Dreamwalker's Bride - Chapter 145

Chapter 145: Welfare check
Anaisa fretted as she came close to the house where Katia had been staying. How was she going to convince that snobby butler to tell her anything about her sister today? She looked… well, not fantastic. And very stressed.

She hurried to the door and knocked on it with decorum instead of pounding her fist to match the thrumming of her heart in her ears.

The door opened, and Anaisa rushed to get out the words before it could slam in her face.

“Are Katia and Jin still staying here?” She asked desperately. It had been weeks since the ball. Katia had hoped to leave back to the farm the next day, but Barnabas’s note to Trace said he had arranged an extension of the stay. Perhaps that had been a bluff?

Anaisa couldn’t leave until she knew her sister wasn’t at the very doorstep of his evil plots.

“Katia and Jin?” The butler’s face was stoic, while his tone denoted mild confusion. “Ah, that cobbler and his wife. No, they were sent home some time ago, back to the town they are from.”

“Thank you,” She nodded with relief, and turned to run. As she reached the street, she skidded to turn the corner and sprinted in the direction of the city gate. She cursed the time she’d wasted checking on Katia, but the peace of mind that she wasn’t leaving her sister to a terrible fate was worth the exertion she had to put in now.

She raced onward, causing people to stare as she passed, but she didn’t care. Time was of the essence in getting the tiny prince to safety. If the men had to delay at the city gate due to her not catching up, that would be terrible…

And she knew that Trace wouldn’t leave the city without her.

The streets were beginning to empty as people headed home for an afternoon rest. She was grateful for the reprieve, but there were still plenty of people out and about at the moment.

Ducking through the crowd as she raced forward, Anaisa caught a glimpse of the men up ahead.

She would have sighed with relief if she weren’t panting with the exertion of her sprint. The crowd pressed in around her as the men turned, and she was forced to stop and wait as a large series of carts passed the cross street in front of her.

Anaisa took the moment to catch her breath, and noticed a man near her also seemed anxious to be moving again. He was shifting in his saddle most uncomfortably–no, not uncomfortably, he was trying to look past the carts, craning his neck to see over or around them.

She glanced at his face and almost gasped, turning away.

Conlan! Conlan was following Trace and the doctor!

Her mind flew into near panic and she melted back into the sea of humanity, grateful that the evil man hadn’t looked down to recognize her at the same moment she’d looked up.

She had to warn the men, but how?

The singing of children nearby gave her the flash of inspiration she needed. Slipping her hand into her pocket, she drew out a few copper coins and made her way over to the urchins.

They looked up at her warily as she approached, but she smiled kindly.

“Need somethin, Miss?” One of the older boys squinted at her.

“Yes. I need you to do me a little favor. There’s a man that’s been harassing me, following me and my friends. I need that to stop.” She held out her hand with the coins displayed. The boy looked her up and down.

“What man?” He asked, showing a large amount of self control not to just snatch the coins from her.

“The man atop that dapple grey, there,” Anaisa pointed. “With the dark hat. How long do you think you could keep him distracted?”

“For that much? A few minutes, at least,” The urchin thinned his lips. “For a few coins more? The rest of the day.”

“You drive a hard bargain,” Anaisa complimented, glad that she’d grabbed her servants’ salary before leaving the palace. She replaced the copper coins in her pocket and pulled out a large silver one. “Will you be able to share this, all of you?”

“I’ll buy us all food for a week!” The boy cried, accepting the coin and gesturing to the others, who nodded enthusiastically. Those who had been lounging in the shadows out of the heat leapt to their feet.

“Leave it to us, Miss. We’ll take care of ‘im.” Another boy lifted his chin proudly.

“Thank you all, but do be careful,” Anaisa suddenly questioned the morality of involving homeless orphans and runaways in her scheme, but they seemed bright and confident about the task.

“Careful ain’t fun!” A small girl winked and ran off after the others, who suddenly took off like undersized spies through the crowd. The series of ox carts finished passing, and Conlan’s horse had begun stepping forward, picking its way through the busy streets. Anaisa gave him a wide berth, skirting along the edges of buildings to try and pass him without being spotted.

Suddenly, she saw a flash of one of the urchins through the crowd. The child ran in front of the horse, startling it and making her gasp with fright. What if it reared and hurt the little one?

A second child ran behind the horse grabbing a handful of hairs from the horse’s tail and throwing all his weight into yanking as hard as he could. Enraged, the horse kicked with both feet, but the child was already jumping out of the way, having done the entire maneuver in one fluid motion.

It looked, alarmingly, like something he must have practiced.

Rocks came flying from slingshots of several directions, pelting the poor horse’s face, and it finally let loose the building panic. Rearing and thrashing, it threw its rider to the ground and crushed one of his legs beneath a sharp hoof.

Conlan screamed in agony, and Anaisa took off at a run, eager to be far away from the vile man.