Chapter 11

Blood and Chains

"Ayden, don't worry, Emmett is on his way, we are going to get you out of this. Just please, can you talk to me?" A groan was all that answered him.

"Ok, can you keep making some kind of noise so that I know you are still alive? I need to know that you are still conscious, don't go to sleep Ayden, ok?"

Ayden groaned again.

"So, let's see…what has happened since Emmett went missing…oh he was at my house by the way, eating some of Sara's apple pie; you remember those, don't you, Ayden?" Her quiet groan told him that she was listening to his story so he continued. "Well, Willow came running to my house and found him. He looked so guilty when she told him you had tried to get up yourself to go find him." Ayden made a noise that sounded almost like a laugh, which made Daniel smile. "Yeah, he felt pretty bad about that. Then…well, then we realized that you were gone and we were all terrified. Emmett and Willow told Sara and me what all had happened since you left and Emmett came up with a plan to save you. I must admit that it was an excellent plan…but it did not involve me getting caught…anyway the rest of it worked well. Both Sara and Willow are outside the city, waiting for us to join them, and Emmett…should be able to find us…"

Everything fell silent for a moment or two and then Daniel remembered that Ayden was supposed to be listening to his story and responding to it.

"Ayden?" he whispered. "Ayden?" No answer met him. "Ayden!?"

...

Emmett could find nothing else about Ayden, so he left the room and tried to find staircases that led down. He crept along the cold, stone walls, following each passageway until he met with a dead end, then turned around and tried another passage. He passed only one guard, and his heart was pounding the entire time.

"Hey, you there! Who are you and what are you doing?" the guard asked.

"I am…the new coroner, I am here to look at the prisoner…" Emmett answered, trying to make his voice sound authoritative.

"Ok. But um…you are going in the wrong direction; the dungeon is the other way, down the west wing hallway. The door is made of oak and it has bars in the window, you can't miss it."

"Oh, great, thanks." Emmett nodded at the guard and went in the direction he was told.

It wasn't long before he came to the door that was described to him and he slowly opened it. Realizing there was no guard in the room, he descended the stairs; but half way down, a terrible thought hit him. The guard believed his story about him being a coroner…did that mean Ayden was…? He couldn't allow himself to think the words. Steeling himself for whatever met him at the bottom of the stairs, he continued downward. As he neared the last few steps, he heard a fain sobbing and a man quietly calling Ayden's name. Emmett ran down the stairs but came to a quick halt as he saw the sight before him.

"Daniel!" he called, and ran towards the man on the ground. "What happened to you?" his hands moved gingerly around Daniel's chest that was covered in blood, careful not to touch him because he was afraid of hurting him.

"That's not my blood, son…" Daniel nodded to the net above him and Emmett looked up.

"What…what is it?" he asked.

"Ayden."

…

"Do you think they will be able to get Ayden out?" Willow asked Sara as they traveled down the road.

"Of course, you don't have anything to worry about. Daniel is highly trusted and Emmett is…extremely motivated."

"Yeah, I think he's in love with her."

"As do I, but I still can't get used to the idea of her with someone else besides William…"

"I know, I can't believe he's gone. They were the perfect couple, and so in love."

"Let's try not to bring it up, for both their sakes, ok sweetie?"

"I never dreamed about bringing it up, but why for both their sakes?" Willow asked, confused.

"Well, Ayden – I'm sure – is not over William. It probably still really hurts her. And if Emmett is truly interested in Ayden like we think he is, then it would only hurt his chances with her if we bring her husband up." Sara explained.

"Oh, I understand."

The women road on in silence for a while and eventually they came upon the agreed upon meeting spot.

"So what now?" Willow inquired. "How long do we wait?"

"No time limits, dear. We just wait."

…

Emmett was in shock. They had come so far and had tried so hard to rescue Ayden, and now it seemed hopeless.

"She's not…she's alive, right?" Emmett hesitated to ask.

"Ayden? Can you hear me?"
"I don't know, she's lost a lot of blood…but she was slightly conscious only moments ago. Quick, find a way to get her down. Rupert probably had her throat cut and hung upside down so that she would loose it all…we need to at least make her level."

Before Daniel could finish speaking, Emmett started figuring out a way to get Ayden down.

"Can you stand up?" he asked the old man.

"My hands and feet are bound…do you have anything to cut them?" Bending down, Emmett cut Daniel's bonds.

"I can't think of any way to get her down besides just cutting the net. The rafters are to high to actually untie her. But if I cut the ropes, I am going to need you here to catch her. I don't want her falling and breaking anything. Do you think you can do that?"

"Son, I wish I could, but – no offence to Ayden – I cannot hold that much dead weight anymore. How about I cut and you catch?"

"That works." Emmett handed Daniel the knife and grabbed Ayden. "How are we going to get out of here now?"

"There is a way out through the kings private hunting grounds. The way there is actually through the dungeon. Rupert brings the animals he kills in here so the prisoners have to smell the death." Daniel began cutting the ropes that bound Ayden to the rafters as he explained this to Emmett. "We can go out that way. The place is never watched and Rupert only hunts in the early morning. We will have a couple extra days to travel through the forest though, before we will be able to get back to Sara and Willow. Do you think she can make it?" Emmett held on dearly to the netted girl as he considered the journey.

"If she is still alive, then she is surly fighting with all her power to stay that way. She is strong…I believe she can make it." He grunted as her full weight fell into his arms when Daniel cut the last of the ropes holding her to the ceiling. He laid her on the ground and unraveled her from the net. He started at her feet, taking in every detail as it came into view. She had no shoes on her feet, and as the net came up farther, her torso was revealed. Her knife wound was still visible, but not as bad as he remembered. Next, he saw that her arms were streaked with blood, but from what, he did not know. He held his breath as he pulled the net over her face, afraid of what he might see. He saw the gash in her neck and there was blood covering almost every inch of her pale face. He quickly took his shirt off and wrapped it snugly but gently around her neck then leaned over to check her breathing. He heard a faint breath escaping from her lips and he breathed a sigh of relief. Staring at her for a moment, he gently picked her up and turned to Daniel, who stood watching him.

"Where do we go?" Emmett asked.

Without a word, Daniel turned and led Emmett through the dungeon to a door that led to an open field. Motioning for Emmett to stop, he stepped out to check the surroundings, making sure that no one was watching the field. Confident that they were alone, Daniel nodded to his companion and they made their way across the open area towards the woods.