The Prince and the Slave: Book Three

Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

For the first time William could remember, he woke up before Abey. The noise of the forest around them woke him, and as he squinted hazily at the sky he saw the sun had only just began to rise, making the surrounding trees give a blueish red glow.

He gazed down at Abey, sleeping peacefully in his arms, only to find her smiling up at him, wide awake.

"I thought I'd woken before you then" He told her, slightly disappointed. Abey laughed at his childish voice, his eyes still not fully open and his mind still foggy from sleep.

"You know I always wake up at dawn. And it's dawn now" She smiled, leaning up and kissing him gently. She pulled away and smiled at him again, but William wasn't ready to let her go that easily, and he pulled her back to him, kissing her again. They stayed like this as the sun began to steadily rise, the trees now glowing in a hazy orange light.

A twig snapped somewhere in the trees behind them, and both William and Abey snapped their heads towards the sound, not daring to breath. A squirrel suddenly ran out of the bushes and they both relaxed, laughing and sighing in relief.

"Come on, let's get moving" Abey said, standing and pulling William to his feet. Although it had been nothing, the shock had reminded them how close they had come to capture the day before, and the importance of getting as far away as possible.

William held out his hand as Abey hitched her now packed satchel onto her shoulder. Taking his hand, they set off, picking their way through the trees until they came across a small, slightly overgrown footpath.

They continued along the footpath, finding it easier than trying to fight their way through the undergrowth, and they were still quite far from main path through the forest - where they would be more than likely to meet people on the way - a risk they didn't want to take.

Despite seeing the expanse of the forest while hiding on the roof in Hollinwood, they were surprised how long the journey took. For the next three days they carried on through the trees, finding shelter at night in small caves and hollow trunks. Now they were getting closer to the border they could hear the far off voices of Bandits at night, shouting and laughing as they celebrated another successful day of raids. Luckily, William and Abey had managed to avoid them, being careful to stick to the smaller and lesser known paths, keeping out of their way.

It was mid morning when they noticed the path becoming less overgrown, the trees also spaced wider apart, causing the usually dim dappled light filtering through the forest become much brighter, making a friendly, unthreatening atmosphere.

They paused and looked ahead of them in confusion. They had suddenly found themselves leaving the forest and stepping into a tiny village, set in the middle of a break in the trees. The village was no more than half a mile wide, and William and Abey looked around in amazement as they wandered through the collection of tiny cottages, smoke billowing from each chimney in a friendly, welcoming manner.

As they walked down the tiny streets, people would nod and smile pleasantly to them, just out of politeness, and William nodded back to them in slight confusion.

"What a strange place. I never knew this was here" He began, turning to Abey to find her looking all around, her eyes wide as she took everything in, her forehead creased.

"I've been here before" She said softly, more to herself than William.

"Abey, are you alright?" He asked, his confusion turning to concern.

"Yes, yes. I'm fine" She replied, her voice dazed. She suddenly set off down another street, walking with purposeful strides, William having to jog after her, not realising she had started walking.