Dragon Hunts

Yeah, it sounded silly. I laughed along. My laughter died down when I remembered the flash of leathery wings I thought I had seen last night. I quickly shook the notion away. Nah. Impossible. It must have been a figment of my imagination. Make that an alcohol-induced figment.

Declan rose from his seat. “Are you ready?”

I followed his suit. “Yes, I am.”

“Are you tired?”

“A little,” I admitted.

“Sore?”

I grinned. “Guess.”

“Poor you.” Declan pecked a kiss on my cheek. “No sex today, then.”

Somehow, I mourned his decision.

He held my hand and we walked outside. He told me to leave my shoes on the veranda. We went barefoot.

Morning dew caressed my feet as we strolled on the grass. The wind was slightly chilly. Luckily, I had my sweater on. The hotel was built near a hillside, surrounded by lush, fertile rice fields. It carried a theme of traditional Balinese villages. That was why all the villas had been built surrounding the main building, mimicking the tranquillity of the surrounding nature but with the luxury of an upscale resort.

Our villa nestled just near a river, flanked by emerald-green rice fields. We walked hand in hand along narrow dirt paths. About two hundred feet away, a wooden pavillion had been erected in the middle of a rice field for the hotel guests who wanted to relax in seclusion. The place was empty when we got there. Either that or Declan had reserved the spot exclusively.

We washed our feet with water from the big earthenware bowl at the bottom of the step and climbed up the open and airy pavillion. We sat side by side on the edge of the structure, our feet brushing against the stalks of rice plants. Declan wrapped an arm around my shoulders. I rested my head on his chest.

We watched the sunrise together.

Declan hadn?

?t been kidding. The sunrise was spectacular. On the horizon above the tree line, the sun slowly ascended, painting the sky with glowing hues of orange and red. Birds chirped and roosters crowed from afar. I might have heard the low grunt of the water buffalo that local farmers employed to till the fields. There was an air of magic in this place that made every fibre of my being mellow and relaxed. People said Bali was an island of paradise.

It was true.

After watching the sunrise, we headed to the in-house restaurant to have breakfast. Always business-like, Declan had the whole day planned. He took me shopping in the capital, which was a couple of hours’ ride away, for casual dresses and shoes. I had only packed my business clothes, with the company meeting in mind. Then we went window-shopping from one art gallery to another. Declan bought a few Balinese paintings and sculptures. We had a nice lunch at a restaurant in Sanur beach, and spent the whole afternoon lounging on the sand. We went back to our hotel after sunset. I was too tired even for dinner. Declan hustled me off to bed when he noticed I could barely open my eyes.

My cell phone rang at about four in the morning, jolting me awake. I trudged across the room, looking for my purse. I found it on the table. I rummaged through it impatiently and fished out my phone. I didn’t recognise the phone number on the screen.

“Hello?”

“Mommy?”

“Bobby? What’s wrong?” My motherly instincts flared up. I had just spoken to him a few hours earlier before I went to bed and he’d been fine. Last night Curran had introduced him to a popular multi-player online game and they had been on a quest for dwarf gold. I checked the time. Bobby was supposed to be at school at this hour.

“I’m fine, Mom. I don’t want you to worry. I can take care of myself.” My son was mature for a boy his age.

“I know, sweetie. Did something happen? Aren’t you supposed to be in class?”

“I’m playing hooky. I borrowed a cell phone from my friend to call you. I told Marcus my mom would pay the bill.”

“Why did you do that?” My son was quiet, not the type who liked to stir up trouble.

“Well…” he paused. “When I went to get a hall pass from the principal, I saw Scary Joe in her office.”

“You what?” My voice raised an octave. “You saw him?”

Scary Joe was Lorenzo’s wingman. He was big, ugly and as scary as his nickname. He handled most of Lorenzo’s dealings and had a rap sheet as long as ten rolls of toilet paper.

“I ran back to class before Scary Joe could see me. Then I borrowed the phone and played hooky in the girls’ bathroom. Scary Joe won’t find me. If my voice sounds kinda funny, I have to talk like a girl so nobody will suspect.”