Equinox (Book One of the Firebird Chronicles) WATTY AWARD HIDDEN GEM WINNER 2015

Chapter Twenty Nine: The Fugitive in the Trunk

The rocking motion of the carriage, Sakura's quiet singing and the gentle sound of horses' hooves made for a sleepy journey.

For a while after leaving the sanctuary of the Exchangers, the four of us - Sakura, Clae, Kirsten and I- were alert and on standby. The route planned took us through the lesser travelled roads, and around the Opal city, rather than through it. As such, we were not nearly as disturbed as we thought.

After approximately an hour, we were stopped by our first patrol. The angels were dressed in neat military red, wings folded behind them. They gave our guards and drivers little warning as they surrounded us, and ordered a spot check.

A young youth with a shaved head came onto our carriage. His face was chiselled and scarred, and his lips were twisted into a permanent scowl. His eyes glinted around at us as he took in the sight of four gypsy girls.

I was sat paused, holding a hairbrush that I had been pretending to brush my hair with. My new, dyed hair was a luscious red, curling to rival my fluttering eyelashes, and offset by heavy liner across my eyes. My legs were crossed in the long navy skirts I wore, bound by a corset of blue flowers. A white blouse, open and rippled around the neck and chest, completed the ensemble.

The girls around me were dressed similarly. Clae's ensemble was a little shorter and pink, whilst Kirsten's shirt was laced up at the front. Despite knowing them well, even I found it strange to recognise both Kirsten and Clae, with auburn-red hair in country plaits. Sakura was the odd one out, with her dark skin and light freckles, but she wore a vibrant red crop top and skirt to match, sweeping to her feet and clinking with metal discs.

All in all, we looked like a troupe of sisters rather than the spies we actually were. The guards looked briefly at Sakura, but decided that for whatever reason, she wasn't suspicious.

As they left, the carriage seemed to sag in relief. So far, our disguises were working, and if all went to plan, we could relax- for now.

So after a couple of hours, two stops only to change drivers and answer any calls of nature, we were back on the road and vastly bored. Kirsten drifted off and began to snore quietly, which made Clae and I giggle. When she woke with a start as the carriage jumped over a bump in the road, we had to stifle our laughs. She glared at us, eyes narrowed in suspicion.

By the time the sun was starting to go down, we were all hungry and grumpy. Having wanted to make good time to reach the Amethyst district, neighbour to Ruby and Opal, we had skipped any lengthy breaks in travelling. Instead, we had eaten our rations of fruit and nuts. Crossing the border came almost as a relief, despite the much more extensive checks that occurred. We joined a queue of travellers awaiting to enter the city, and were surrounded by patrols of red eager to search the carriages.

Military angels ordered all of us out of the carriages, and then commenced searching inside. We were lined up at the front, and I saw Fabian standing towards the back of the queue. His travelling companions seemed a lot closer knit after the journey than we were; the girls were standing around looking uncomfortable and tired.

I watched as a young woman traveller was finally admitted to the city after having all of her belongings strewn across the floor, and then having what looked like a serious talk with one of the guards. She walked away looking distressed.

I frowned as this occurred once more with a family, the guard taking each member aside and staring at them eye level. The guard himself wasn't particularly scary- he was a small, scrawny youth that didn't match with the rest of the militia. His wings were pathetically small and red.

Then it clicked.

Hurriedly, I caught Clae's eye, blinking over towards the direction of the guard.