed. No other food remained.

Elia sat down with a bagel and sniffed it. "I guess this is it.

"This is it."

Outside, the skies darkened and a cloudy sense of doom enveloped Keelie. "Elia, we need to go. This was a bad idea."

Elia was reading the menu as she gnawed on the bagel. "I'm not leaving. I'm eating."

"We need to leave now." Keelie grabbed Elia's wrist.

"Not until..." Elia stopped and looked around as if she sensed something was wrong, too. "I think maybe you're right."

Keelie heard the discordant jangle and her stomach dropped down to her feet. She was going to have to face a p.i.s.sed-off Peascod and protect Elia.

The floor cracked and splinters flew everywhere. Peascod and several goblins spun upward.

Elia ran to Keelie, and she wrapped her arms protectively around her.

"What are we going to do?"

"I don't know."

Keelie tried to telepathically contact the trees, but it still didn't work.

Peascod stood in front of Keelie, and he didn't look happy. He waggled his index finger. "No, no, no. Trees can't help you now." His jester's suit was stained and ripped. He sneered at her, and from underneath his creepy mask, his green bloodshot eyes glowed with hatred.

"Because of you, I have lost my position with Herne. Because of you, Keliel Heartwood, my plans for obtaining the magic have been ruined, but I'm going to enjoy killing you and your pregnant friend. That baby contains a lot of magic, and it will make a worthy gift to my master."

Elia hid behind Keelie, and she shielded her with her body.

Peascod chuckled. "It won't help to hide, elf. If you'd been smart, you would have stayed home in the Dread Forest where you and your child were safe."

Keelie sought out the Earth magic running through the ground beneath the cafe, and it was weird. It felt like soil that had been tainted with blood. She'd sensed this before, in the Redwood Forest, but this was a darker form of magic.

She stared at Peascod, who laughed. "Yes, blood sacrifice strengthens our magic."

"I knew you were evil, but this goes beyond what I'd imagined."

"Thank you. I've been working on my evil ways for many years.

At that moment, a loud pounding on the door erupted. "Kill him!" Peascod yelled to the goblins at his side.

Keelie knew Sean was outside, probably circling around the cafe ready to attack, and he was walking into a trap.

Cats, birds, and squirrels crashed through the window, shattering gla.s.s everywhere. They scrambled in and attacked Peascod. Crows pecked at his face, squirrels dangled from his clothes, and the cats scratched at his exposed skin with sharp claws. The nasty jester shrieked underneath the attacking ma.s.s of fur and feathers. Coyote rushed in and bit him on the b.u.t.t, ripping his jester pants. Oh, gross! Peascod went commando.

Grabbing Elia by the hand, Keelie guided her toward the back of the cafe. They could make their escape through the kitchen. Sean came charging in the back door, sword drawn.

"Keelie, Elia, this way."

"Where do you think you're going?" an armored goblin yelled. He looked like something from a video game.

Sean attacked, smashing his sword down on the goblin's head.

That had to hurt.

Keelie had to get Elia out of there while Sean kept the goblins busy. As they exited the back door, she looked all around, but she wasn't expecting what happened nextPeascod spinning up from underneath the ground in front of her. She shielded her face from the flying debris as the disgusting jester blocked their escape.

"Where do you think you're going?" Blood dribbled in rivulets from the scratches on his face and his arms.

A mop in a bucket of water stood at the back door. Keelie grabbed the mop and shoved it at Peascod's face. Mop water as a weapon worked for Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz; maybe it would work for Keelie.

Peascod laughed. "That's not going to work." He seemed to know where she was going with this.

From his red and black pants pocket, he removed a gla.s.s sphere and tossed it up in the air. "You're going to die, just like she did." He laughed maniacally. "Linsa was powerful, like you, and her blood was a very good vintage." His eyes glittered madly.

An image of a lifeless Linsa formed in the reflection of the gla.s.s. Peascod was standing over her body.

"This is not the image you showed Herne," Keelie said.

"No, Lord Herne has not seen what really happened to the Shining One he loved. Nor does he know that I killed her. Linsa had discovered that I was gathering my own goblin army, and she was on her way to tell Herne when-oops! Somebody died. It was easy to make it look as if Herne had done the deed, and Queen Vania believed it." Peascod laughed. "Linsa's death caused the rift, which widened. Now there's a rift among the creatures of the Northwoods, too. The symbolism is rich."

"I'm shocked you even know what symbolism means," Keelie said.

Peascod narrowed his eyes. "You're a mongrel. You're a mixture of everything, and you'll never truly belong."

He wasn't going to try this psychological angle on her.

"You know, I've heard the same thing over and over," Keelie retorted. "Living with elves toughens you up to the real world."

Peascod carefully moved forward. "It's always a rewarding experience to be sure of one's self."

Keelie heaved the mop at him. The smell of Pine-Sol filled the air and some water droplets landed on him.

Looking past the shrieking jester (who knew he could jump that high?), she saw Sean sneaking up behind Peascod. But he whirled around in time to stop the surprise attack.

"Oh, look, I'm caught in a love triangle. Shall we all kiss and make up?" Peascod began laughing. He threw the gla.s.s sphere up in the air, and as it rose, it arced over toward her.

"Keelie, watch out," Sean shouted as he barreled over to her.

Peascod spun around and disappeared into the soil. The sphere stopped midcourse and then turned, hovering as if it was on a seek-elf trajectory. It zoomed toward Sean.

"Sean!" Keelie screamed.

He lifted his arm up and shielded his face.

As Peascod spun back into the ground like a mad harlequin dancer dancing a frenzied dervish, Keelie picked up the bucket of mop water and threw it. It splashed everywhere, but missed its intended target. The ground was wet and muddy where Peascod had dug his hole.

Blood dripped down Sean's arm. He'd been protected by his armor, but some of the gla.s.s had penetrated the exposed skin. Small fragments were embedded in his face.

"Sean, are you okay?"

"Yeah! What about you? Elia?"

"Elia-she's not here." Panic filled Keelie as she remembered what Peascod had said about Elia's baby being a worthy gift for his master.

"We need to find her. Don't move. I need to see where the tracks lead us," Sean said, his armor clinking as he ran.

Keelie bit down on her lips. She needed to calm down. She closed her eyes and reached out for the trees. I need your help.

Peascod's dampening field of magic had been removed. She dreaded to think what else he had up his jester hat.

Milady, what can we do?