Running down the long, bare halls, Clive was finding a place to hide. A roar of anger sounded behind him, he knew that he was in deep trouble this time. Clive found a wardrobe and crammed himself in there. Contemplating what he had just done made him smile. He rescued flora. He took her away from this dreadful place and sent her abroad to Luke's real family.
The door to his hiding place was wrenched open. Clive could see the seething face of a once beloved professor. Now all he saw was a smart man who adopted him, Luke and flora, plus ended up running the whole country. He had to call him smart. In one week layton ended up destroying the monarchy and government plus became the dictator of England. You had to be an idiot to see that layton was not cleaver.
Clive was dragged to Layton's study. It was a large room with a desk at one end. In the middle of one of the sides of the room stood an enormous fire place. It was the only source of light in this room when it is dark, otherwise the glass window above the once professors desk would be a source. But right now it was dark. The fire played with everybody's shadows, intimidating petrified mortals.
Clive was thrown to the floor of Layton's study. He tried to stand up, but he was pushed back down to the floor by Layton's walking stick. The stick was either for decoration or for torture, Clive had not decided yet. Layton walked to face the fire.
'I am very disappointed in you, son.' Layton said coldly. He did not face Clive when he spoke.
Clive hated layton calling him son.' I am not your son, and I had to do what I did.'
Layton suddenly turned around and looked at Clive. Fury was shown on parts of his face that the illuminated.
'My sweet flora was safe with me. What makes you say that she was not. You are just a boy, you think that the outside world is full of harm, well it is not now that I am in power. I am smarter than you and know her needs better than you.' Layton paced around Clive. Both boys did not take their eyes off each other.
'You must give me some credit layton.'
Layton hit Clive in the stomach with his stick. 'I told you to call me father.'
Clive was coughing at how hard layton had hit him.
'Fine, you must give me some credit, father. My plan of getting Luke away from you always failed, because you have a strong hold over him, but getting flora out was easy.'
Clive tried to stand up again, but that earned another blow from layton.
'You are pathetic and naive boy.'
Clive looked down at the floor and quietly said what came next.
'I have seen your London, and it is terrible. You kill those who are against you and beat those who are frightened. Your trolls do things against your will. Everybody hates you. That is why I took flora away and keep trying to get Luke away. This is especially why Emmy left you.'
Layton was even more furious. He got his walking stick and violently started to beat Clive with it.
'You can't deny the truth can you, old man.' Clive shouted at layton, but this made layton hit him even harder.
Out of the corner of the room a boy, who looked like a younger version of Clive, ran over to the fight. He grabbed Layton's arm and started to cry.
'Father please, your hurting him. I beg you please stop!'
Layton threw the boy to one side, but the boy landed a bit too near to the fire. His hand landed in it. A scream filled the air. It brought layton to his senses. He stopped beating Clive and picked up the whimpering boy. Clive was covered in his own blood.
Layton rang a little bell and one of his 'servants' came in. Everybody calls them trolls.
'Take Clive to his room and chain him. Also tell someone to get me a first aid kit.'
The troll grabbed Clive around his waist and hurled him over his shoulder.
Clive was shaken awake. The small boy that had stopped the fight was sitting right in front of him. Clive sat up and hugged the small boy.
'Oh Luke. What will we do. At least we got flora to safety.'
Clive looked down at the boy. He knew that Luke would not speak back. Luke had become a mute, only to speak in an emergency. Although he had been saying the odd word to Clive when he felt comfortable, but that was in rare occasions. Poor Luke had become a mute on the day that his parents fled abroad. Clive tried to get Luke to go with them and he would have been successful, if it was not for layton. Clive never found out exactly what layton did to the boy, but it was him who made Luke a mute.
Luke snuggled deeper into Clive. Even if Clive did not call layton father, he would call Luke brother.
Suddenly Luke sat up and got a key out of his pocket. Clive looked confused. Luke picked up the lock to the chain on Clive wrist and tried to unlock it. Clive noticed why Luke was having difficulties. It was due to all the bandages on one of Luke's hand. Clive had forgotten all about how he got it burnt. But he resented how layton would tend to the boy, but chain him up like an animals and not care about his wounds.
Luke and finally unlocked the lock. Clive was free again. First he went to the bathroom to clean himself up. He was covered in cuts and bruises. His ribs were killing him, but he knew that they weren't broken. Layton always knew how beat someone without breaking their bones.
Once Clive had cleaned himself up, he joined Luke in his bedroom again. Once in there Clive decided on another escape plan with him and Luke.
'Luke, I have an idea. Come on this way, and be quiet.'
Clive and Luke went to Clive's window and opened it up. Clive helped Luke out of the window and hoisted himself out. Now they could definitely be free...
