On Stolen Tides by Kay Lalock

Author:Kay Lalock [Lalock, Kay]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Desert Dingo Publishing
Published: 2023-08-21T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 16

The coach bumped over the dirt road in silence. The city of Vestum disappeared behind them, the sound of the chaos of the party long gone. No one gave chase to them; it was as though they’d disappeared into the night undetected. Laufitu was right, the more witnesses the less likely it was to be truly seen. Lydia was settled next to Eteuati on the driver’s bench, feeling a sudden surge of relief as they cleared the affluent area and headed into the city.

“That was close,” she said to the boy. He gave a shrug as he navigated the horse along the empty streets and into the wilds of the island.

“It is not over yet, we aren’t on the boat,” he reminded her.

She nodded but was unable to help the grin that grew with every mile they put between themselves and the party.

They made it to the beach quickly, the horse trotting along steadily despite the heaviness of the coach. It too seemed happy to be away from the city, its ears pricked forward as it trotted along. When they reached the top of the beach, Eteuati pulled the horse up and slid off the bench, then untied the horse and let him loose to graze on the grass. Vaea was close behind, opening the door to the coach to help unload the items within. It took more time than the previous theft, the lack of trunks to secure the items making it difficult to transport many of them at once. Vaea grabbed the sheets that had been used to lower some of the items from the second story and spread it on the sand, piling items within and closing it like a sack. This helped move things faster.

Laufitu stood off to the side watching, her gaze roving the grassy island expanse for anyone who followed. Lydia watched her between trips to the dingy, glad when the dingy was finally loaded and slipping into the water for them to head back to the Stars Above. Eteuati and Uha rolled the carriage to the end of the bluff, pushing it off and watching it break into hundreds of pieces as it bounced along the cliff face.

On the dingy, Laufitu was silent, and once the dingy was pulled up along the ship, she was the first off. Lydia followed after her, both curious at her silence and in remembrance of the last haul of stolen items. She didn’t want to interrupt the crew as they sorted through items of such importance. From what Lydia remembered from the captain’s office, there were quite a bit of stolen artifacts.

“Laufitu,” Lydia said, catching the woman just as she ducked below deck and headed for her room. That’s when Lydia saw it – a spreading red spot along her left arm that was hastily tied up. “You’re hurt!” Lydia cried, reaching out to touch the wound.

Laufitu smacked her hand away, her gaze darting across the deck for anyone who might have heard. “I’m fine,” she ground out, turning once more to head below deck and to her room.

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