Ben's NaNoWriMo Log

Chapter 2 added Sep 23, 2005
Sarah's stomach twisted into a tight knot as she bolted across the courtyard and through the open gate. The gate guards were nowhere in sight. The familiar streets of the city suddenly seemed strange and sinister. She forced herself to slow to a fast walk as she joined the morning crowds on St. Durian's Way. For once she was thankful for her short stature. The furtive glances she cast over her shoulder showed no one obviously following her. She made her way south over the Crusaders' Bridge to the market district, then headed east down a winding side street. As the road twisted and turned, the buildings on either side grew less handsome. Soon she was threading her way between crowded tenements and stinking slaughterhouses. Normally this would not be on her list of safe places, but at the moment she found the anonymity of the area comforting. As she neared the East Bridge, Sarah cast one more glance behind her. There was no one on the street save those who were intent on their own business. She dashed across the bridge into the familiar streets of her own neighborhood. The Oxblood market was at its height now as she pushed her way through the crowds. As she neared her house she started to think that perhaps she could simply forget what she had seen, pretend it never happened. Then she saw Ignatius walking out of her parents' house. She dashed into an alley, pressing her back against the rough stone wall. Her heart pounded in her chest. The images of Lucinda and the king's guards lying in pools of blood flashed before her. She tried desperately not to see her parents' faces on those bodies. Slowly, she eased her head around the corner. The Inquisitor was nowhere to be seen. She cautiously approached the house, half expecting Ignatius to leap out at her at any moment. Through an open window Sarah caught sight of her parents standing and talking together. They looked confused and frightened, but unharmed. She stopped where she was. Her parents were alive, and that was a relief. Ignatius knew she had been at Hightower, however. She had left the wagon there; it was no great leap of logic to figure out who she was. It would be safer for her parents not to see her again. The Inquisitor couldn't learn from them what they didn't know. Sarah had spent much of her youth playing in the streets and alleys around her parents' house, and she still knew a number of good hiding places. She wasn't sure what she was planning to do, but it was plain that she was in danger. The only thing she could think to do was to put as much distance between herself and Crown Bay as possible. She had a few crowns' worth of coins on her; she liked to be prepared in case something struck her fancy in the market. Now her emergency stash would have to get her to... where? She was not well traveled. In fact, she had never been out of sight of the city in her life. There were three ways that she could leave Crown Bay: the East Road to the interior of Jal Kufri; going south on the Crusaders' Highway would lead her around the coast to Tavis by way of Westway and Seakeep; and the north half of the Highway would take her into Ahandria by a far shorter route. Her primary concern was getting out of the kingdom, so the north road was the most attractive option. The day seemed to last forever, and Sarah grew hungry in her hiding place. As the sun began to slide down toward the horizon, she cautiously started moving. The Oxblood market was starting to wind down for the day, but she was able to buy some bread and salted beef. She made sure to go to merchants that looked unfamiliar to her, and kept the hood of her cloak pulled low over her face. The evening breeze was cool, so she didn't look too out of place. There was no sign that anything was amiss as she mingled with the shrinking crowds; news of King Stephen's murder must not have gotten out yet. No doubt by tomorrow the city would be in an uproar. Tying her small sack of food to her belt, Sarah turned her feet northward. She could have left by the North Gate, which let out directly onto the highway, but that would put her perilously close to Hightower and the very men she was trying to avoid. She followed a small road that led out through stubbled fields and bare orchards. She felt exposed on the empty lane, but it was better than taking the chance of being caught trying to pass through the North Gate. After what seemed like an eternity of fields, she came to a crossroads. She turned westward. The rutted dirt road was getting harder to navigate as the sun set beyond the sea. As she stepped gingerly around the rocks and lumps in the road, Sarah wrapped her cloak around her against the chill and thought of all that had happened since that morning. Hot tears escaped down her cheeks, falling on the half frozen ground; tears for Lucinda, tears for the guards and servants she had known, as well as for those who hadn't. She cried for the betrayed king and his country. She cried for her the parents that had lost their daughter and for the daughter who had to leave them. When she set foot on the paved surface of the highway, her tears slowed and stopped. She put the sea at her left hand and started walking. With each step she tried to be more like the broad flags beneath her feet; cold, hard, and marching ever northward.
category: /legend/chapters | permanent link