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“Help! Help! My brother has fainted!” Everyone in our small vicinity turned towards the screams, including the guard and myself. The civilians began circling towards the shrieks, barely creating a line of sight between me and the disturbance. But I saw a girl’s dark red, curly hair huddling over a man lying on the ground. Elias. My heart jumped to my throat.

“Dear gods,” Magda whispered from next to me. “Nadia is creating a distraction.” She turned to me, and her eyes widened. “Go, Aura!”

I did not hesitate. While the guard was watching the commotion that Nadia and Elias caused, I dashed to the side and slipped into the crowd. I pushed my way through the hive of people, most of which were headed in Nadia’s direction to see what was goingon. “Hey!” I heard the Rimorian guard shout from behind me, the distance between us growing. I briefly looked back to see that he was scanning the thick crowd for me. I slowed my pace, so as to not look conspicuous.

When I felt that I was safely out of sight, I turned and headed towards the exit gates. As I arrived, I peeked around the corner of a building and saw the handful of guards from when we entered, still keeping watch. I observed as a man and woman were questioned by them when attempting to leave. I swore I heard one of them say the word “princess.”

Shit. How was I going to get out? Chatus surrounded itself with metal walls, too tall to jump and too smooth to climb. I had to get through the gate.

I placed the purchased meats in my pack while I weighed my options. Then, opportunity struck. I saw a carriage headed towards the gate, pulled by two horses. The carriage was large, and the wheels were nearly as tall as I was. I could easily fit under it. If I could hold on for long enough, I could leave the kingdom undetected. I waited for the carriage to roll closer to my hiding spot behind a building, then made a break for it. I cleared the short distance quickly and made my way directly behind the carriage. Luckily, the carriage occupants had the window curtains pulled shut. I followed close behind, matching the walking speed of the horses.

The carriage approached the gates and came to a stop, per request of the guards. At that moment, I darted underneath of it. I looked up and easily found a wood panel that I could grab onto with my hands. I pulled my pack to my chest and grabbed hold of the panel, then wedged my feet into another small space on the opposite end. My back was to the ground and my face pressed up against the underside of the carriage, my pack squished against my chest. It was very uncomfortable, and my muscles already began burning from holdingthe position, but I stayed firm.

“We need to inspect the carriage,” a Chatus guard told the driver.

Shit. I held my breath as two pairs of heavily armored boots approach either side of me. One of the guards opened the door and inspected the passengers, while the other walked the perimeter of the carriage.

Please don’t look underneath, please don’t look underneath, please don’t look underneath, I silently pleaded.

“Are you done yet?” an annoyed shriek of a woman’s voice barked form inside the carriage. “We don’t have all day!”

“My apologies, my lady. We must thoroughly inspect—”

“You’ve inspected enough, and we’re in a hurry. You’ve seen my carriage in and out of here countless times before, so move it along before I make sure you both lose your rank.”

“Yes, Duchess. Our apologies. You are free to go.”

A duchess. And a mean one at that. I never thought I’d be so thankful for someone’s rudeness and impatience.

“Safe travels,” the other guard said as he closed the carriage door. I didn’t dare breathe as the carriage rolled forward, for fear that the smallest movement would cause my burning arms to fail me. I was using every bit of my strength to hold myself up, my muscles screaming at me to give them relief. We continued rolling for a minute before I could not hold it any longer. I let go and dropped to my feet, ducking as the carriage rolled over me and continued on like nothing happened. I looked back and saw the guards distracted by another person exiting the kingdom. I dashed to my left and ran straight into the woods.

I kept running until my own legs begged me to stop. I leaned against a tree and caught my breath, my heart still pounding. I needed to get far away from Chatus, and fast. If my father’s soldiers caught me, they would drag me back to Rimor where I would have to face myfather, never see the light of day again, and never get my answers.

But where was Elias? Would he be able to find me?

I rubbed my face with my hands, feeling overwhelmed. When I looked down, I saw the dirt that wiped off my face and onto my hands. I sighed. If I could find a stream or pond, I could at least rinse my face off and get some water.

Walking a bit further, it didn’t take long until I found a small stream. I bent down and began rinsing my face, happy to not look like a “dirty grandmother” anymore. I laughed, remembering Elias’s words.

A sudden grief hit me. I didn’t get to say goodbye to Magda or Nadia. I didn’t even get to thank Gabriel for trying to help me. Would I ever see them again? All I knew is their village was somewhere between Sprath and Monuvia. That’s a long distance, and a lot of land. Even if I did get my life back in order after all of this, I may never find their home.

I took a deep breath, and said a small prayer to the gods to watch over them. When I finished, I unwrapped my arm bandages to rinse the cuts and scrapes aligning my bruised arms. As I was doing this, I heard a heavy twig snap behind me. Elias.

“I was wondering if you were going to be able to find me,” I said, whirling around to meet him.

“I was wondering the same,” he said. But it wasn’t Elias’s voice I heard, or whose gaze I met. It was my father’s most trusted and most ruthless guard. Horus.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Istood frozen in place, unsure of my next move. I stared at the deep scar that lined Horus’s face as I considered the likelihood of being able to outrun him.

“Don’t bother running,” he said as if reading my thoughts.

“How did you find me?”

“I have been tracking you for the last week. It was wise of you not to take the common roads. Not so wise of you to head into another kingdom, though. Chatus is riddled with Rimorian soldiers now, I’m sure. Your father sent a whole battalion here the day you went missing.”

I stood in silence, both astonished and vexed by Horus’s tracking skills.