Chapter 17- Escape from the Palace
Between the three of them, Henry is best suited to sprint from the palace to the forest. About three-quarters of the way there, Jude begins wheezing a bit, but he keeps going until they duck into a clump of bushes a few yards past where the trees begin.
All three of them- especially Charlotte and Jude- are out of breath. Their vision begins adjusting to the darkness- the full moon provides some light, but the bushes and branches block most of it, which makes it harder for them to see, but that also means anyone looking for them will have a harder time spotting them. Even so, this cover is in no way full proof, but they need to catch their breath.
After a couple minutes of sitting there, trying to steady their breathing, they feel a little bit better, and Charlotte asks Jude if Adela would be meeting them.
"No," he says breathily. "The Queen- wheeze- God save her- wheeze- is going a separate way. The fewer people per per party- wheeze- the harder it'll be for someone to catch us."
After another minute of breathing, Jude stands up again. "We need to keep going- but we can't just keep running, it would be too risky. We'll have to just keep starting and stopping, at least for now."
Jude leads them through the forest. On occasion, he would stop to listen for any sounds, or warn Charlotte about an upcoming tree root that was easy to trip over. They continuously duck behind trees, or bushes, and at some point, Charlotte almost pricks her finger on a torn- sure enough, the forest bushes are filled with naturally occurring roses that had been left untouched by people.
With the slow pace and all the stoping and starting, it had to be over an hour before a small shack came into view. It looks like it hadn't been tended to in any way for years, but Jude is quick to assure that it was perfectly stable.
The shack is only as long as a twin bed, the ceiling only high enough for them to sit. It has four solid walls, but no floor; just the ground, a patch of grass that had long since died, being unable to catch any sunlight or water. The wall to Henry's right has a small hole in it, barley big enough to use as a peephole. The only way to get in is through a small door that had to be crawled through, like a doggy door, but without the flap. A small bush provides the entrance with some cover, but not much.
"Careful," says Jude as he ushers them inside. "This is the one Ray saw that we already investigated. It had been almost forgotten about, and the guy who dusted for fingerprints said that-"
"Ow!"
"-the wood is very splintered." As soon as Henry and Charlotte are inside, they sit against the wall, breathing heavily. "We shouldn't stay here too long."
"Who were they?" Charlotte asks. "The people who have Kelilah?"
"God save her. The people I overheard talking are two women, Jean Marie and Daphne Delacroix. Their husbands work in the palace as guards- this entire operation has been right under our noses the whole time- all I heard them say was that Deven- Jean Marie's husband- was the one who first realized that Kelilah had a double- only of course, they think Kelilah is the double, so they're partially wrong on that count."
"What else?"
"Daphne Delacroix mentioned spotting you a few times throughout the party and said something about 'having a chat' with her husband. That's all I picked up; if they said whether Kelilah was still alive or not, it was before I was close enough to hear them. Ray was only a few feet away, keeping an eye on you guys from a distance, so I approached him first and told him to get the Queen, God save her, to safety while I hid you two."
"Why didn't we just stay in the secret room?" Henry asks.
"They've been inside the palace this whole time, Henry! We don't know who leaked information, so we can't trust anyone. The guards already knew about every other structural secret the palace has, and they may have found out about the new secret room. Our best option was and still is to flee."
"What about Adela?"
"I don't know what her plan is, but Sam and Ray will keep her safe. Sam has been with the guard as long as I've been tutoring Kelilah. They'll take care of the Queen, God save her."
"So we just wait?" Henry says, looking around the small shack. The wood is splintered in several places, and there's a nail sticking out of the wall. "How will we know when we can move?"
"One of us will have to go back and see what the situation is- whether they've noticed you're gone or not. Obviously, you're not doing it Charlotte-"
"You got that right."
"And I'm staying with her," says Henry, and Charlotte feels a rush of affection for him.
"Of course," says Jude. "So I'll go. I'm well-known throughout the palace as a good friend's of Kelilah's, in addition to be being er tutor, so no one will find my presence there suspicious. I don't know what state the party will be in when I get there, but if I'm questioned, I'll tell them some strawberry got into my food, so I had to rush to the toilets and missed all the fun- I'm got a mild strawberry allergy," he adds in response to Charlotte and Henry's questioning looks. "All the cooks know, I had my first reaction at the palace. But that's a long story for another time." He stands up, brushing dirt and dead grass off of his suit. "Stay here, I should be back soon. When I get back, we'll go to the next island over- there's a small castle that the royal family used to live in, but it was attacked and is just ruins. We can hide out there. But stay here until I get back." Without another word, he ducks out of the shack, leaving Henry and Charlotte alone.
After Jude leaves, Henry and Charlotte sit there in silence. The idea of someone finding them lingered over their heads like the sword of Damocles. As minutes tick by, instead of relaxing, they only because more afraid. At some point, though, fatigue takes over both of them and they both fall asleep, right there in the shack. Jude hadn't given any sort of time frame, but it had to have been at least another hour when Henry and Charlotte both hear a twig snap.
*giggles as she hides Easter Eggs*
Happy Reading!