Dania wiggled out of his grasp, running back inside.
Kiri shook her head at the sight. ‘You two have fun, now,’ she told them.
‘But not too much fun?’ Azam teased.
Kiri laughed. ‘No, I give you leave to have too much fun. You deserve it.’ She put a hand on his cheek, and he hugged her again.
‘Have fun at Caden’s!’ Sonya said. Kiri smiled, waving, and then Sonya and Azam were off.
The morning was a little chilly, but the sun was out, and soon the day would be perfectly warm. There weren’t any clouds in sight, so it didn’t look like they would catch any rain.
As they walked, Azam carried both of their bags. She was carrying a smaller one with the invitation and some snacks for their trip, along with other things like money and a handkerchief.
They walked to the end of the Outskirts, going northwest. It was where she had gone the first night she ran away, the place Azam said was full of travelers and where he’d pointed out the carriage stop.
Sonya wore a simple day dress and a thin shawl she had bought with her own money from the market.
There were many workers heading in the same direction as them to get to Castletown for work. Preparations for the tourney were nearly complete but workers were still there to maintain those polished streets and all the new landscaping.
Sonya didn’t understand her father. Even though it was almostthe end of May now, he still had not canceled the tourney. He was acting like everything was completely normal, as if she had not run away almost two months ago!
She no longer spotted soldiers patrolling the Outskirts and wondered where they must have shifted their search to.
‘This is my first time leaving her,’ Azam said, pulling Sonya from her thoughts. He glanced over his shoulder toward the direction from where they had come. ‘It feels strange.’
‘Dania will have a good time with Caden and Grandma Kiri,’ Sonya reassured him. ‘And the sheep! And Butterscotch. I’m sure she’ll be so entertained, she won’t even notice our absence.’
Azam let out a breath. ‘You’re right, it’s just…strange. I’m so used to thinking about her constantly: how to take care of her, what’s best for her. It feels odd to do something on my own.’
He was Dania’s older brother but of course he had been more of a parent to her. ‘It’s natural to feel odd,’ Sonya said, ‘but you don’t need to feel guilty. You’ll be back with her in no time.’
Azam smiled. ‘Thank you.’
‘Of course.’ She liked that her words seemed to have an effect on Azam, that he listened and valued her opinion.
They made it to the carriage stop, which was a small stand with an old man in charge. Nobody else was there yet, as they were quite early. Azam bought the tickets; it was a full day’s journey to Oakdale, and Ximena’s country estate was a short ride from there.
Their carriage was very different from Ximena’s grand carriage and from Sonya’s royal carriages. This one was plain and black, pulled by four black horses. Azam gave their luggage to the coachman and then stepped on first, offering his hand to help Sonya up.
‘Why don’t you sit by the window?’ he said, and so she did, while he sat beside her. Other people came on, and they were allsqueezed in rather tightly. She was glad to be by the window then, with Azam beside her.
After they were all situated, the coachman stood in front of the open door, letting them know how the journey would progress. ‘We’ll be stopping every three hours or so, and stopping three times,’ he explained. ‘The last stop is when we arrive. It’s about a twelve-hour journey, so we should be in Oakdale by around eight.’
The passengers all nodded, then the coachman closed the door. She felt the carriage move as the coachman settled up front, and then they were off.
Sonya hadn’t expected it to be quite so rickety, and a nervous peal of laughter left her as she jostled back and forth, knocking into Azam. He laughed, as well.
Finally, the carriage settled, and she wasn’t thrown around so much. It was good they were packed so tightly, or she’d surely go flying at every turn. And a part of her did revel in the feel of Azam pressed beside her, the warmth of his body seeping into hers.
She looked out of the window, watching as they made it out of the Outskirts and onto the road. It struck her then that she was going further than she’d ever been.
The carriage was made up of two old ladies sitting across from Sonya, both of whom were already asleep. Beside them was a young man reading a book, and on Azam’s other side was a middle-aged man, who was quiet, looking out the window.
‘Is this the path you took to Seaview when you went to the Cliffs?’ Sonya asked.
‘Initially, yes, but this will be taking us further west rather than going south,’ Azam replied. ‘I haven’t left Castletown since my parents died.’
‘Did you used to travel a lot?’ Sonya asked.
