Chapter 19
We didn't see the Star of the Sea until the following evening. Evan Tanner stood up and pointed to a large ship heading down river. "That's the Star of the Sea."
It was too far away for me to recognize. "You're sure?"
"Aye, Your Highness. I'd know my ship anywhere."
"I told them to wait a day before heading down river," Bokham muttered.
I checked the sun, already low in the western sky. "It's been a day. Casting our nets into the water slowed us down. Then we docked at this village, sold the fish we caught to the local fishmonger, went shopping, argued with the merchants in the market."
"Can we keep up with them?" Edgerton asked Evan Tanner.
"They're not at full sails, so we should be able to stay with them for awhile."
"Try to stay with them as long as you can," Edgerton said. "But don't get too close. We don't want anyone to think that we're traveling with them."
Bokham untied the boat and pushed it away from the dock. Evan Tanner swung the boat around, raised the sail in mere seconds, and headed down river, keeping close to shore.
"I don't understand why we can't ride on the Star," Tabitha whined. "It's a lot more comfortable than this thing."
"Maximillian Bedard is going to attack the Star and try and kill everyone on it," I said. "That's why we're pretending to be fishermen."
It wasn't long before the Star of the Sea pulled even with us, its black and gold hull gleaming in the setting sun. The sails were raised on its main mast but not on the other two.
We stayed with them for a couple of minutes, then they pulled ahead. No one on the Star noticed who we were, but there was no reason they should. We weren't close enough for them to identify our faces and there were dozens of boats on the river that looked just like ours.
"If the ship is going to be attacked," Tabitha said. "Why is Captain Hubbard taking it down river?"
"To draw attention away from us," Bokham said.
As the Star of the Sea began to pull away from us, Shu pointed to a woman standing on the afterdeck. She was small with long dark hair and wore a red silk gown. "Who's that?"
"Captain Hubbard must've hired a woman to pose as me," I said.
"The King of Dunre doesn't know what you look like?"
"He knows what I look like, but he's not on the ships that are looking for me."
"His men don't know what you look like?"
"He only saw me for a couple of seconds, probably told them that I'm young and have long black hair."
"That describes half the women in Landish."
"Exactly."
"Do you suppose she knows what she's gotten herself into?" Shu said, as the Star pulled further and further away.
"I hope so." I didn't like the idea of someone dying just so I could live.
We lost sight of the Star of the Sea just after sundown. When we found it four days later, it wasn't a ship, it was just a burned out hulk sitting on a sandbar. We knew it was the Star because the stern was still intact, with Star of the Sea written across it in gold.
I don't know whether it was good or bad, but we found no bodies, no bodies on the sandbar, no bodies in the water, no bodies washed up on shore. The pinnace was gone, which gave us hope that Captain Hubbard and his crew had managed to escape.
"They must've gotten away," Bokham said, as we floated by the wreckage. "There are no bodies."
"They could've been taken prisoner," Edgerton said.
"Not enough room for that many prisoners on a longboat," I said. "Captain Hubbard claimed a Landish longboat can hold sixty men tops, and from what I saw in my vision, that longboat was already full."
"The pinnace is gone," Bokham said. "As are the lifeboats. They must've boarded them and headed to shore when they saw the longboat approaching. Forcing Bedard's men to pursue them on foot would be their best option."
"Captain Hubbard knew they were going to be attacked," I said. "That did give him an advantage."
Sure enough, we found a Landish longboat on the south shore less than a mile down river. Captain Hubbard's pinnace was beached next to the longboat, as were the Star's two lifeboats. There appeared to be a skeleton crew on board the longboat, although it was hard to tell from our position on the far side of the river. The people on the longboat paid no attention to our little fishing boat.
"They're definitely on foot," Bokham said. "That evens the odds considerably. Thirty men can travel faster than fifty."
"Let's hope they get away," Edgerton said.
"I can find out what's going on," I said.
"How?" Edgerton asked.
"I can see and hear people I've met, whenever I want, wherever they are. I can also let them see me. Well, a ghost image of me."
"Can you talk to them?"
"Only through images."
"What does that mean?"
"I can change my image to look like other people, but I can't make it talk."
I sat and closed my eyes. I pictured Captain Hubbard in my mind, tall, with a narrow waist and broad shoulders. I pictured his snow white hair, which he wore in a ponytail. I pictured his broad flat nose and his bright blue eyes. I pictured his uniform, red knee socks, white knee breeches, a white shirt, and a red jacket.
A second later, I saw him, running along a dirt road with a smile on his face. His men were running behind him, cutlasses in hand. The girl they had on deck, posing as me, was no where to be seen. I hoped that was a good sign. Once she got rid of the gown, she went back to being a local. Dressed in her native clothing and speaking Old Landish, Max's men wouldn't pay any attention to her.
"Captain Hubbard and his men are fine," I said, opening my eyes. "They're on the road that borders the river's southern bank. Max's men are chasing them, but they don't look too concerned."
"And the girl that was with them?" Edgerton said.
"Gone, but once she got rid of the gown we saw her wearing, she goes back to being a local." I turned to Shu. "How far are we from the Holt border?"
"Less than a day by river," Shu said. "Little over a day by horse. A couple of days on foot."
"Will the Duke of Genese give Captain Hubbard and his men sanctuary?"
"If they can reach his lands before being overtaken."
"If we seek the Duke of Genese's assistance, will he send some men to help Captain Hubbard?"
Shu shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know."
I turned to Edgerton. "What do you think?"
"The King of Holt is an ally and a friend of Queen Catlett. I have no doubt that he'd send men to help Captain Hubbard. I don't know his little brother that well. There's a bit of a gap between their age."
"Could we ask him for help?"
"We could ask."
I turned back to Shu. "How far is the Duke of Genese's palace from the river?"
"It sits on a hill that overlooks the river, just above the river's northern bank. There's a city surrounding it, with more city on the southern bank. Rowboats ferry people back and forth between the two halves of the city."
"And you lived there?"
"For a couple of years. My father is the duke's chief adviser."
I turned back to Edgerton. "I know you're worried about Captain Hubbard, and I know it's not much consolation, but he was smiling when I saw him."
"Let's hope we reach the duke's palace before that old fool's age catches up with him," Edgerton said.