CHAPTER EIGHT
Sophia saw the moment when the city started to give way to the Ridings around it, in the thinning of houses and the changing pattern of bumps as the wheels hit more ruts. The forward progress made her fear build, because she knew all the things that were waiting for her when the cart stopped.
The old walls of the city had passed by a long time ago now, the continuing sprawl of houses meaning that there was no clean line stating where the city stopped. Briefly, Sophia found herself wondering what would happen if the wars over the water came to the kingdom. Would people find themselves trying to crowd behind the old walls, or just build barricades in the street? Would stone walls make a difference to cannon?
Then she realized that she didn’t care. None of the people they pas
