Gideon uses Rune as a hostage when Prince Soren enters the bridal shop, ordering Soren to lock the door and keep everyone behind the counter. With the revolver pressed to Rune’s head, Gideon backs out through the rear door, threatening to kill Rune if anyone follows. Once outside, Gideon plans to hide at his hotel, but Rune immediately reveals that she has already prepared an escape, including two hidden suitcases.

Rune takes back her gun, covers her wedding dress with a cloak, and leads Gideon through alleys toward the harbor while he carries the luggage. Their pursuers quickly close in, and when soldiers begin shooting, Rune fires back but nearly hits Gideon. Because the chase becomes too dangerous, they duck for cover and then push toward a crowded waterfront district, where they can blend in more easily.

At the harbor, Rune finally explains that she has bought them last-minute passage on the Arcadia, a passenger ship bound for the New Republic and known for refusing witch hunters and their hounds. Gideon realizes Rune anticipated his cooperation before he ever arrived and even packed Prince Soren’s clothes for him, since Gideon left his own belongings behind. As police search civilians nearby, Gideon follows Rune onto the gangplank, trusting that boarding the ship is their only chance to avoid arrest and Cressida’s reach.

When the ticket taker sees Rune in her wedding dress and Gideon beside her, he assumes they are newlyweds. Rune leans into the mistake and claims they eloped, forcing Gideon to go along with the lie. The couple boards under Gideon’s name, Mr. and Mrs. Sharpe, but Gideon is alarmed to learn that Rune secured only one third-class cabin. By the end of the chapter, Gideon understands that Rune has once again outplanned him, and their escape now depends on maintaining an intimate cover for the entire three-day voyage.