Here’s the next chapter in my ongoing serial story. You can find chapter one here and the previous chapter here.

Chapter Eight

            There was a shout from the other side of the market square, and the three aunts ran toward Dawn and Jeremy. “I can’t let them catch me!” Dawn cried.

“They may not be bad,” he argued. “They may be trying to help.”

“But I’m not ready to go back.”

She’d hoped to blend into the crowd, but her audience scattered as soon as they saw the black-clad women. That made her sure that the enchantresses were to be feared. The sour-faced woman who’d loudly criticized Dawn looked both angry and afraid. When the enchantresses came near her, she shoved over a stall, sending piles of fruit crashing down to block the aisle between her and the enchantresses, then she ran the other direction. Before the fruit hit the ground, it floated up and back onto the stall, which had righted itself.

Dawn almost forgot to take advantage of the distraction and run away. Had her aunts always been able to do that?

“Dawn!” Two voices called her name simultaneously, Jeremy on one side and Mariel on the other. She ran to Jeremy.

He pulled her into a butcher’s stall, where they hid behind the counter. It was difficult crouching on the bloody ground without actually touching the ground any more than was absolutely necessary. The sound of commotion neared the stall, and they darted out again.

By this time, the chase and the activity of all those enchantresses had caused a general panic in the market. Merchants were shutting up booths or hiding, while shoppers ran in every direction. The rest of the enchantresses had got into the search, and it was hard to tell them apart while running.

Dawn and Jeremy ran to the end of an aisle, a trio of enchantresses hot on their heels, only to round the corner and find themselves face-to-face with another trio. “Are they multiplying?” Jeremy muttered, then cried out, “This way!” and dashed between two booths. Dawn ran after him, and the two groups of women clogged the narrow gap between booths as they all tried to rush through at the same time.

A tug on Dawn’s shirt yanked her backward. She thought one of the enchantresses had caught her, but it turned out to be a merchant. “I’ve got her, my ladies!” he called to the enchantresses while Dawn struggled to escape his grasp. Something flew through the air over Dawn’s head, there was a loud “Ow!” from behind her, and she was suddenly free.

“Run, love, go on, get away!” a woman at a nearby booth urged as she hefted a green apple in her hand. Dawn immediately ran to catch up with Jeremy as the woman threw the apple at Dawn’s former captor.

Around the next corner, Dawn and Jeremy found themselves at a baker’s booth. Behind the booth were several large baskets. “Get in!” Jeremy cried out, and they both jumped into baskets, pulling the cloth coverings over themselves.

Hidden that way, Dawn couldn’t tell what was happening in the market, but from the sound of things, the search continued. There were pops and mild explosions, shouts, and the patter of frantic footsteps. She heard a familiar voice say, “She was just here. But where did she go?” It was Mariel.

“The bigger question is where is she planning to go,” Miriam said.

“She’s going after her friend, obviously,” Matilda said.

“But how does she know where to go?” Mariel asked.

“She’s a smart girl,” Matilda said. “And she is sixteen now. Perhaps she’s started to get a sense of who she really is. This is her world, after all.”

“I don’t see them anywhere,” Miriam said. “It looked like she was with that boy, so she’s not here alone. I don’t think they can have gone too far.”

They continued talking, their voices growing fainter. Gradually, the noise in the marketplace died down. Someone pulled aside the cloth over Dawn’s basket. She ducked, but then recognized Jeremy standing over her. “I think the coast is clear,” he said.

She crawled out of the basket. Jeremy’s face, hair, and clothes were streaked with flour, and she was sure she looked just as bad. “Did you hear what they said?”

“Yeah, they’re still going to look for you, so come on.”

“Not just that—they said this is my world.”

“I thought you’d figured that out already.”

The baker noticed them and shouted at them for being in his baskets. Other merchants began to move toward them from around the marketplace, and they didn’t look happy. “How are you going to pay for the damaged goods?” one asked.

Dawn looked to Jeremy to see if he had a plan. “Run!” he shouted. The two of them took off down the aisle, a mob of angry merchants behind them. They both ran, harder than ever, for a side street leading away from the marketplace.

Jeremy wove in and out of alleys, then dove behind a cart, calling for Dawn to follow him. They crouched there, wedged between the cart and a stone wall, until the merchants ran past. They eased their way out of their hiding place and went back the way the merchants had come. Instead of running, they moved slowly and cautiously, Jeremy leading the way and making sure it was safe before they went farther. He motioned for Dawn to stay put while he ducked around a corner, and while she waited for him to return, someone grabbed her, something went over her head, and everything went dark.

***

            Lucy was afraid she’d faint from anxiety when a guard stopped the wagon. “Where have you come from?” the guard asked the woman driving the wagon.

“The woodcutter’s hut in the forest, good sir.”

“What are you carrying?”

“Wood, of course. I’m late getting to market this morning because I had to tend to a sick horse.”

“Have you seen a boy and a girl in the woods?”

Lucy suddenly had an almost irresistible urge to intone, “These aren’t the droids you’re looking for,” but she bit her lip before she could giggle at the thought. It would have been nice if the woman had a few Jedi mind tricks up her sleeve, but Lucy was willing to settle for her being a good liar.

“I haven’t seen a soul other than my husband in days,” the woman said with a sigh. “Even you’re a sight for sore eyes.”

The guard laughed and apparently waved her on because the wagon started moving again. Soon, the noise level outside the wagon increased, along with the smell. This world might not smell as bad as she’d expect a real medieval place to, Lucy thought, but it was still pretty obvious that there were a lot of horses around.

The wagon stopped again in a slightly quieter spot, and the layer of wood above Lucy’s head was shoved aside. She sat up and stretched her cramped muscles as Sebastian did the same, then he jumped out of the wagon and helped her out. “Thank you so much,” Lucy said to the woman. “You’re a lifesaver.” On impulse, she stood on tiptoes and kissed the woman’s cheek. Tears sprang to the woman’s eyes, and Lucy felt her own eyes watering at the idea she could have such a strong impact on someone else.

She and Sebastian shouldered their respective packs and moved to the edge of the alley as the woman drove her cart out the other way. When the crowd on the street outside the alley grew thicker, they left the alley and let themselves blend in.

It was a market day in the village, so there were plenty of people serving as cover. It looked like the social event of the week, with people from the surrounding countryside catching up with their friends. The village itself was even smaller than her home town, but with a market square in the middle and a haphazard cluster of buildings around it.

There were also a lot of black-clad soldiers in the village, scanning the crowd. The hiss of breath from next to her told her Sebastian had also noticed them. She elbowed him in the ribs. “Relax. There’s nothing about us that stands out in the crowd. All we have to do is blend in.”

She studied the other people in the marketplace for a moment, then reached over and put Sebastian’s arm around her shoulders and snuggled up against him. “What?” he blurted.

Keeping her voice low, she said, “They’re looking for a princess and a squire whose mission is to keep her safe, right?”

“Exactly.” He tried to move his arm, but she reached up and held his hand.

“So, they’d never imagine that the squire would dare get so familiar with a princess, or that she’d let him. Therefore, if we act all inappropriate, then obviously we can’t be the people they’re looking for. And don’t worry, I won’t have you beheaded for getting overly familiar with me. In fact, I’m making it a royal order.”

He stopped trying to move his arm and even settled it more comfortably around her. She tried to channel the popular girls at school who engaged in PDA in the halls between classes as she thought of how a girlfriend might act with her boyfriend. She leaned her head against his shoulder and wondered if he’d drop dead of a heart attack if she put her arm around his waist.

Even though it wasn’t exactly her idea of fun to walk right past all those soldiers who were looking for her, it also wasn’t exactly torture to do it this way. She’d never had a boyfriend, so she’d never had a boy’s arm around her like this before, and it felt really nice. She felt safe and protected.

Sebastian surprised her by giving her shoulder a squeeze. “I think it’s working,” he whispered in her ear. “They aren’t giving us a second look.”

She faked a girlish giggle, as though he’d just whispered a sweet nothing. “See, I told you. Now we need to get the rest of the way through the marketplace and out of the village. Do you have any money on you?”

“I have some coins. Why?”

“Because it would look kind of silly for us to go to the village on market day and not buy anything. It’ll probably be easier for us to get past any guards on our way out if we’ve bought something.”

“You are very good at subterfuge.”

“It comes from having seen every spy movie ever made, thanks to my friend Jeremy.” She smiled at the thought of telling Jeremy how she pulled this off.

Sebastian bought a loaf of bread and a hunk of cheese. Once he had his purchases stowed in his pack, he put his arm back around Lucy and they headed toward the road out of town. There were more guards on the road, standing where they could scan the crowds as they entered and left the village. Lucy felt their eyes on her, even as she tried to tell herself that their cover was good. She noticed a guard staring at her, and she moistened her lips and winked at him as she held eye contact with him for a long moment. Surely he’d assume that a fugitive princess would never draw attention to herself that way.

It must have worked, for he made no move to stop them. Sebastian quickened his pace so they fell in with a knot of people leaving the village with baskets of goods. Lucy held her breath as they approached the edge of the village, where there were even more guards watching the road. She tried her best not to look nervous, even though her heart pounded in her chest. Sebastian had her shoulder in a death grip, and she could feel the tension in his body.

But the guards didn’t stop them. It had worked! She forced herself to keep walking and not show any sign of celebrating while they were still in sight. Only when they’d rounded a bend and gone down a hill so that the village was no longer visible did she turn and throw her arms around Sebastian’s neck.

“We did it!” she cried out. He surprised her by spinning her around in triumph, but then he remembered himself, put her down, and stepped away.

“That was a very good plan, your highness,” he said with a bow. “I am more used to a direct fight. I confess I’m not so comfortable with sneaking around.”

“You did fine. Now we just need the dogs to join us and lead us to that rendezvous.”

***

            Jeremy came back to tell Dawn the coast was clear, but she was gone. He looked up and down the alley, but saw only a group of men carrying a bundle toward the docks. “Dawn?” he called out softly, but there was no response. He retraced their steps, glancing down each side street. She’d vanished into thin air. Normally, he’d consider that to be hyperbole, but in a place where portals could take people to other worlds and animals talked, he wasn’t so sure it hadn’t happened literally. He had no idea what the aunts and their gang could do.

He turned slowly back to where he’d seen that group of men. Unless … It might not have been magic at all, just a garden-variety kidnapping. He sprinted down the alley and came out onto the docks just in time to see a small boat pulling away into the current and heading downstream. He didn’t see Dawn with them, but she could have been the bundle they’d been carrying. Or he could be imagining things and the enchantresses really had zapped her away.

“She was supposed to go to the river!” a voice chirped overhead.

He stifled a groan. “Where were you in all the excitement?” he asked Spink.

“I was afraid of the ladies in black, so I hid. They might try to stop me.”

“Well, you were a lot of help. Did you see what happened to Dawn?”

“Dawn?”

“The girl from far, far away.”

“I hid. But I found you. Where is the girl from far, far away? She was supposed to go to the castle.”

Clearly the bird would be of little help, and he wasn’t sure who else in this crazy place might be. The marketplace was probably a bad idea, unless he wanted to be captured by a merchant and turned into an indentured servant to pay off the damages from the chase. The boat that might or might not be carrying a kidnapped Dawn was heading rapidly downstream. He pondered the idea of jumping onto one of the other moored boats and shouting, “Follow that boat!” but he couldn’t imagine that being very effective. He’d probably get thrown overboard.

“Did you lose your pretty friend?”

He spun to see a group of colorfully dressed people. Among them was the girl who’d heckled Dawn’s performance. At the head of the group was an older man with a bushy mustache on a face that looked like it had been carved out of a tree.

“We got separated,” Jeremy said. “Did you see her?”

“If you think she’s in yon boat” —the man gestured with his chin— “I’d know who has her. That would be Bertram and his gang. They know they don’t stand a chance of performing at the coronation without a little help, and your friend does have a lovely voice.”

“What, she got kidnapped to be part of a band?”

The man shrugged. “I’ll wager that every performer in the marketplace was planning to offer her a place in his troupe. Bertram wouldn’t be able to pay, so he resorted to kidnapping. But don’t worry, they won’t get far, not in that boat. They’ll have to put in for the evening.”

“Could you help me find her?”

“And what would be in it for us?”

“Well, you’d get her in your troupe, and you wouldn’t even have to pay, she’d be so grateful for being rescued.” In fact, he had a feeling that between being given transportation to the castle and a chance to perform in front of an audience, Dawn might be willing to pay them.

“We don’t need the likes of her in our troupe,” the sour-faced girl said. “We do fine on our own.”

“Hush, Rhian,” the man said, then added with a wink, “my daughter, and she’s just like her mother, may she rest peacefully. Needless to say, she’s not the one of us with a sweet voice. But she is right that we don’t need an extra member. I wasn’t planning to make an offer. I simply enjoy hearing good music when I come across it.”

“We do have the bird as part of the act,” Jeremy said, his desperation rising. “And I could make myself useful on your boat. I’m a hard worker, and I have a lot of skills.” The man didn’t look like that impressed him, so Jeremy thought frantically of anything that might tip the balance. If this group wouldn’t help, he might have to resort to going to the aunts, and Dawn would never forgive him for that.

He tried to think of something he had that he might be able to trade. His backpack was full of modern American necessities. Then he recalled something from history class. If this world was anything like his world, the people of medieval Europe wouldn’t ever have experienced chocolate. “I do have this,” he said, pulling a small bag of M&Ms out of his backpack. He opened it, ate one himself, then passed it around the group. “Try one.” Each person took a piece of candy, and they all went wide-eyed as soon as they ate it. “And I have more treats like this to share.”

“He comes with us. We will help him find his friend,” Rhian said instantly, licking her lips.

The man chuckled. “It looks like we will help you, and you’ll be part of our crew then.” He held out a hand. “I’m Huw.”

Jeremy shook his hand. “I’m Jeremy, this is Spink, and my missing friend is Dawn. Thank you for your help. You won’t regret it.” Jeremy sincerely hoped he hadn’t sold Dawn down the river—literally—but he didn’t stand a chance of finding her without help, and as much as he’d urged Dawn to talk to her aunts, he didn’t look forward to facing them himself after losing her.

Huw led him to their boat, which looked like a floating stage, with a long, flat middle deck and two higher decks on either end. A framework on the middle deck looked like it was in the right position to hold a stage curtain and a rear curtain, and there were footlights along the side railing. Jeremy had heard of showboats where traveling performers played in a theater on a boat, but this boat would likely pull up along a riverbank and play to an audience on the bank. A sign on the side of the boat announced The North Country Minstrels, with the name of the group painted in flowing script, surrounded by smaller paintings of various musical instruments.

Huw gathered a group of men, and they and Jeremy set off in a dinghy, rowing downriver to move faster than the current. He just hoped it was fast enough to catch up with the people who’d taken Dawn.

Continued in Chapter Nine.