Sara and Prin exchanged panicked looks.
“Mrs. Lamont said she hadn’t. He punched her and called her a liar.”
Prin darted to her sleeping room, and since she had only unpacked a few things, she threw the rest inside her bag and stuffed her hat on her head. As she raced into the main room again, she saw Sara was busy packing, Brice had gathered his things and wore his peaked hat, and the white and gray ship’s cat from the boat stood near the doorway as if waiting to leave.
Cat? She looked again. It was the ship’s cat, but she hadn’t brought it, Brice didn’t know about it. Sara had rarely seen it since she worked in the galley and the cat stayed in the cargo holds to hunt vermin. Why is it here?
She went to it, but the cat backed away, maintaining the same distance. Sara charged out, carrying her bag and heading right for the door. She called over her shoulder, “Come on, they can’t be far behind.”
Prin and Brice raced after, their feet pounding on the stairs, although Prin had a fleeting thought that they didn’t know where they were going, then she corrected that. They were going away. That was enough for the moment. Where didn’t matter.
Once on the street, Sara naturally turned away from the office where Mrs. Lamont rented her rooms. Prin followed and made a mental promise to send a nice little silver coin to Mrs. Lamont. Their relationship, or the one between her and Sara, hadn’t gotten off to a good start, and it would have been easy for her to tell the questioner where they were. To avoid attracting attention, they walked instead of ran. Sara turned right at the second cross street, which would take her in the direction of the market, but to one side.
Prin asked, “What now?”
Sara snorted in disgust. “How do I know? They must be watching everyone that rents rooms in the entire city. The seaman’s lodging will be watched, too. We need a hole to dive into.”
They came to an intersection where they could see the harbor and the city spreading to the west. Prin said, “The Bos’n said there are farms that way. There were people selling apples and pears in the market, and they get ripe at the same time.”
The three turned west, as Sara said, “Your mind is wandering.”
“Maybe. But farmers need pickers for their crops. They hire a lot of people for the harvest, and at home, they provide small places to live while they work.”
Brice said, now that he had caught his breath again, “That’s the same as where I live. Are we going to hire ourselves out to pick apples?”
Prin said, “I’ll bet a lot of sailors do it to earn some extra money.”
“What’s that?” Sara said, pulling to a stop.
Prin glanced behind, where Sara was looking. “That’s our ship’s cat.”
“I know that. What’s it doing here?”
“Following us?” Prin asked.
“Has it been here all along?” Sara asked, in return.
“It showed up with Brice when he told us about the man yelling at Mrs. Lamont.”
Sara sighed, “Never mind that, now. We have more problems. Maybe we can get a carriage to take us to the farmland.”
“Carriage drivers tell tales, especially for silver,” Brice said.
Prin agreed. “It’s not that far. Besides, we need to talk and plan.”
Sara fell into step with them. “Well, our last plans were working out very nicely until Brice came back and ruined them.” Then she saw the hurt expression he wore and quickly said, “Of course, without his quick thinking we might be in custody right now.”
Brice looked at Prin. “I think I have a right to know what you did that has everyone in Gallium looking for you.”
“I was born.”
“I’m serious,” he said.
“Me, too. I was born, and that give me the position if that's the right word, or ranking, might be better. Because of who my mother and father were, I inherit a position that angers certain people because they want what I have. Does that make better sense?”
“I guess so. They must really want it badly. Have you ever considered just giving it to them?”
“It’s not a thing to give. It’s my life. If I’m alive, I’m a threat to some, sort of like you. A mage your age without training is dangerous. You’re too old to be trained as a mage and to learn to think like the other mages want you to, so they’ll be scared you’ll fight them. If they find you, they will kill you that day. Not the next.”
Brice walked along with his eyes focused just beyond his toes, then he said, “Nobody ever told me that. What’s up with the cat?”
“It’s from our ship,” Sara said.
“I know that. But why is it following Prin?”
Sara looked back, and the cat was still trailing behind them. “Prin?”
“It watches her. It follows where she walks, not where you and I do.”
“Cats have an excellent sense of smell,” Sara said. But, then she looked at it again and pulled to a sudden stop that nearly caused a collision. “Prin. Look at your cat, right around its eyes.”
“Pink,” Prin said.
Sara said, “Pink dots. Tiny, but unmistakable when you look closely. Maybe we should be following the cat instead of the other way around?”
Brice had knelt and peered at the cat from a distance closer than either of the girls. He said, “I don’t see anything.”
“That’s because you’re a mage,” Prin said easily, walking nearer the cat. It turned and started back the way they’d come. If they moved too close to it, the cat leaped ahead, if they slowed, it did, too. They hesitated to go in that direction, but instinct told them to trust the magic in the cat. After a few blocks, it turned onto a street they had never been on. Then another. It worked its way higher up the side of the hill until the harbor was so far below they could barely make out the individual ships.
Brice said, “I’m tired. This cat may just be looking for a mate, you know.”
The higher up the hill, the larger the buildings. Not taller, but more spread out. The streets remained narrow, but glimpses behind the houses revealed tall walls hiding trees and even sculptures. The few people they passed either wore the clothing of servants or the very wealthy.
Brice said, “I keep thinking you sure have a lot of faith in a ship's cat.”
Sara said, “Keep it down, Brice. I believe that we're almost there.”
“Where? And how do you know?”
Prin had seen it too. A single floating pinkish/purple dot floated directly at them, indicating it had originated ahead. Prin said, “Brice, please shut up for a few moments.”
“I should be told what’s happening.”
Sara said without rancor, “And you will. Just as soon as we know. But, seriously, shut up and do not speak again until dark.”
Prin glanced up at the same time as Brice. Sara was right. The day was coming to an end. But another of the dots came floating into view, bobbing as it moved. Instead of bright pink, these had a purplish tint to them and somehow seemed stronger, more complicated. She angled to her left a few steps and touched the dot with her finger, and as it popped, she sniffed.
Sara said, “Well?”
“It was a combination, stronger and more mysterious if that’s possible.”
Brice watched but said nothing.
Sara allowed two more dots to float past her on the other side of the street, then one headed right at them. She poked it and sniffed. “I see what you mean.”
The dots arrived more frequently until they reached a doorway. The dots emerged from inside, somehow drifting through the wood as if it didn’t exist. Prin realized that was like Evelyn’s tree. None came through the walls, just the wood door. Prin noticed the wood held a slight ruddy tint, just like the wood in the tree. The cat sat on the step at their feet and licked itself.