Chapter Two
Escape
Wilhelmina was shaking all over, but she didn't make a sound as she sidled along in the darkened Benedict stables. Puzzled equine faces peered at her from over the half-doors of their stalls, but there was only one low whicker of greeting, from her own long-retired pony. Even that startled her, but she forced back her gasp of surprise as she crept toward the tackroom.
She was nowhere near ready, but that didn't matter any more. She had to go. Bobby had been waiting for her near her room this afternoon, _smiling_. Fully aware, at last, that the Sapphire she wore did nothing more than protect her physically, and giving her a choice between submitting to his demands or being handed over to his darker-Jeweled friends. Friends who were more than powerful enough to overcome the Sapphire, and send Bobby the leavings.
For one terrible moment, the naïvety and confusion she'd imitated so many times became real, and she'd panicked and bolted for her room. With the door safely locked, she could think a little more clearly, but all her thinking led her to only one solution.
Away. Tonight. Bobby doubtless expected her to spend several hours dithering, so she scooped up what little she could take with her and went out the window. She couldn't air walk like Jaenelle, but she could use Craft to strengthen the ornamental roses that climbed the walls until they would bear her weight. The punctures in her hands would heal eventually. After a brief, harrowing climb, there was only hiding in the gardens until dark, wrapped in Purple Dusk sight, sound and psychic shields. She didn't dare move until she saw lights winking out in the Benedict house.
It didn't take long to get to the stables, though her plans didn't include much more than saddling a horse and riding it as far as possible. She'd wanted to find one of the more isolated Territories, where her scant collection of jewelry could buy her a few months in an inn, but she hadn't been able to find one remote enough in all her geography books. And now she was out of time. If they-
"Lady!"
The hoarse whisper came from just ahead, scaring her so badly that she jumped back, lost her footing, and went over backwards on the hard-packed earth. Jaenelle's Sapphire Jewel flared in response to her fear.
"Lady, it's only me! Just Andrew." The stable boy sidled out of the stall where he'd been waiting, carrying a heap of leatherwork and a tightly shuttered lantern that glowed faintly. He set the lantern down and opened it a fingerwidth more, so she could see his face. "I'm sorry I startled you. But I don't want to be seen any more than you do."
"But what are you-" She shook her head in confusion, and abruptly fear filled her - deep-rooted, cold fear, unlike the flash of alarm she'd felt earlier. "Did Bobby send you?"
"Not likely!" he said indignantly. "Look, I know what happened. Lord Robert talks to the kennelmaster, the kennelmaster talks to the Master of Horse, and me - well, I hear things. I figured any witch worth her Jewels would run for safety if she couldn't fight, so I wanted to give you a hand. Fact is, if you hadn't had the sense to run tonight, I'd have probably been parading a horse outside your bedroom window until you got the idea."
She almost giggled at the mental image. "So what's the - oh." On closer inspection, the cluster of leatherwork Andrew had been carrying resolved itself into saddle and bridle.
"Tack," he answered. "And a few other things Cook and I thought you might need. What's in your pack?"
"Riding habits," she said hesitantly. "And some Craft books and - and my jewelry." It was a scanty list at best, and she was surprised to see Andrew nod approvingly.
"Good thinking, considering you didn't exactly have time to pack. The things I brought should help." He handed her a bag holding clothes and a generous supply of bread and cheese, then carefully turned his back while she changed from her silky tea dress to the homespun skirt and blouse. The fabric felt harsh and itchy against her skin, but it gave her a much better chance of passing unnoticed.
When she let Andrew turn around, he led her to a stall that held a slender, dapple-gray mare. "Opal's got a habit of lifting the latch and going for a walk on moonlit nights like these. Ain't it a shame she took it in her head to do it tonight?" Deftly, he saddled and bridled the horse. "She'll do her best for you. I don't want to know where you're going, but if you take to the Winds, just take off her gear and let her run. She'll find her own way home."
Wilhelmina nodded, then took a deep breath and reached for the mare's saddle. As Andrew held out cupped hands for her to step up, she leaned over to kiss his cheek. "If I can pay you back, I will."
He was still blushing as she urged Opal to a careful walk out of the stables, past paddock and fields to the wilder grounds away from the house. Once out of earshot, she gave the mare room to run, and they moved at a ground-eating lope away from Benedict property and into unclaimed lands.
The forest at night was different from the daytime, and she didn't like it at all. The cool breeze felt like a stranger's touch on her shoulders, and every rustle in the underbrush left her heart pounding and her eyes vainly searching for a threat. Jaenelle would probably have been friends with every creature out here, but Wilhelmina was just a Purple Dusk witch, more familiar with music and drawing rooms than with the wildness that haunted Blood lands.
_And libraries. Don't forget libraries._ A tiny spark of defiance flared. She might not be brave, but she was smart enough - and, after all that time locked in her room with nothing but Craft books, she was probably better- informed than the rest of the family. So she concentrated, placing a light shield around Opal to keep stray branches from startling the mare and creating a tiny, comforting ball of witchlight just ahead. She still clutched the reins nervously, but she'd stopped whirling in a panic at every sound from behind her. The night wasn't quite as bad when you could make your own light.
By the time she reached her destination - a lonely hill near the Altar where she'd had her Birthright Ceremony - she was almost enjoying the stars and the darkness. That didn't stop her from feeling a whisper of trepidation when she dismounted Opal and unsaddled her. It was going to be so lonely out here without any living creature around.
But she wouldn't be staying long.
She finished unsaddling the mare and sent her on her way with a whispered word of thanks, then closed her eyes and _reached_, feeling for the Winds. Phillip had taken her here once, on a leisurely excursion to celebrate her new Birthright Jewels; he hadn't let her take any Wind darker than the Rose, but tonight she was going to need all the speed she could muster. She opened herself, feeling the Purple Dusk Wind tugging at her, resonating with her Jewels. Another moment and it whisked her away, blowing her far away from home.
It was an exhilarating feeling, and she rode it till morning, before she started looking for a place to rest. She was far from home, but not so far that she wanted to risk an inn; an empty stretch of land would do well enough while she rested. She had enough food for the day, and enough Craft to keep herself safe from wild animals. They were probably less dangerous than the Blood males she'd find in any city.
So she rode the Wind toward the first promising place she saw - a thick, dense-planted wood that promised cover on all sides. Nothing interesting, no promise of game to lure hunters, just trees and underbrush to shelter her for a few hours. As she got closer, she squinted and shook her head; for a moment, it seemed she could see a spiderweb-shape in the trees-
Then she lost the Wind and tumbled, crashing down through trees that melted away as she grabbed for them. Sunlight that should have been blocked by the trees glowed around her as she fell. She landed sprawled in soft earth, several feet away from a gray-eyed, grubby witch in a gardener's smock, who took one look at her and demanded "Who in Hell's name are _you?_"
Wilhelmina was shaking all over, but she didn't make a sound as she sidled along in the darkened Benedict stables. Puzzled equine faces peered at her from over the half-doors of their stalls, but there was only one low whicker of greeting, from her own long-retired pony. Even that startled her, but she forced back her gasp of surprise as she crept toward the tackroom.
She was nowhere near ready, but that didn't matter any more. She had to go. Bobby had been waiting for her near her room this afternoon, _smiling_. Fully aware, at last, that the Sapphire she wore did nothing more than protect her physically, and giving her a choice between submitting to his demands or being handed over to his darker-Jeweled friends. Friends who were more than powerful enough to overcome the Sapphire, and send Bobby the leavings.
For one terrible moment, the naïvety and confusion she'd imitated so many times became real, and she'd panicked and bolted for her room. With the door safely locked, she could think a little more clearly, but all her thinking led her to only one solution.
Away. Tonight. Bobby doubtless expected her to spend several hours dithering, so she scooped up what little she could take with her and went out the window. She couldn't air walk like Jaenelle, but she could use Craft to strengthen the ornamental roses that climbed the walls until they would bear her weight. The punctures in her hands would heal eventually. After a brief, harrowing climb, there was only hiding in the gardens until dark, wrapped in Purple Dusk sight, sound and psychic shields. She didn't dare move until she saw lights winking out in the Benedict house.
It didn't take long to get to the stables, though her plans didn't include much more than saddling a horse and riding it as far as possible. She'd wanted to find one of the more isolated Territories, where her scant collection of jewelry could buy her a few months in an inn, but she hadn't been able to find one remote enough in all her geography books. And now she was out of time. If they-
"Lady!"
The hoarse whisper came from just ahead, scaring her so badly that she jumped back, lost her footing, and went over backwards on the hard-packed earth. Jaenelle's Sapphire Jewel flared in response to her fear.
"Lady, it's only me! Just Andrew." The stable boy sidled out of the stall where he'd been waiting, carrying a heap of leatherwork and a tightly shuttered lantern that glowed faintly. He set the lantern down and opened it a fingerwidth more, so she could see his face. "I'm sorry I startled you. But I don't want to be seen any more than you do."
"But what are you-" She shook her head in confusion, and abruptly fear filled her - deep-rooted, cold fear, unlike the flash of alarm she'd felt earlier. "Did Bobby send you?"
"Not likely!" he said indignantly. "Look, I know what happened. Lord Robert talks to the kennelmaster, the kennelmaster talks to the Master of Horse, and me - well, I hear things. I figured any witch worth her Jewels would run for safety if she couldn't fight, so I wanted to give you a hand. Fact is, if you hadn't had the sense to run tonight, I'd have probably been parading a horse outside your bedroom window until you got the idea."
She almost giggled at the mental image. "So what's the - oh." On closer inspection, the cluster of leatherwork Andrew had been carrying resolved itself into saddle and bridle.
"Tack," he answered. "And a few other things Cook and I thought you might need. What's in your pack?"
"Riding habits," she said hesitantly. "And some Craft books and - and my jewelry." It was a scanty list at best, and she was surprised to see Andrew nod approvingly.
"Good thinking, considering you didn't exactly have time to pack. The things I brought should help." He handed her a bag holding clothes and a generous supply of bread and cheese, then carefully turned his back while she changed from her silky tea dress to the homespun skirt and blouse. The fabric felt harsh and itchy against her skin, but it gave her a much better chance of passing unnoticed.
When she let Andrew turn around, he led her to a stall that held a slender, dapple-gray mare. "Opal's got a habit of lifting the latch and going for a walk on moonlit nights like these. Ain't it a shame she took it in her head to do it tonight?" Deftly, he saddled and bridled the horse. "She'll do her best for you. I don't want to know where you're going, but if you take to the Winds, just take off her gear and let her run. She'll find her own way home."
Wilhelmina nodded, then took a deep breath and reached for the mare's saddle. As Andrew held out cupped hands for her to step up, she leaned over to kiss his cheek. "If I can pay you back, I will."
He was still blushing as she urged Opal to a careful walk out of the stables, past paddock and fields to the wilder grounds away from the house. Once out of earshot, she gave the mare room to run, and they moved at a ground-eating lope away from Benedict property and into unclaimed lands.
The forest at night was different from the daytime, and she didn't like it at all. The cool breeze felt like a stranger's touch on her shoulders, and every rustle in the underbrush left her heart pounding and her eyes vainly searching for a threat. Jaenelle would probably have been friends with every creature out here, but Wilhelmina was just a Purple Dusk witch, more familiar with music and drawing rooms than with the wildness that haunted Blood lands.
_And libraries. Don't forget libraries._ A tiny spark of defiance flared. She might not be brave, but she was smart enough - and, after all that time locked in her room with nothing but Craft books, she was probably better- informed than the rest of the family. So she concentrated, placing a light shield around Opal to keep stray branches from startling the mare and creating a tiny, comforting ball of witchlight just ahead. She still clutched the reins nervously, but she'd stopped whirling in a panic at every sound from behind her. The night wasn't quite as bad when you could make your own light.
By the time she reached her destination - a lonely hill near the Altar where she'd had her Birthright Ceremony - she was almost enjoying the stars and the darkness. That didn't stop her from feeling a whisper of trepidation when she dismounted Opal and unsaddled her. It was going to be so lonely out here without any living creature around.
But she wouldn't be staying long.
She finished unsaddling the mare and sent her on her way with a whispered word of thanks, then closed her eyes and _reached_, feeling for the Winds. Phillip had taken her here once, on a leisurely excursion to celebrate her new Birthright Jewels; he hadn't let her take any Wind darker than the Rose, but tonight she was going to need all the speed she could muster. She opened herself, feeling the Purple Dusk Wind tugging at her, resonating with her Jewels. Another moment and it whisked her away, blowing her far away from home.
It was an exhilarating feeling, and she rode it till morning, before she started looking for a place to rest. She was far from home, but not so far that she wanted to risk an inn; an empty stretch of land would do well enough while she rested. She had enough food for the day, and enough Craft to keep herself safe from wild animals. They were probably less dangerous than the Blood males she'd find in any city.
So she rode the Wind toward the first promising place she saw - a thick, dense-planted wood that promised cover on all sides. Nothing interesting, no promise of game to lure hunters, just trees and underbrush to shelter her for a few hours. As she got closer, she squinted and shook her head; for a moment, it seemed she could see a spiderweb-shape in the trees-
Then she lost the Wind and tumbled, crashing down through trees that melted away as she grabbed for them. Sunlight that should have been blocked by the trees glowed around her as she fell. She landed sprawled in soft earth, several feet away from a gray-eyed, grubby witch in a gardener's smock, who took one look at her and demanded "Who in Hell's name are _you?_"