They made it to town within an hour, right as shops began opening for the day, and townsfolk began their morning bustle. The trio passed the town square where two priestesses were singing the chorus of a song celebrating the gods, surrounded by a small gaggle of Doortan’s residents bowing their heads and softly singing along.
The harbor was a fifteen-minute ride past the town’s square, the voices from the ethereal singing growing faint as they rounded the corner of the last shop. Blinking against the sunlight glinting off the water, the port sprawled before them. Ships of all lengths moored in the water, bobbing as waves threw themselves to the stone walls of the docks. Gulls screamed above, circling the vast masts and flags decorating the two largest ships, the colorful fabric snapping in the gusts wafting off the sea. The smell of rotting fish and salt filled the air, mixing with the unmistakable odor ofunwashed sailors, and a twinge of sweet rum. Orla crinkled her nose in disgust but made no comment.
Approaching the narrow rampway down to the wood-paneled docks, Lenna dismounted, tying her horse to the thin railing to the side of the cobblestone path down to the ships. “Orla, do you recognize any of the sailors working on either of those two large ships?” Lenna pointed them out, chewing her lip, a small sliver of doubt rearing its ugly head. Trying to get them both on a manifest–without too many questions asked–was going to take luck and a prayer. Lenna hoped none of the captains from last night were here. A chill ran down her spine.What if they recognized her? Would they go running straight back to Leon?Lenna tucked her bright, noticeable hair further into her hood–hoping that the gods would take mercy on her and her two wayward companions.
Orla peeled back her hood, squinting her eyes against the sun. Still on her horse, she fought a wobble to rise higher in the stirrups, trying to make out individual faces of the figures shouting, moving crates, laboring to get the ships out to sea as quickly as possible.
By some divine miracle, she didn’t have to look long.
A voice shouted above the din of port. “Orla!”
Orla whirled around and squealed with glee, quickly clambering off her horse to rush towards the squat young man in a sailor’s cap that spotted her as he came out of the shop closest to them.
Lenna shot a quizzical, almost disbelieving look over to Marlo, who merely shrugged, his eyes fixated on Orla as she clasped her hands into the sunburnt grasp of the sailor who looked to be a few years younger than her. Lenna saw the young man cup her face and ask a question, most likely about the bruises on her cheeks, but Orla shook her head and laughed as if she was dismissing the question. They spoke a few more minutes, Orla talking quickly and gesturing to the ships behindthem, the sailor nodding along, interjecting here and there. They were too far away for Lenna to make out what they were saying. But then, Orla turned to pull the sailor back to where Marlo and Lenna waited. Marlo slid off his horse, pulling his pack off the saddle, before collecting Orla’s as well.
“Lenna, Marlo,” Orla said breathlessly, “this is my cousin, Dollin. He was just telling me that he got a job out of Bardon on that ship.” She pointed to the largest vessel with pale-yellow sails. Lenna breathed a sigh of relief. Yellow sails meant the ship was owned by someone from Bardon–not affiliated with Leon’s fleet. The gods were really looking their way today as Orla confirmed with Dollin that he couldabsolutelyget them passage to Bardon, and that he had just been in the shop to grab last minute documents for his captain before they boarded to sail.
Marlo strode forward, grasping hands with Dollin, and the two exchanged pleasantries. Lenna stayed back, letting Orla and Marlo have a moment of privacy with Orla’s cousin.
Dollin gave Orla a quick kiss on the cheek and squeezed her hand, motioning over to the ship with the yellow sails. “We are leaving in about an hour. If you are ready to go, there is a gangway set up and the crates have just finished being loaded–there’s a bit of a line for people boarding, but tell the man stationed at the bottom there that I approved your travel.” Dollin puffed up his chest. For him to have that type of pull, he must be one of the captain’s trusted mates. Lenna felt relief wash over her–another man to keep an eye out for her wayward friends.
Another blessing.
Orla and Marlo exchanged a glance as Dollin strode off. Marlo wordlessly handed Orla her pack and she slipped it over her shoulders, securing it to her body. They both turned to Lenna. Orla opened her mouth to saysomething, but Lenna pulled her into a gentle hug. “Take care,” Lenna said quietly. She clasped Orla between her outstretched arms and smiled tightly, before turning her attention to Marlo.
“Marlo,” Lenna choked, saying goodbye to her only friend in this town, “take care of her and take care of yourself. I am so proud of the man you have become, and thank you for being my friend.” Marlo looked close to tears, but he grabbed Lenna in a tight embrace, conveying the emotion that swam in his eyes.
She was shorter than him, her head reaching only to his chest, but Marlo curled his torso down until his body covered hers. Lenna felt her throat constrict, as she realized just how important Marlo had become to her–the son she never had. “Thank you, Lenna,” Marlo whispered, “I owe you a debt. Please come to Wilfur when you can.” Marlo squeezed Lenna one last time and let go, reaching over for Orla’s hand. Lenna felt a couple stray tears spring from her eyes, and hastily wiped them away with a sniff.
Lenna stood with the horses as she watched Marlo guide Orla to the ship, watched as they boarded, as the gangway was raised, as the vessel began pulling away from the harbor, as the wind filled the sails, pulling into open sea.
Lenna stood there.
Watching until the ship, and the last friend she had in her life, disappeared into the horizon.
Chapter seven
Lenna
Thesunwasboldlyoverhead as Lenna finally ripped her eyes away from the shimmering inlet. Her legs wobbled with relief that Orla and Marlo made it onto the ship. The gods and goddesses were truly looking out for them. Maybe they noticed the desperation or the kindred spirit of a helping hand. Whatever it was, Lenna felt a weight lift from her chest, and she whispered a prayer of thanks skyward.
A pang of disappointment followed immediately by guilt hit hard. For one tiny moment, she wished she could get onto that ship, sail into the unknown, begin anew. Skirt her responsibilities as Lady of Doortan, cast away on one last adventure. But that wasn’t the life fate chose for her. Lenna pushed away the awful feeling that crashed over her like a wave, and started to slowly walk back to the horses that were still tied up and waiting to be taken back home.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a flutter of wings that made her heart skip a beat. On top of the shop that Dollin had come out of, a large gargoyle statue stood, ostentatious in size compared to the narrow roof. The statue’s wings tightly curled into its sides, mouth open, showing stone teeth frozen in a silent roar. She gave the statue that was used to repel birds from landing on the roof a glower, the nightmares still fresh inher mind. The wings she saw flapping by must have been some dejected gull, now looking for a new, less occupied, place to perch.
Nearing the horses, she began unfastening their ropes and tied off the extra leads to the small clips at the base of her saddle. Once secured, Lenna hoisted herself up onto her seat, but she couldn’t help shooting a glance back at the gargoyle. Her mind must still be playing tricks on her because for a split second, she could have sworn she saw the statue’s stone grin widen.
Thereturningridetothe Manor was slow with two extra horses trailing behind. Lenna was exhausted and couldn’t wait to scurry into her bedroom and lock the door. She didn’t want to see anyone–especially Olivera and Leon. As she made her way slowly through the last leg of the dirt trail and through a sparse alcove, she contemplated her dream about the odd fog in the forest.
Completely lost in thought, she didn’t notice the lead of the third horse slip from the anchor point she had tied. The horse, sensing its chance to meander into the woods and find a snack, was already past the tree line by the time she realized.
“Hey!”Lenna yelled, a little louder than intended. The mare didn’t look back as it traipsed through more brambles, looking for delicious clover.“Get back here.”
Lenna scrambled off her horse, forgetting, for a second, to secure the other two. Frantically lunging back to the lead line, Lenna growled a curse under her breath as her eyes darted around for a place to tie the two horses.
Thankfully, the Doortan fields were on the other side of the trail, the wooden slats bordering the farmland easier to tie off to. She hastily secured the ropes before trudging over to the trees after the wandering horse.
She peered into the forest, pulling her coat around her as she shivered. The temperature was falling, a sure sign another summer storm was on its way.
