The birds sang overhead as she wandered deep into the woods, and the sun shone sporadically through the thick canopy of tree branches. Her pretty little boots had just been mended after she had worn them out walking, and they were sturdy as she lifted her skirts to climb over rocks and tree roots. The woods meandered down to the melodic river, its little waterfall at one end swollen with the recent rainwater and filtering down through the trees musically. The river wound all the way from the Seymour estate to their new neighbour’s, then on down to the ocean, a mile away on the coast. Even from here one could smell the scent, and Susanna suddenly longed to swim in the sea. Never mind, the river would do as well. If it wasn’t too cold, she could remove her boots and stockings and paddle in the shallow water. She grinned at the fit her mother would have if she knew. Brushing through the trees, she came upon the river and stopped dead as a sound hit her ears.
