Chapter 16
"Why are they keeping me here?"
"What have I done?"
Millions of thoughts were buzzing through Rinoa's head, trying to make sense of the situation she had found herself in.
"Where did they take him? He didn't even do anything wrong."
"How could I have done this to him? I've brought him nothing but pain and heartache."
She slumped down against the wall until she was sat on the cold, dirty floor, her head resting in her hands.
"Squall," she uttered, hoping that by saying his name, everything would miraculously right itself, and she would be reunited with him.
"It's no use," the nearby guard told her, a malicious smile spreading across his face. "You won't be seeing him again."
"You're enjoying this aren't you?" she retorted with as much spite as she could muster, refusing to let her spirit be broken.
"And why shouldn't I be? It's about time Leonhart screwed up, and I'm so glad I'm here to see it."
"What have you got against him?"
"He always got promoted ahead of me, compared to him, everybody thought I was second best, not quite good enough, nowhere near as perfect as the mighty Leonhart," he screamed, bitterly. "And now, with you here, he's had his first true taste of happiness, and I get to see it ripped from him."
"What do you mean?"
"I'm under strict orders to keep him well away from you. Hopefully, he'll be there when we hand you back to Caraway, though. I can't wait to see the moment when his heart is torn in two."
Rinoa was about to reply, when another man entered the room, dressed in SeeD uniform.
"The Headmaster wants to see you right away, Sir," the SeeD announced to the guard.
"Did he say it was urgent?" he asked impatiently.
"Yes, Sir."
""Fine," he sighed, resigning himself to the fact that he would have to leave. "Do me a favour will you? Watch her for me." He motioned towards Rinoa. "Don't let anybody near her, understand?"
"Yes, Sir."
Rinoa breathed a sigh of relief as the footsteps of the guard echoed away into nothingness, until she was certain that he was gone.
"Ignore him. He acts too tough."
"Excuse me?" Rinoa asked the newly arrived SeeD.
"That's Simmons. He's always acting as if he's the boss. I'm guessing by your reaction, he said something to you."
"Yeah," she replied, feigning a smile.
"So, what did you do to get put in here?"
"What? He doesn't know?" she thought.
"You there?" he asked, concerned about the overly long pause in answering his question.
"I'm not really sure, they didn't tell me."
"That's harsh," he replied. "Well if you don't know, it can't be too serious. I'm sure you'll be out of here soon."
"Thanks," she muttered. It was then that she noticed the sound of footsteps coming down the corridor, ever closer.
"Great. He's back," she thought, hoping against hope that she wouldn't have to face Simmons again. To her shock and relief, however, the figure in the doorway was not one that she had expected to see.
"Squall."
"Sir," announced the SeeD as he rode to his feet, saluting. This reaction seemed to surprise Squall slightly, but did not throw him off guard.
"I believe the prisoner to be in danger. I need to move her to a safe place," Squall told him.
"But, Sir. I'm under orders not to let anybody near her," he protested.
"Are you arguing with me?" The look on Squall's face was enough to strike fear into the heart of any mortal, and this man was obviously no exception. "Of…of course not, Sir," he stuttered. "You may move her right away."
"Thank you." Squall unlocked the door to Rinoa's cell and led her outside. When they had safely left the detention centre, Rinoa began to question Squall.
"What in Hyne's name is going on?"
"Quistis told the Headmaster that you were untrustworthy and had made up the story about Caraway wanting to be rid of SeeD."
"Quistis? You're sure?"
"I have a very good idea."
"What happened to you?"
"Basically, I was removed from SeeD."
"But if you're not a SeeD anymore, how did you just persuade that guard to let me go?"
"The Headmaster's trying to keep this as low profile as possible. Most people don't know about it yet."
"So what are we going to do, just walk out of here?"
"That's the plan."
It had almost been too easy to escape Garden. Headmaster Cid had told so few people that even the gate guard didn't have a clue about Squall's demotion. He had just been able to walk through the gate and head towards Balamb. As soon as they were a safe distance from Garden, they had begun to run, seeking shelter in the town. Squall knew that it would only be a matter of time before the alarm was sounded and their disappearance was known. His biggest worry was that they would not make it to Balamb in time, as they were sitting ducks on the path into town, and an easy target for any SeeD search party. He breathed a sigh of relief as they made it to the Balamb Hotel without being found and dragged back to Garden.
"I'd like to book a room please, for tonight," Squall told the receptionist.
"What name is it, please?"
"Davidson," he replied without hesitation. "It's Mr and Mrs Davidson." Rinoa glanced at him in shock at his last statement, before realising that it was nothing more than a cover story. It didn't mean anything.
"How will you be paying, Sir?"
"Cash," Squall replied, handing over a large wad of notes from his back pocket.
"Thank you very much. Here is your room key, Number 33. Enjoy your stay."
"Are you mad?" asked Rinoa, as soon as they were out of earshot. "We're hiding in the most obvious place."
"That's the whole point," replied Squall. "Be patient. You'll see."
"Where is she?" screamed Simmons, furiously, at the top of his voice.
"I was ordered to release her, Sir, as it was feared that her life was in danger." His reply was somewhat nervous.
"Who gave that order?"
"It was Commander Leonhart, Sir."
"Leonhart? It was Leonhart?" Simmons was fuming with anger. "You'll be demoted so much for this, you'll soon be addressing the cleaners as Sir."
"You're sure Leonhart has her?" asked the Headmaster.
"Yes, sir. He ordered her release from the detention centre."
"Maybe I should have made more people aware of the situation," he pondered. "I just didn't expect Squall to pull a stunt like this."
"Well, Sir. Maybe you'll have to admit that your decision to promote him was incorrect."
"Are you challenging my judgement, Simmons?"
"No, Sir," he replied.
"Good, because you won't like what happens to SeeDs that do, have I made myself clear?"
"Yes, Sir," he muttered.
"Good. Now how long ago did this happen?"
"Over an hour ago, Sir."
"That means we won't be able to catch them before they leave Balamb. It's likely that they're already half way to Galbadia. Squall would try and get as far away as possible, widen the search area for us and increase the likelihood that they would be able to slip through the net. Yes, that would be the most logical thing to do."
"We'll launch Garden then?"
"I'm afraid that that's not possible at the moment. Critical maintenance is currently underway on the flight systems. We won't be able to leave for a while. I'll contact Galbadia Garden, ask them to send out a search team. In the meantime, could you go and inform the maintenance crews that they need to work around the clock. We have to leave as soon as possible."
"Yes, sir."