And so the tale of Anna continues…
Day 30: The spell started to fade and Anna let it go.
The spell started to fade and Anna let it go. She learned all she needed to at the moment. She hadn’t been seen at the archives but no one thought she ran. They were watching the gates and she congratulated herself on getting out of the city using an alternative route.
Anna put all of her things away and stood. She left the concealment on herself, not wanting to attract attention. By all accounts this land was cleared of people, but there could be some who left the city. ‘And in the absence of people, nature could have reclaimed it.’
Whether it was man or beast out her, she didn’t want to be spotted. Anna once again resumed her journey. ‘I’ll check in again later after the time has come and gone for me to meet Christopher for a drink.’
She doubted they would act before then. ‘And seeing how they react to my not showing up will tell me something.’
Anna continued on, the road more of a suggestion even though she could see where it led. She saw no sign of people moving through the landscape. She did hear birds in the trees and a few small animals rustling through the forest, but that was it. With her shielding in place, they didn’t notice her and were louder than they had been before. The further away from the city she moved, the louder they became.
When Anna judged the time to be right, she stopped. Anna settled herself out of the way and again took out her bowl and the necessary ingredients. Soon she was looking at a The Willow’s taproom. Many of the tables were occupied. She could in fact see Marcus sitting in the shadows across the room. It was a boisterous night, Christopher checked the time and frowned. She was well over an hour late at this point. It seemed like he was about to accept that she wasn’t coming.
Christopher stood and wandered across the room to Marcus. He took the seat across from him. :You spooked her,” Christopher said.
“I spooked her?”
“Yes. She is probably hiding and too afraid to go out,” Christopher replied.
“I thought you said she’d come out because she needed a friend. Maybe she no longer thinks you are a friend,” Marcus replied.
Christopher snorted. “Please, I played my role perfectly. She is in hiding because you spooked her.”
“Did she give you a way to contact her?” Marcus asked.
“No,” He shook his head. “We were just supposed to meet here. I don’t know why she didn’t show.”
“Maybe you aren’t as charming as you think.”
Again Christoper snorted. Unlike this morning where Marcus was agitated and Christopher confident, now Marcus was the calm one.
“Maybe you spooked her on purpose,” Christopher said.
“On purpose?”
“You didn’t like the thought of making her compliant,” he continued. He nodded to himself. “Everyone knows you were friends with the family. Maybe you don’t want her brought in.”
“Of course I want her brought in,” Marcus said. “We need her.”
“True, but she also might have information you don’t want getting out,” Christopher said.
Ten til Midnight 