Chapter 17 #2
How many times had she stood in this spot?
As a child, dreaming of adventures beyond the horizon.
As a teenager, yearning to escape whispers and stares.
Now, facing the reality of leaving, all she could see were the memories soaked into the rocky soil: the old oak where Kitto had fallen and broken his arm, Mama’s herb garden, its scent carried on every breeze, and Papa’s workshop, where clay became magic in her family’s hands.
Behind her, voices rose and fell in the cottage, Papa’s resistance crumbling under the weight of reality, Mama’s fears giving way to fierce protectiveness. They would leave. She knew it with the same certainty that she knew this view by heart.
A night bird called from the copse of trees near the stream, its cry lonely in the gathering darkness. Soon, even that sound would be a memory.
Sienna pressed her hand to her chest, trying to hold on to this moment—the familiar ache of home, the bittersweet knowledge that sometimes love meant leaving everything you’d ever known behind.
When she turned back toward the cottage, golden light spilled from the windows, warm and welcoming. But for how much longer?
“Sienna?” Jamie’s voice drifted from the doorway. “They’ve decided. We’re leaving tomorrow.”
She inclined her head, silent, before taking one last look at the valley that had formed her life.
“Where are you, Liam?” she muttered, peering toward the town. She prayed that he and her brothers were safe because she couldn’t live with herself if something happened to them.
Then she walked toward the light, toward her family, toward whatever the future held.
“Jago and I will do a quick run to camp and return tomorrow with the equipment we should take with us,” her father said. “Jamie, would you like to come?”
Jamie nodded.
“Please be careful,” her mother said. “It will be dangerous out tonight.”
Her father nodded. “Always, sweetheart. Always.”
He, Jago, and Jamie collected packs and shrugged them onto their backs.
“See you in the morning,” her father said.
Her mother’s brow furrowed when she closed the door after them. “Are we doing the right thing?”
“Staying isn’t an option, Mama.”
As darkness fell, they finished the chores and sat in the kitchen, each cradling a mug of tea.
A heavy thump at the door made them tense. A second, then a third bang—definitely not her brothers.
Sienna stood, her inner cat bristling. “Hunters?”
“Be careful,” her mother warned.
Sienna approached the door and inhaled. Two strangers—neither scent familiar. She smoothed her palms over her jeans and drew a steadying breath before cracking the door open.
The frown came naturally.
“Why are you banging on our door in the middle of the night?” she snapped, not opening it fully.
Two hunters loomed on the doorstep, broad-shouldered and stone-faced, their gaze sweeping her like predators sizing up prey.
“Who lives here?” one demanded.
“Who wants to know? And why?” Sienna shot back.
“We’re doing house-to-house searches,” the second said.
“Why?”
“For leopards.”
“In our house?” Sienna scoffed. “No animals here. Not one.”
“We’re also looking for a man with a gunshot wound,” the first said.
Her stomach hollowed. Liam? One of her brothers? She fought to keep her face blank. “Just my mother and me,” Sienna said, planting her feet firmly in the threshold.
“Can we come in?”
“No,” Sienna said.
“If you don’t let us in, we’ll assume you’re hiding something,” the man warned, edging forward.
Sienna snorted. “You wouldn’t let me into your homes, so don’t expect entry here.” She shut the door, sliding the lock across, catching them off guard.
Who did they think they were? If they pushed it, she’d call the cops in the next village.
Tense, she pressed her ear to the door.
A muffled voice said, “We’ll return when they least expect it. Tomorrow night. More men. We’ll distract from the front, while others sneak in the back.”
Sienna huffed, exasperated. They didn’t have a rear entrance.
“We’re lucky Hedrek and the boys left earlier,” her mother said.
“Yeah. Ma, we can’t keep living like this, wondering when we’ll fall a step behind instead of ahead. We need to change the narrative.”
“I understand. Hedrek feels it too. But leaving everything familiar behind and stepping into uncertainty—it’s terrifying. We’re putting Hedrek and the boys at risk.”
Sienna let out a shaky breath, a restless energy coiling beneath her skin. “Do you think the boys are okay? I’m so worried about Liam.”
“If the hunters had caught Kitto or Calan, they’d be tearing through houses by now. Liam’s still with them. He wouldn’t abandon them.”
“You like him,” Sienna said.
“He’d make a fine son-in-law.”
“I wouldn’t count chickens.” Sienna’s gut twisted with worry and longing. “He might want to go home, and I wouldn’t blame him.”
“Don’t borrow trouble,” her mother said briskly. “I’ll start packing. With eight of us, space will be tight. I’ll pack a set of clothes for each boy and Hedrek, and one for each of us.”
Sienna gathered food supplies, organizing them into the bigger, sturdier pack her mother recommended. Quietly, they worked side by side, the tension hanging between them.
“Should we find a phone and call the castle?” her mother asked, folding a shirt.
“And say what? I didn’t make friends there. It’s better to arrive and assess the situation first.”
Her mother nodded and stowed the last items. A yawn escaped her.
“We should try to sleep,” Sienna said, setting down the pack. “We’ll need all the rest we can get if we’re driving up to Scotland.”
“Agreed. Good night, Sienna. Don’t worry. Hedrek and Jago will be back by morning. Liam and the others, too.”
Sienna had always appreciated her mother’s sunny disposition, but right now, she couldn’t dredge up the same optimism.
“Good night, Mama. I’ve checked the windows, and they’re locked. Hopefully, the hunters will stay away, at least until tomorrow.”
Sienna closed her bedroom door and prepared for bed.
When she slid between the sheets, Liam’s scent washed over her.
She tugged the covers up to her chin and inhaled deeply.
Lord, she missed him and hoped he was okay.
Her brothers, too. Her family would fall apart if anything were to happen to one of them.
She must have dozed, because the rumble of an engine jerked her awake. Sienna sat up, disoriented. What time was it? The cottage was dark, silent except for her mother’s soft breathing in the next room.
Papa and Jago weren’t supposed to return until morning.
Heart hammering, she slipped from bed and crept to the window. Through a gap in the curtains, headlights swept across their garden.
A vehicle rumbled up the path toward their cottage. Sienna peered through the curtain and gasped. Oh, no. It wasn’t Papa and Jago returning. It was a black SUV with hunters inside.