An Unexpected Encounter
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Note: Trust me…We're gettin' places!
Chapter 15 – Cleverly Sneaky
"So you're married to that old bag, huh?"
"Jim! He's not that old…but yeah, I am."
"Well, he's at least old enough to be your father. That's kinda gross, Lil." Jim took in a bite of chicken.
"I know it sounds bad, but I really didn't have a choice in the matter. Besides, I felt good about myself at the time. I felt I was doing something right. I was helping him out, Jim…I helped make Quarlia what it is today."
Jim continued to munch on one chicken bone after another until he was satisfied, and showed it with pride. *Burp*
Lily made a face of disgust. "Jim!! That's gross, boy!"
Jim laughed aloud. "Oh, sorry…I forgot you were around. You know, Gene and I always get into these burping contests and whatnot when no one else is around. It's actually pretty funny."
Lily was dumbfounded. "You and Gene?"
"Yeah…Lily, do you know where he is?"
Not really knowing what to say or whether or not she should tell Jim the truth, Lily responded, "I—No, I don't know where he is."
Jim grew anxious and more and more curious, "But I'm sure there's a way for you to find out right? Please Lily. Aside from you, he means the world to me. He's the only family I ever knew after I was separated from you, Mom, and Dad. He saved me from pirates and took me in, and brought me up. Sure, he gets on my nerves sometimes, but that happens among siblings all the time. Lil, he's like a brother to me; a brother that I can't lose."
Lily was in shock. All along, she had thought that Gene had been Jim's kidnapper, but she was wrong. At that point, she felt like she owed him her life. Shit. All of those bad things I said to Gene earlier…I take them back. I didn't know…Well, there's only one thing left to do. Set things right! I have to get the poor guy out of prison. "I didn't know, Jim…I promise you. I will do everything in my power to get Gene out of harm's way."
"So you'll talk to the old man?"
"Yeah…it's a promise…It's gettin' late though. I think I wanna go to bed now, if you don't mind. I've had a really long day, Jim. I'm sure you have too."
"Actually, yeah it has been. I think I'll be heading to bed too." Jim collected himself off of one of Lily's antique sofas. "It's great to see you again, Lil. I thought this would never happen…" Jim wrapped his arms around Lily and began to sob.
"Oh, Jim, you're going to make me cry too. I'm so glad you're here with me."
"So am I. I just hope that this is not a dream that I'll wake up from in a few hours."
"Believe me, it's not. I'm the real thing, and I promise you. We won't get separated again. I'm here to take care of you."
"Me too, Lil. I'm here for you, too…and once you find out where Gene, things'll get even better."
Two hours later…
While everyone slept, Lily snuck out of her room like a smooth thief on a mission to get one thing. She had with her, a long, warm blanket, some leftovers from dinner, and a bottle of Quarlia's finest wine. Okay, maybe I'm goin' a lil overboard with the wine here, but who cares…the man deserves it, right? No, I'm sure he deserves more; at least from the way Jim was making it sound. Ugh, what am I doing? As she made her way down the long corridor to the other side of the palace, she contemplated on whether or not she was doing the right thing. Maybe I should turn around now and deal with this tomorrow? Na, I can't. I promised the man that I would come back later…plus, I'm almost there.
When Lily reached the prison entrance, she found that the same guard she had spoken to earlier had still been there. "Your highness? What are you doing here at this hour? It is too late for you to be wondering alone here."
"Yes, I know, Leo. But I made a promise to the prisoner that I would return tonight."
"Why would you do that my Queen?"
"Please do not question me, Leo…Just lead me to him."
"Of course, your highness."
Lily noticed that even most of the prisoners were asleep as she made her way up to the dungeon where Gene was being held. When she finally reached her destination, Leo opened the door for her. "Thank you, Leo. You may leave me now. I will call for you when I wish to leave."
"Yes, my lady." Leo placed two torches on opposite sides of the dungeon doorway so that Lily may have some visibility. After doing so, he closed the door and stood guard in front of it, waiting for Lily to call him back. As she entered, she placed her gifts underneath one of the torches and next to the dungeon entrance.
"So…you've come back."
Lily nodded, but then realized that Gene probably didn't see her so she said, "Yeah."
"Why?"
"I promised I would…didn't I?"
Gene stood up and moved closer to Lily. "Well, I see you're a woman of your word…you just couldn't resist, could ya?" Gene's eyes lit up as he used his charm to try and get some answers.
Why does my heart feel like it wants to pop out of my chest? "I—I've brought you some things…I've left them by the doorway. Do with them as you please."
Gene looked over and saw his new collection of bare necessities. He poked fun at it. "You won't get in trouble for bringing that here, now, would you?"
Lily sighed and turned her back on Gene. "Please, don't make this any harder."
"Girl, I don't even know why I'm here. My only concerns are my people and whether or not they're safe."
"They're fine. You need not worry about them…you've had it the worst…But Gene, I must go now. I can't be here any longer."
Lily began to walk away, but Gene grabbed her by the arm; he didn't yank her as Rume had done to her so many times but he gave her a gentle tug as if he was making amends. He was trying to reason with her. "Please, I need some answers. I need to know what's going on."
"You will know with time, Gene…but I have to go now." Lily looked at him reassuringly.
He spoke softly, pleading with her. "At least tell me your name."
"It's…Lily." And with that she called for Leo and left Gene with the words in his mouth.
Gene gathered everything that Lily had brought him and took them to the other side of the cell. He spread the blanket out in front of the wall and began to eat like there was no tomorrow. This is actually pretty good…But wine? Talk about royal treatment in a cell…Yeah right! This is probably the only good thing I'll get while I'm here…dunno why she would bring me such a thing though…Lily…that's a pretty name. Maybe she's not so bad after all.
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