When Emris was satisfied with the position of his braid, he laid a hand over it and spoke a string of words in a foreign language that sounded like the chiming of bells. He repeated the phrase again and again. What began as a quiet murmur over his work grew to a dancing hum, filling Lena’s ears. Gradually, the sound became a sort of music, which swayed gently like a boat floating down a little stream. She felt herself falling into the rhythm of the stream, but the melody quickened: no longer an amble but a trot, a hoop spinning on a country road, a jog across a grassy meadow—then a run, a torrent, an exhilarating canter on horseback, the wind rushing in her face, and finally, impossibly, her stomach was turning like a spinning top, and—

Emris had stopped and was smiling up at her. “You can sense it, can’t you? Can you tell what the spell is for?”

Lena shook her head, confused, and lifted her gaze in the direction of the road ahead. “You already told me it was the quickening of journeys,” she said quietly. In the distance, a range of sloping hills rose to tree-lined peaks covered with trees that swished in a faraway wind. She focused on the sight. Something about the motion of the trees calmed her. “How far to the City of Kings?” she asked.

“We’ll arrive by sunset,” he said, standing up. “Come on.”

To her surprise, Emris sat up front, while the suspicious coachman took his blankets and bedroll inside.

“Can’t stand flying,” he grumbled as he climbed in. “Give me a good hard road any time.” He was already pulling on what looked like a thick felt nightcap.

Flying?

Lena shot Emris an uncertain look. Maybe it was a turn of phrase. “Is the spell going to make us fly?”

He grinned, settling into the driver’s seat and offering her a hand up. “That’s the idea, yes.”

“In … this?” She stared at the enormous, unwieldy carriage. She couldn’t imagine anything less likely to take flight. But Emris just smiled.

She accepted his help and sat at his side, wrapping a woolen blanket around her knees and resting back against the padded bench. In addition, Emris fastened leather straps carefully around her torso. As he leaned close, she smelled a strong, clean scent in his tightly curled hair.

“Ready?” he said, as he took the reins.

She nodded, mingled terror and excitement building in the pit of her stomach.