Heart of a Dragon

Chapter Thirty-Two

Salvatore slept all through the day after painting Snake's dragon. There were no dreams, and when he woke, he found clean, fresh clothing laid out beside his bed. The dragon was gone, but he didn't need to see it. It was embedded in his mind. Salvatore sat up, dressed quickly, and rose. He was hungrier than he could ever remember being, and parched with thirst, but he stood a long time looking at the wall where the dragon had hung. He felt it. He knew it was nearby; he also knew that Snake had taken it.

He turned and left the room, stepping into the clubhouse beyond. It was evening, and there were Dragons lounging all over the place. When they saw Salvatore, the room grew eerily silent. He lowered his gaze to the floor and walked through the main room, being careful not to bump into any of them. He knew the way to the kitchen, and though he didn't know what there might be to eat, or if it was okay for him to eat it, he was too hungry to care.

He was about halfway across the room when one of the Dragons peeled off and stepped out the back door into the yard. By the time Salvatore reached the kitchen, Jake was at his heels, clapping a huge, meaty hand on his shoulder.

"Morning, Sally," he said. "Thought maybe you'd sleep all day."

Salvatore glanced up.

"I did not mean to sleep so long, Senor Jake," he said.

"I'm just kidding, " Jake said. The big man ruffled his hair. "Let's find you something to eat. You were up almost all night."

"The dragon is gone," Salvatore said. "When I woke, it was gone."

"Snake has it," Jake said. "He didn't show it to any of us. He wants to see you after you get some food and something to drink."

A few moments later, Salvatore sat at one of two old wooden kitchen tables with a sandwich, a glass of milk, and a chunk of cheese. He ate quickly and without talking. Jake slid into the chair on the far side of the table and watched him. Outside the window, night was falling. Through the windows they could see the flames of torches, candles, and the bonfire out back. Salvatore barely noticed. He could not remember ever having been so hungry. When the food was gone, he washed it down with the milk.

"Kind of takes it out of you, doesn't it?" Jake asked softly. "I know you ate a lot after you painted my jacket. Martinez told me."

Salvatore nodded. Now that he was done eating, he felt out of place and nervous. He glanced around the kitchen. The Dragons kept it clean and simple. There were a couple of old refrigerators along one wall, a stove, and the two tables. Despite its simplicity, it was almost overwhelming after the bare, drafty interior of his shack.

"Snake wants you outside in a bit," Jake said. "Martinez will be there too — and the dragon."

"You've seen it?" Salvatore asked. He watched the big man's face.

"No one but Snake has seen it. He said he came in, found you about to pass out on the floor, caught you, and then took it. He won't talk about it, but…you should have seen his eyes, Sally. I'd swear, if I didn't know it sounded crazy, that they glowed. They glowed red, and when he passed by me with that rolled up flag, I didn't recognize him at all."

"It is the same for you, Senor Jake," Salvatore said. "When you first saw your dragon — when you wore it — you changed. Do you not feel it?"

"Oh, I feel it, Sally," Jake said. "I feel stronger, faster — everything is clearer than it's ever been. With Snake, it was different. He's stronger, yeah…but a little scary. You know what I mean?"

Salvatore stared at the table for a moment and collected his thoughts. Then he raised his head and met Jake's gaze.

"His dragon is very powerful. It did not want me to finish the painting. There is another place — a city — I see it when I paint. I think his dragon is very important there. When I painted…it tried to take me. The paint — the red paint that Martinez made for me — it was different. I would very much like to see the dragon."

"I think we're all going to see it soon enough," Jake said. He studied Salvatore's face, as if there was something he knew, or saw, that he couldn't quite bring to the surface. "Martinez will be here soon. Snake is going to talk…and we're going to act. Most of the others don't want to go. They've heard what happened last time, in Santini Park. They've heard what Los Escorpiones did to Vasquez. They want to move on — find a new place. Snake wants them to fight."

"It will not be the same," Salvatore said, " not sure why he spoke, or how he knew that his words were true. "You have changed. Snake…"

"I know," Jake said. "He's changed. The fight will be different. We might even have a chance at winning. The question is, what do we win? What's really at stake here? If it was just this clubhouse, and this town, I'd be with the others. I'd say, let's get the hell out of here and find a new place without a war in progress. It's more than that, though. I feel it, Snake feels it — I think Martinez knows it too. We're fighting against something that's not going to stop at taking over the Barrio, or Santini Park. We might be the only thing between some weird ancient darkness and the rest of the world. It's a screwed up feeling, but at the same time, it makes me want to fight. It makes me want to be a hero.

"You think that's crazy, Sally?"

Salvatore held the big man's gaze. What he saw took him far away, to that strange dark city on the coast of an ocean he knew did not touch any beach in California, or on Earth. He thought carefully about his words, and then he spoke.

"I do not believe you are crazy," he said. "I believe that you are a hero. I believe that Martinez has seen what might come, and that he brought all of us together to stop it. He's known me all of my life, but until now he paid very little attention. He gave me some food, and he listened when I had something to say. He brought me chalk and pencils when he found them. Now it is different. He saw something in my pictures and I am here. He saw something in you — and in Snake — and you are here. On our own, none of us could stand against Los Escorpiones — not with Anya Cabrera at their side. Together? Maybe we are all heroes."

Jake reached out and messed up Salvatore's hair. The big man smiled, and Salvatore could not help but return it. A knock at the door broke the silence, and Jake turned.

"That must be Martinez," he said. "I guess it's show time"

He rose and left the room. Salvatore carried his empty milk glass to the sink, rinsed it, and then stepped back into the main room. Martinez had entered, and the old man smiled and nodded at him. Without a word, Jake led the two of them out through the clubhouse and into the yard beyond, where Snake stood in the center of several rings of gathered Dragons.

As he stepped into the firelight and caught Snake's gaze, Salvatore felt a sudden heat on his cheeks. He had to fight the urge to shield his eyes.