Chapter 21: Run

MARJORIE'S POV

I came back at sunset. I twirled and danced barefoot through the trees, singing my little rhyme:

Girls and boys, come out to play,
The moon is shining as bright as day.

Leave your supper, and leave your sleep,
And come with your playfellows into the street-

I was cut off when I entered my hiding place. Where were my dollies, my Princess?

You stupid girl! They're gone.

How could you let them go? How could you be so idiotic!

You deserve to be punished for your mistake!

I screamed out, but the voices only got louder, shouting at me, screaming horrible things in my head. I grabbed my ears and squeezed them shut, but they still didn't stop.

"Stop it!" I squealed at them. "I'll get them back, I will!" I shrieked.

You better, girl!

If you don't…

You will pay.

I let out another scream as the words echoed in my mind. Those girls would pay for upsetting us. They would pay severely…

MARIA'S POV

My eyes flashed open at the sound of the shrill, menacing scream. The sound sent horrible chills down my body and I instantly knew who the sound belonged to. I sat up with a jolt and turned to Evangeline. I shook her awake frantically.

"Get up," I pleaded when she opened her eyes. "She knows, Evangeline. We have to go!" She sat up as well.

"What do you mean 'she knows'?" she asked.

"I heard her," I said quickly. I stood and helped her up into a standing position.

"What do we do?" she whispered in a panicky tone.

"We run," I stated, taking her hand in mine and pulling her into the pathway that Robin and I had taken after finding the Moon Pearls. We trailed down the stony pathway quickly but carefully, approaching the tiny door that led to the Hideaway in the tree. I felt along the wall in the blackness, searching for the lever that would open the door. Finally, I felt the horse's head and pulled down. With a loud groan, the lever moved and the wooden door flung open. "Get in, quickly." I ordered. She crouched and entered through the door. I crawled in behind her and closed the door behind me.

"We have to get home," Evangeline said. "I miss Marcus and Miss Finnegan and the Boys…"

"We'll be home soon, I promise," I cut her off. "We're closer than you think, Evangeline."

There was a loud thud against the trap door and we froze. The Girl let out a growl, giving her away. Our eyes grew wide and I squeezed Evangeline's hand.

"Come out to play, girlies," Marjorie said in a singsong voice.

"What do we do?" Evangeline whispered.

"Follow me," I said. I pulled her through the other door, through the dark walkway, and into the forest.

"This Valley never ceases to amaze me," she commented. I smiled lightly and we ran through the forest, toward De Noir Castle…

ROBIN'S POV

It had been three days, three days without Maria, three days without sleep. I studied her bracelet, rolling it around in my fingers. That witch would pay for taking My Maria from me.

"Ready to go, Rob?" Marc said, entering my bedroom with a fresh, loaded gun. He had black circles around his eyes as well. He hadn't stopped moving for a second since we lost the girls.

"Sure," I said, pulling my gun and knife out of my weapon case. We were about to go on another search with our party to find Maria and Evangeline.

We left the castle and went to the stables to saddle our horses. Tony and Danny were confined to their rooms, healing from their injuries inflicted by the Girl from the woods. Father was in his study, mapping out the possible areas for Maria to be held. Finnegan was tending to our friends and the servant boy-Fabian- was assisting my father with the maps. Marc and I were running on little sleep, but neither of us cared.

"Robin!" Someone shouted from above us. I looked up to the soldier in the tower, who in turn pointed toward the tree line. Marc and I followed his gaze and watched, waited. To heads of blonde hair emerged from the Forest: Maria and Evangeline. They were running, running from an unseen threat. Marc looked at me, I back at him. Then, we bolted toward the girls as fast as we could. We ran and ran and ran, my lungs screaming in protest.

MARIA'S POV

I looked up as we broke through the trees, searching for familiar faces from atop the hill. The sight I saw urged my legs to run faster than ever: Robin was running toward me too. I squeezed Evangeline's hand to encourage her to run faster.

"Come on," I coaxed. "We're almost there." I added, talking to myself more than her.

"Maria," Robin shouted, coming to a stop. "Run!" He pointed behind us. I dared a looked back, and saw what the threat was: Marjorie was emerging from the trees, a fierce look on her face. I turned back around and ran as faster as I could manage, Evangeline matching every step I took with equal speed. Only a few yards left, I kept telling myself.

Finally, I reached Robin, flinging myself into his arms. Evangeline fell into Marcus's grasp, leaning into him exhaustedly. I wrapped my arms around Robin's neck and he grabbed my waist, pulling me close to him. For a moment, I felt safe. I caught my breath and turned around. Marjorie was still advancing, snarling like an animal and bearing her teeth. We backed away from her fearfully and turned and ran back to the safety of the castle…

LOVEDAY'S POV

I paced back and forth in my old bedroom, biting my lip nervously. My baby brother and Marcus had gone out to search for Maria and Evangeline, the poor girls surely afraid and alone. Benjamin stood with a huff, walking over to me and wrapping his arms around my waist to still me.

"Come now, love," he said. "Those boys are out there looking for the girls. There's nothing we can do but wait. Pacing will only burn a whole in the carpet." He joked. I grimaced at his joke, not finding any humor in this situation.

"Do you not understand the severity of this situation?" I snapped.

"Of course I do," he replied, rubbing my shoulders to calm me. I looked out the window and watched the sky. Then, something caught my eye. I stepped out of my husband's hold and moved to get a closer look. I leaned against the window sill, looking down at the ground. Four people were running toward the castle, a fifth person running out of the trees and following after them. I squinted my eyes to look closer and made out two heads of thick, blonde hair.

"Benjamin, look," I said. He approached me from behind and followed me gaze.

"Is that…?"

"Maria!" I cried, turning and running down to the entrance to meet them.

~ICanHearThemToo~