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They carried the items away. Lorana asked Hag Mother for a taper so she could light the herbs. She finished and closed the door.
    After eating the evening meal of stew and bread, Lorana went to her sleeping cell. She wished she could visit the storeroom and carry what she had found to the tangle. Alas, she had to wait.
    Tomorrow night she would make that visit. She fell asleep and ticked off a day of waiting.
    The next morning she returned to the storeroom with two of the older women. They cleared away the dead vermin and insects. While cleaning the shelves she found a roll of heavy thread and several long needles. She could repair the strap of the carrying pack she found yesterday.
    Once all had settled for the night, she crept to the door and scurried to the storeroom. She pulled out the pack, added the thread and needles, grain, some dried berries, and thorns for the dragon.
    Lorana opened the secret door. As the wall closed, she had a moment of panic. Darkness closed around her. She drew a series of calming breaths and braced a hand on the wall. Step by step she moved forward until she reached the end of the tunnel and hit the opening sequence.
    With care she stepped into the open and turned to watch the opening close. She recalled the night she’d had to find the pattern for the return. A dozen tries had finally yielded the combination.
    The air outside held the promise of freedom. Not tonight, but soon. A breeze ruffled her hair and kissed her face. A glance at the sky showed the moon approached full. She ran across the grass and up the hill to reach the tangle. Fortunately clouds covered the moon. She found the hidden way to the center of the cluster.
    As she slithered along the passage, she avoided the thorns. She reached the clear space in the center. When she had discovered the twisted path, she had believed she was the first person to enter this area. The tangle was unlike the neat rows of bushes she remembered from her home. She left her spoils and returned to the citadel and to her cot in her sleeping cell.
    Voices woke her. She rose, dressed and went to the common room to eat her porridge. Hag Mother assigned her to join the women scrubbing the basement cells.
    The gloomy area caused her to shudder. She thought of being held in the cells for months after her arrival and her only attempt to escape. She had promised to obey the wizards, and she had done so until now. In this very cell she had found the scrap of paper leading her to the secret exit. For almost four years she had worked to gain Hag Mother’s trust so she could access the possible escape route.
    By the time evening arrived, she was too tired to eat more than a few bites of stew. She dragged herself to her bed. Four days had passed since the wizards had left.
    I can’t sleep. I must stay awake. She lay on the cot, and every time she drifted away she pinched herself. Before long the usual noises from the outer room had ceased. Her body tensed. Someone was in her room. She forced herself to relax.
    “She’s asleep,” a woman said.
    “We will work her this hard tomorrow and every day until they return,” Hag mother said. “She has all the signs of being a runner like that woman who climbed the grille and tried to force the outer gate open. My son will be most displeased if she isn’t waiting for my grandson.”
    The women left. Lorana couldn’t stop shaking. How many more days must she wait to make her break? She slithered across the room to the doorway and peered into the common room. Hag Mother entered her sleeping chamber. The other woman, the second in control of the hareem, sat in a chair directly in front of the doorway of Lorana’s room. She returned to the cot.
    Three more days passed while she scrubbed corridors. She lay on her cot and drew deep breaths. She had to leave tonight. She listened for sounds. The moment she heard snores from her watcher, she slithered past the woman and crawled to the storeroom door. Cautiously, she opened