Hoping against hope that it worked, Senna rose seductively. She crossed the room one swaying step at a time. She didn’t let her voice falter or hitch as she reached out and took his hand.
The connection between them surged again—the joy of finding something you never knew you had lost. He followed the seduction of her song. She had him captured in a spell. She didn’t question how. She pulled him down on the bed beside her. Propping herself up on her elbows, she sang over and over. It wasn’t enough. But it hadn’t been that other time, either.
With the vibration of the song still powering her lips, she kissed him, softly, gently. Her lips held enough residue from her songs to push him over the edge. With a slip of a sigh, he eased into sleep.
A surge of triumph coursed through her. Cord shifted. Reining in her emotions, Senna hummed the lullaby. She crossed the room, then stepped out and eased the door shut behind her, keeping her thoughts firmly on the song.
The two Guardians in the main room were sound asleep—one was even snoring. Keeping her steps light, Senna took Cord’s cloak and draped it across her shoulders. It was much too long for her, sweeping the ground, but it would keep her warm and hide her light coloring in shadows.
After tugging the hood low over her face, she gently pushed the door open and left the tree house. Just to be sure, she kept humming the song.
Hoping a little distance would mute her link with Cord, she moved directly away from the tree. She put a few dozen paces between them before starting in the direction where she thought the shore was. The city was eerily empty. She walked for far too long before stopping to look around.
After all she’d been through, she was going to fail to escape because she was lost! Pressing the heels of her palms into her eyes, she tried to force her sluggish mind to think.
How did the Caldashans find their way? Senna remembered walking with Mistin and Cord. They had glanced around quickly, like they were seeing some sort of sign, but what?
Senna studied everything around her, trying to figure out which path would lead in the right direction.
But Mistin and Cord had never looked at the paths. They’d looked at the trees. Senna stopped short. Moss grew on the trees’ north side. She glanced up and caught glimpses of stars in the sky. She’d spent enough time on a ship to understand how to read the stars, at least a little. Now she knew which way was north. With this new way of looking at things, she made a left and headed towards the river. She didn’t watch the paths—she watched the moss and the stars above her.
Senna didn’t know how long she’d traveled when she saw a woman running through the trees, a package clutched to her chest. Moving on instinct, Senna broke into a run after her, careful to keep a safe distance. Soon, more girls had joined the first. Senna hurried to catch up with them. Breathing hard, she was careful to lag a little behind. By the time they reached the docks, there were nearly ten of them.
There was only one riverboat remaining. The rest of the Witches must have already left on their journey downriver, where larger ships waited to take them to sea, and from there to Haven. She had to find a way aboard this boat and then a seagoing ship if she wanted any chance of stopping the Caldash Witches from destroying her home.
“About time,” a Guardian huffed. “The other boats left long ago.”
The girls answered with a chorus of “I’m sorry”s.
Senna kept quiet; she didn’t want her accent to reveal her. It was dark enough that the shadows hid her features. Still, she kept her cloak pulled low over her face and stayed right on the heels of the girl in front of her.
Quelling her hesitation, Senna stepped into the boat.
The Guardian climbed in after her, obviously not pleased that theirs was the last boat to leave. “All of you try to get some sleep. We’ll be transferring to the ships early in the morning.” He finished untying the boat, and he and the other Guardians took up positions around the perimeter, steering them downstream.
Senna lay on the floor of the boat, which was lined with straw and blankets. Some Witches were sitting up, watching the city of Lilette grow smaller by the moment. Others had already lain down. Senna found a place facing the side of the craft and put her back to the others. She wrapped Cord’s cloak so it completely covered her and finally gave into the pull of the potion.
Some time later, she woke with a sudden surge of panic. Her left side was soaked. Apparently, the boat leaked. Unable to help the groan that escaped her lips, she sat up. It was early morning, so early the darkness was still thick and soft like rabbit fur.
The small boat maneuvered into the dock. Large ships towered above them.
As far as Senna could tell, there was nothing to justify the fear splitting her insides apart. But the panic didn’t ebb. Then she realized it wasn’t hers. Cord must have woken up and discovered she was gone.