Free Eternity: Immortal Witches Book 1 (The Immortal Witches) by Maggie Shayne Page B

shouted “Land ho!”
    Sanctuary was but forty miles from where the ship docked at Boston Harbor, and I was told ‘twas a town on its own tiny peninsula that curved like a crooked finger into the sea. I was eager to see it. I waited, of course, until everyone had left the ship. Long, long after that I crept out of my cabin, half afraid Duncan would be waiting for me, even then. I even looked for him, searching the few faces I saw as I walked softly down the gangplank and along the dock and into the town. But he wasn’t there. I saw him not at all.
    And perhaps a very small part of me was disappointed. I told myself how foolish that was, but the truth was a lot of the feelings I’d been having lately were foolish. It did not stop me from having them, all the same. It did not stop me from craving the touch and the kiss of a man I could never have.

Chapter 5

    At Boston Town I purchased a horse with most of the coins still remaining in my purse, a fine black mare with fire in her eyes and spirit in her step. The livery man pleaded with me to take a more gentle beast instead, but I was insistent. From the moment my eyes met the animal’s, and she gave a sassy shake of her dark, flowing mane, I knew she was the one for me. I called her Ebony, for that was her color.
    I’d taken to carrying my dagger strapped ‘round my thigh, held there by the red garter my mother had made for me long ago. All the witches of her family had worn one, she’d said. ‘Twas laughable that I still wore the garter, when my stockings were long since too tattered to wear.
    Beyond the dagger, I had only the drawstring sack my mother had given me, all my worldly possessions tucked away inside. Armed with a crudely drawn map, and pitifully few coins, I set out at dawn on the day after the Sea Witch had docked, bound for Sanctuary. My new home.
    I rode on narrow paths, amid forests of such grandeur I’d never seen their like. The trees towered to the heavens, their trunks incredibly large. I marveled at the natural beauty around me, the forces of nature I could feel thriving in this place. There was great power here. I sensed it the way an animal can sense the approach of a storm.
    After riding for an entire day, I estimated my journey to be nearly half complete, and stroked Ebony’s neck, praising her in soft words.
    The dampness that coated my palm and her gentle nicker told me ‘twas time to stop for the night. “All right, girl. Time you had some rest. And me, as well. Though one would not think I should feel so tired when you’ve been doing all the work.”
    The mare snorted as if in agreement, and I glanced at the area around me. Truly, there was little here. Woods that might be the home of giants towered on either side of me. Ahead, there was only the dim outline of a well-worn dirt track, and even that vanished a short distance away as the sky turned dusky with twilight.
    Sliding from the mare’s back, I gathered the reins in my hands and went very still, closing my eyes, listening to my instincts to tell me which way to go. ‘Twould be far from wise to camp beside the road, lest some ne’er-do-well come upon us in the night. Besides that, Ebony needed water. She’d last drunk at midday.
    Softly I scented the breeze, waiting, listening. And my senses did not let me down. I could hear the trickle and splash of a stream off to the left. Moreover, I could smell the water.
    I glanced at Ebony and realized I needn’t have bothered. She smelled it, too, and looked eagerly off toward the woods in that direction. “Come on, then,” I told her, and led her off the trail and into the darkness of the forest.
    It took a long while to find that stream. It seemed we walked a mile, though it could not have been that far. But surrounded by the lowering darkness and towering trees, I felt the full extent of my solitude here more than I had since leaving the ship at Boston Harbor. I was alone, in a strange, new land.
    And yet, not quite as alone as