Golden Age (The Shifting Tides, #1)(95)

Dion towered over her. ‘I risked my life for you. We could both now be on our way home. Instead you stood by as your guard beat me nearly to death.’

‘He’s dead now,’ Chloe said morosely, looking up at him. ‘He was a friend.’

Through the open window Dion could hear cries in the street. He didn’t know if there was a connection to the harbor fire or to Chloe’s escape, but he knew they were both in terrible danger.

‘I’m grateful to you, I really am. Can explanations wait?’ she asked.

Dion scowled. ‘We need to go. Anoush – can you get some women’s clothing?’

Anoush nodded and ran out of the chamber while Dion went to the basin and began to wash his face and hands. When he finished he glanced at Chloe. ‘I suggest you do the same.’

By the time Chloe had finished cleaning off the blood Anoush had returned, carrying a yellow chiton and veil.

‘Good lad,’ Dion said. He crouched to look into the boy’s eyes. ‘Do you know how we can get out of here, without going into the street?’

Anoush nodded. ‘The roof.’

‘Thank you,’ Dion said. ‘Will you be safe?’

‘You have given me plenty of silver, master. It has been an adventure.’ He grinned, creases forming on his round cheeks. ‘If you ever come back to Lamara, I’ll be here to be your guide.’

Dion gave him a rough embrace, surprising the boy. ‘Now show me the roof.’

Chloe changed her clothing while Dion inspected their exit route, and a moment later they were slipping out of a window, Dion exiting first and then helping Chloe onto a flat roof. He scanned the area and saw the buildings were close enough to jump from one roof to another.

‘Goodbye, Anoush!’ Dion called.

The boy gave him a quick wave and then Dion led Chloe to the edge of the rail. He saw that the next roof was three feet lower and with an effort he clambered down. Chloe slipped off and then the pair ran to the next.

They passed from roof to roof until there was a gap in front of them; they had come as far as they could. Looking for a path down, Dion saw a doorway leading to the building’s interior and pointed. ‘This way.’

A surprised old woman carrying a basket in her arms cried out as they entered a wealthy house with carpeted floors. Ignoring her, Dion and Chloe descended the stairs and ran out onto the street.

‘Where are we going?’ Chloe asked. She was breathless, but had no problem keeping up. He couldn’t see her face through the veil, but he was surprised at her fortitude.

‘I have a boat just outside the city,’ Dion said. He took a moment to get his bearings and then pointed to the left. ‘This way.’

They walked rather than running, striding with skipping steps as they both fought to move quickly without drawing attention. Each set of stairs they descended brought them closer to the lower city and the gates. Each narrow alley kept them hidden from watchers. Each broad avenue made them feel exposed.

Then the gates were just ahead. Compared with the harbor on the other side of the city, the area here was a scene of normality as wagons carried bushels of wheat into the city and herders brought tethered goats in for the slaughter.

‘As soon as we’re through,’ Dion said. ‘Run.’

He kept her close as they passed between the gates. Soldiers glanced down at them from high perches on the towers at both sides.

Suddenly they were through.

‘Run!’

Dion and Chloe moved from a walk into a sprint. He checked over his shoulder to see if she was keeping up and led her away from the road, skirting the walls and towers, keeping a hundred paces between them and the city until they finally left Lamara behind.

‘Keep . . . running . . .’ Dion panted.

The terrain here was treacherous and rocky. They weaved around spiky shrubs and leaped over clefts in the rock. Chloe fell and grazed her palms but she climbed back to her feet without complaint and continued to follow, her jaw clenched as she ran.

Dion was confused for a moment, but then he found the steep-walled stream and breathed a sigh of relief. He took Chloe along the high ground until they reached the place where the stream joined the river.

‘We’re going to have to get down to the bottom. Be careful,’ he said.

He slid down on the seat of his trousers, calloused palms breaking his fall. When he reached the base of the gully he turned back and saw Chloe climbing down much more gracefully than he had, facing the opposite direction.

Dion stood with his feet in shallow water and pulled at the bushes, and there was the Calypso.

As he freed the vessel, he realized he had forgotten how beautiful it was. Sleek and rakish, with horizontal blue and gold stripes on the hull, it begged to be out and riding the open seas.

Dion began to breathe freely for the first time as he brought the boat bobbing to the shore of the river.

‘I could use your help mounting the mast,’ he said to Chloe.

‘What do you need me to do?’

‘Firstly, get in.’

She waded through the river and clambered awkwardly into the boat as Dion held it fast. Together they mounted the mast and then raised the sail to halfway so that it snapped and billowed in the steady breeze.

Glancing up at the sky, Dion saw that it was late evening and would soon be night. He nodded to himself. He had sailed through the night to reach Lamara, and he could do it again on the return journey. The lighthouses would guide him out of the inlet and into the open sea.