Link reeled at the very thought. Letting a criminal out of jail would immediately, and most likely permanently, mark him as a criminal. Impossible, he thought. If I get caught…
"Then don't get caught," Dren said.
Link jumped. He hadn't realized that he'd spoken aloud. "Wha... what?" he stammered.
"Don't get caught," the thief repeated, this time with a hint of annoyance. "Look, no one's guarding me. If no one's outside, you just come and open the door for me. The key's inside."
Link froze. He just couldn't leave Dren to rot in the jail, but helping him would go against the tribe's laws. He was paralyzed with indecision.
But Dren had a point. The only thing stopping him was the thought of having the tribe turn against him. If no one knew, well, no one could blame him.
Link looked around, trying to look inconspicuous. The streets were empty and nearby buildings were dark. He rushed to the door and opened it quickly. A loud squeak issued from the hinges. Link flinched and glanced about. The street was still empty. He sighed, very relieved that no one had heard.
Leaving the door open, the hylian shuffled in. In the darkness of the jail, he couldn't see much. And he certainly didn't know where to look for the keys.
Dren helped him there. "The keys are beside the door… to your right, I believe," he whispered, understanding Link's need for silence.
Link nodded. He felt along the wall until he felt a hook. Dangling from it was a hoop, and on the hoop were five metal keys. Link grabbed it and blindly stumbled to the bars.
He tried three of the keys before finally coming up with the one that opened the jail door. As soon as the lock was off, Dren pushed the door open and slipped out.
"Thanks a load, Link," he whispered as he dashed out of the jail. The hylian followed, pausing only to close and lock the door and hang the keys back on the hook as quietly as possible.
Outside, Dren was already halfway down the street. It was one of the ones the hylian had been planning on taking on his way home. Link decided it would be a good idea to distance himself from the thief. He turned the other way. A little detour wouldn't hurt.
If it weren't for the gerudo standing in his way.
Link could almost feel his heart fall into his stomach. There goes any chance of getting away, he thought.
Before the hylian could speak, she laughed loudly. "I had a feeling you'd do something stupid, brother. I just didn't know how stupid. Just talking with him was bad enough."
Gerina! Link could hardly believe it. She… she followed me! He cringed. Damn. Not good. She'll make it seem like I murdered someone!
Gerina started towards him. Link couldn't move. He didn't know what to do. Somehow, it all felt surreal.
"Run, you idiot!" Dren yelled from way behind him. "RUN!"
That snapped Link back to reality. He turned on his heel and did exactly as the thief told him to. He ran like he'd never run before. The buildings went by him in a flash. Link didn't even know where he was going. He knew Gerina was running after him; she kept yelling at him, though Link didn't bother to listen to her words.
Suddenly, he was in front of the stables.
"Dezra," the hylian panted. "Must get Dezra. Must get away. As fast as possible."
Link stumbled to his camel's stall. He hadn't realized how tired he had become. Clumsily, Link opened her stall and got on her unsaddled back. It felt odd, like sitting on the down slope of a steep hill, but Link was just glad to be riding her. She was the fastest camel in all of Katigura.
Grabbing the reins, Link whistled, and Dezra responded by standing up. As soon as she did, the hylian spurred her to move. The camel strode across the stables with a long, loping gait. They were on the street and galloping towards the gate within seconds.