CHARMS AND TOMES

  DRAGON THIEF BOOK 3

  MAC FLYNN

  CONTENTS

  Copyright

  Author’s Note

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Sneak Peek: Sands and Tombs

  A Small Favor

  When’s the Next Book?

  Series by Mac Flynn

  About Mac Flynn

  COPYRIGHT

  Charms and Tomes (Dragon Thief Book 3). Copyright © 2024 by Mac Flynn.

  Published by Crescent Moon Studios, Inc.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, disseminated, or transmitted in any form or by any or for any use, including recording or any information storage and retrieval system, without the prior written consent of the author and/or artist. The only except ions shirt excerpts or the cover image in reviews.

  This is a work of fiction. All the names, characters, organizations, places and events portrayed in this novel or on the cover are either products of the author’s or artist’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author or artist.

  AUTHOR’S NOTE

  Dear Reader,

  Thank you so much for joining me on a journey through my imagination. If you’re looking for romance and adventure with a guaranteed Happily Ever After, then you’ve come to the right place. My books contain paranormal plotting and fantastical action, and I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I enjoy writing them.

  You can keep in touch with me by joining my newsletter or checking out my website for the latest updates.

  Check out my website

  Sign up for my newsletter

  Thank you for giving my book a chance, and Happy Reading!

  - Mac Flynn

  CHAPTER ONE

  The day had finally arrived.

  I lifted my chin and took in a deep breath of country air. Birds flitted about the groves of trees on either side of the road that stretched out of view. Rabbits scurried off the winding dirt road and into the tall grass that lined the path. They disappeared amidst the mess of brush a few yards beyond the dirt edges.

  And a handsome dragon man sat by my side in the carriage seat. He, too, had a calm smile on his lips as he admired the view.

  “So how long has it been since you were there?” I asked him.

  A chuckle escaped him. “So long that I hardly remember. I believe it was some time before my twelfth birthday. My aunt had invited us for a visit and my father could get away from his duties only long enough for a weekend.”

  I lifted an eyebrow. “Why so long ago?”

  He leaned back in his seat and sighed. “As you know, there were some health complications due to my condition, both before and after my mother’s intervention. I was thought too frail to make this half-day journey, especially as my doctor rarely desired to leave the city.”

  “Who was your doctor?”

  “Professor Impara.”

  I snorted. “I can believe that. He doesn’t seem the type to go anywhere unless it’s for his honor.”

  “Or a summons from the academy, though even that’s doubtful due to their treatment of him,” Ben mused.

  His words perked up my ears. “Treated him? What did they do?”

  He folded his arms over his chest and shrugged. “Truth be told, even I’m not sure. The details have been obscured by time and secrecy. I only know that he had a falling out with them and left the academy many decades ago.”

  I snorted. “Are you sure he didn’t try to blow up the academy?”

  Ben chuckled. “That may not be far from the truth, but we’re forgetting the beautiful view around us.”

  I took a deep breath and smiled. “It is nice to finally get out of the city.”

  “Has the view begun to bore you?” he wondered.

  There was a touch of worry in his voice. I smiled and nudged his arm with my elbow. “I haven’t had a moment’s boredom since I got here, but I could use a break.”

  And that’s when the car flew out of the nearest thick grove of trees and careened toward us. Ferox reared up and the carriage rocked from side to side. Ben pinned me against the seat with his body as our steed scurried backward and pawed the ground. The strange vehicle, meanwhile, had flown across the road and into a mess of brambles on the opposite side. The bushes had stopped its maniac driving and swallowed all but the rear end.

  Ben sat up and I craned my neck to catch a glimpse of the driver and his machine. “You guys have cars?”

  My local guide shook his head. “I don’t know that word, but I believe the machine is called a thunder.”

  I blinked at him. “Why?”

  “Because they’re known for being as loud as that force of nature,” he explained as he climbed out of the carriage.

  “But that one wasn’t,” I pointed out as he helped me down.

  “No, and that makes it rather unusual,” he mused as he stepped off the road and navigated the broken bramble branches to reach the vehicle. “Hello there!”

  A soft groan came from the driver’s compartment. Ben held out both hands and his fingers lengthened into dragon claws. He used the talons to slice through the brush and reach the driver.

  My heart beat hard in my chest as I watched Ben unbuckle the person and drag the semi-conscious driver out of the bucket seat. He was about thirty and shorter than average height. The man wore a simple brown suit and a pair of goggles. His short brown mousy hair was filled with bits of brush and dirt, and his face was scratched in many places.

  Ben carried him over to the road and lay him on the dirt. “Is he going to be alright?” I asked him.

  Ben nodded. “Yes. I think he hit his head on the wheel, but it’s nothing more than a bad bump and a pair of black eyes.”

  A stampede of hooves made us look up. The sound came from a pair of horsemen who sprinted in our direction. One was tall and lean with a tan overcoat flowing behind him. The other man was slightly shorter with longish hair and a plaid cap perched atop his head.

  They skidded to a stop close by us and leapt off their horses. The taller of the two tossed his reins at his companion, who gave him a scowl in return, and hurried over to us.

  “What’s happened?” he questioned us.

  Ben stood and shook his head. “I’m afraid we don’t know many of the details ourselves. This thunder shot out of the brush in front of our carriage and crashed into the bushes on the other side.”

  The man who held the reins snorted. “Of course he did.”

  Ben gestured down at the man he had carried out of the machine. “We don’t think there’s any lasting damage, but you may want to take him to a doctor.”

  “I doubt that’s necessary,” the tall man replied as he knelt beside his fallen comrade and rapped on his head with his fist. “Mouse! Mouse, wake up!”

  The short man stirred and his eyes fluttered open. They were unfocused until he squinted up at us. A loopy smile slipped onto his lips. “Hey, there. How’d I do.”

  The other man rolled his eyes. “Terrible, as usual, and you’ve wrecked the car again.”

  “Again?” I repeated.

  “It’s his second time in the driver’s seat and the second time in a ditch,” the taller man explained as his compatriot eased himself onto his arms.

  ‘Mouse’ winced and clutched one side of his head in his hand. “What hit me?”

  “I believe it was the steering wheel,” Ben told him.

  “At least you used the hardest part of your body to cushion yourself,” the other man quipped.

  Mouse grinned. “I did, didn’t I? How’s Bashful?”

  His companion rolled his eyes. “We are not calling it that.”

  “Bashful?” I repeated.

  Mouse bobbed his head. “That’s the name of the thunder because it’s so quiet.”

  “We are not calling it that,” his acquaintance insisted as he climbed to his feet. “Now get up on the horse and let’s get you to see a doctor before I finish the job you started.”

  Mouse tried to stand, but the moment he climbed onto his feet his legs wobbled. He would have toppled over if Ben hadn’t caught him. Mouse sheepishly smiled up at him. “Looks like I don’t have my land legs back yet.”

  “I don’t believe you’ll have them back for a while,” Ben mused as he turned his apologetic face to me. “It would

be best if you came with us in our carriage.”

  I sighed but nodded. “It would be safer than him falling off a horse, but will he fit?”

  “I can ride Ferox,” Ben offered. The horse in question flung its head and whinnied in protest.

  The man who held the reins walked over to us. “We wouldn’t think of burdening you two with our nincompoop friend.”

  I smiled and shook my head. “It’s no problem.”

  “Then why don’t we have you take him back to our rooms at the inn?” the taller man suggested as he nodded down the road in the direction of the city. “We can get a doctor to come see him there and the rest of us can have a pint while we wait.”

  “And where is that, Mr.-?” Ben asked him.

  “The Griffin Arms,” the man replied as he waved a hand in the air. “And the rest of that can be taken care of later.”

  The man who held the reins glared at him. “Your manners, you oaf. We need to introduce ourselves or they’ll think we’re taking them for a ride.”

  His compatriot shrugged. “I don’t see the point. They probably already know who we are.” Ben and I shook our heads in unison, and his face drooped. “You don’t recognize us?”

  “Should we?” I wondered.

  “See? I told you those posters were no good,” his acquaintance scolded him.

  The tall man recovered from his disappointment and cleared his throat. “Let’s not bother about that right now. My name’s Grant Pender, and these two fools-” He nodded at the man standing and then his limp comrade, “-are Chase Cobb and Paul Mallory.”

  Paul’s grin widened. “Surely you know us now.” Ben and I shook our heads, and Paul slumped deeper into Ben’s grasp. “Damn. . .”

  “Are you guys famous?” I guessed.

  “Only on the three continents,” Grant assured us as he puffed out his chest a little. “We’re known for being-”

  “Long-winded and not getting on our way,” Chase piped up as he shoved one set of reins in his friend’s hand. “Now let’s get going.”

  Ben and I looked at each other, and a smile slipped onto both our lips before we shrugged. We’d found ourselves another adventure.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Grant and Chase climbed aboard their steeds and Ben helped Paul into our carriage. I slipped into the seat beside him as he slumped a little. His face was slightly haggard and his eyes were still unfocused.

  “Are you sure you’re okay?” I asked him.

  He grinned up at me. “Never better.”

  “Don’t feel too sorry for him,” Grant warned me as he trotted up beside the vehicle. “He’s been in more accidents than a toddler’s diaper.”

  I glanced over to the ruins of the vehicle. “Will that be okay there?”

  “Nobody’s going to steal it, if that’s what you mean,” Chase piped up as he came on the other side of the carriage. “It’s just a hunk of junk until we get it fixed up again.”

  Ben gingerly climbed aboard Ferox’s back. The spirited steed eyed him with a sharp, ire-filled look, but Ben only smiled and patted the back of his neck. “I don’t like this any better than you, but it’s either that or walking.” Ferox bobbed his head up and down. Ben’s eyes twinkled as he grinned at the horse. “That will make you late for your afternoon grain.”

  Ferox snorted, but faced forward and turned the carriage around. I looked wistfully down the road as we made a U-turn to go back to Validen. Some day we would reach Ben’s estate, but today was not that day.

  Tomorrow didn’t look good, either.

  We trotted back down the road while the two men on horseback bickered with each other.

  “I told you we shouldn’t have let him behind the wheel,” Chase scolded his companion.

  Grant rolled his eyes. “You know he wasn’t going to stop whining about it until we let him. How was I to know he would step on the fuel that hard?”

  “Because he always does something stupid and almost gets himself killed,” Chase reminded him.

  “So do you guys build, um, thunders a lot?” I spoke up.

  Grant nodded. “It’s our calling.”

  “They’re a lot more comfortable than this way, and a thunder won’t buck you off,” Chase chimed in with a sharp look at his companion. “If the Goon here wouldn’t stop messing about and wrecking our schedule.”

  Grant glared back at him. “I keep telling you you’re too slow. Is it my fault if that’s the truth?”

  Chase scoffed. “You wouldn’t know the truth if it bit you in the ass.”

  “So have you three known each other for a long time?” I asked them.

  “It feels like forever. . .” Grant mumbled.

  “Unfortunately, we’ve been working together for about ten years now,” Chase told me with a frown still on his lips. “We broke into the circuit about seven years ago and were just going to show this at the Plaza in Validen when Mouse there-” He nodded at the man seated beside me, “-asked to take it out for a trip.”

  Mouse sheepishly grinned at him and rubbed the back of his head. “Sorry about that, but if it makes you feel any better, I don’t think it’ll take very long to fix it up again.”

  “It better not,” Grant scolded him. “It’s only two days to the show.”

  “Then you gentlemen are part of the thunder tract?” Ben guessed.

  Mouse sat up a little straighter and lifted his chin. “We’re only the best of the builders.”

  “The less said about the racing part, the better. . .” Grant grumbled.

  Ben lifted his chin slightly and furrowed his brow. “I haven’t seen a thunder race in quite a few years. It still takes place in the emperor’s horse training track, doesn’t it?”

  Chase nodded. “That’s right. We’ve entered the car-”

  “Bashful,” Mouse spoke up.”

  “I told you weren’t not calling it that,” Grant snapped.

  “Why do you want to call it Bashful?” I asked my carriage companion.

  “Because it’s as quiet as a shy lady,” he pointed out as he folded his arms over his puffed-out chest. “And that’s all thanks to my latest invention. We’ll make a fortune selling these cars to all those same women. You know the kind, the ones that don’t want to be heard.”

  “Are most cars-I mean, thunders, that loud?” I wondered.

  “Haven’t you seen one?” Chase asked me.

  There it was again, that situation where I was a fish out of water. “I, um, don’t live near any of the tract areas.”

  “No wonder you didn’t know who we were,” Grant spoke up as he seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. “As for your question, they’re very noisy.”

  Chase stuck a finger in his ear and winced as he rubbed it exuberantly. “Painfully so.”

  Mouse’s eyes widened and he shot up. He began patting himself furiously all over with both hands. “Wait a minute! It’s not here!”

  Everything came to a standstill as we all watched him furiously beat himself.

  “What’s not here?” I asked him.

  “My lucky piece of wood!” he shouted as he turned his pockets inside out. Bits of twine, metal washers, and lint fell out, but no wood. “I must’ve lost it in the seat! We have to go back to get it!”

  Grant scoffed. “Like hell we are. It hasn’t done you much good since you picked it up in the barnyard two years ago.”

  “But it has!” Mouse insisted as he continued his furious search. “I’d be dead without it!”

 

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