Free Sorceress' Blood by Carl Purcell

fell
asleep easily with her head resting on her seatbelt. She had fallen
asleep before they even reached the airport. Ashley found the
movement of the car soothing. The passing street lights formed a
hypnotic pattern. Light, dark, light, dark, light, dark. The radio
played a sad song like a lullaby. She wasn’t awake for long
once she’d finished eating. Peaceful sleep came easy to her in
the comfortable protection of the car. It was her blanket and her
shell. She was feeling safe and sound as only a child can when it’s
warm and her loving parents were no further than a room away.
    Rebecca wasn’t feeling safe. Once she’d parked the car
and eaten, she shifted quietly in her seat and tossed her head back
and forth. She was wide awake, jumping at shadows and listening,
dreading that she might hear sirens. There were none. Eventually she
fell asleep. She woke up a couple of hours later. The sky was still
dark but there were no stars hanging over the airport. She looked
over at Ashley: She was still asleep. She closed her eyes and tried
to get comfortable again. Rebecca slept, or at least thought she
slept, for another hour. The clock read 6:22. Rebecca yawned and sat
up. Everything was still and silent. Rebecca thought of turning on
the radio but stopped herself, thinking it might wake Ashley. She
sighed, somewhere between relief and a lingering fear.
    Ashley woke up a few hours later and stretched her arms over her
head.
    “Where are we?”
    “The airport,” Rebecca told her and then went on to
explain what they were going to do.
    “China?” Ashley asked when Rebecca was finished.
    “Yeah. It’ll probably be a long flight but we’ll be
safe.”
    “Are you sure?”
    “Yes.” Rebecca wasn’t sure at all. “Edward is
related to Lord Sebastian. He’ll take care of us just like Lord
Sebastian did. You can probably go back to learning magic.”
    “What about you?”
    “I’ll still be there to take care of you.”
    “Okay,” Ashley said. Then Rebecca saw, for the first time
ever, Ashley smiled at her. “Let’s go to China.”
    Rebecca nodded. She became aware that she was still carrying the gun
in her pocket and wondered how she’d manage to get past
security with it. She spent some time looking through the car for a
bag. There wasn’t one and she decided just to stash the gun and
the motel room keys in the glove compartment. Once again she had only
what she had in her pockets when they left Lord Sebastian’s
castle – her wallet and her own mobile phone; the battery had
gone flat by then. She took the phone she found in the car with her
and put it in her pocket next to her own. Rebecca took Ashley by the
hand and began walking through the parking lot to the airport
entrance. She was starting to feel naked. She got the feeling that
Thralls could show up anywhere and at any time and now she couldn’t
fight them at all. She was at the mercy of whatever fate would throw
at her from this point on. She walked into the airport and the cold,
conditioned air washed over her. She hoped that they could get away
safely. She just wanted to get on her plane without being stopped by
any thralls or police or security guards.
    Rebecca went mechanically through the airport. She passed through
security and boarded the small white private jet with clockwork
precision. Ashley’s hand never left hers and she didn’t
smile. Despite her inhuman behaviour, she was now on the plane
waiting for it to take off and that’s all that mattered.
Rebecca looked back on it from the comfort of her seat, hardly
remembering how she'd got there from the parking lot. That wasn’t
important though. They were safe.
    “I’ve never been on an aeroplane before.”
    “What?” Rebecca looked over at Ashley. She was staring
out the window at the other planes taxiing around the airport.
    “I said I’ve never been on an aeroplane before. Have
you?”
    “No.” Rebecca looked up and scanned the plane. There was
no one else on board and she