In a wave of fury Myrna pushed herself up and ran towards the door, but Baelish wrapped his arms around Myrna and forced her back inside the room.
"You must remain calm, Myrna..." Baelish interrupted and let go of her once she was well inside her bedchamber again.
"No!" Myrna barked back but despite her words she did take a few baby steps backwards and fixed her hair. The handmaiden that abandoned her that morning stood in the middle of the doorway staring at her. "If this woman had only done her job then maybe my nose wouldn't have been smashed against the ground!" she hollered.
Myrna knew her nose was the least of her problems. After yelling, she had felt slightly lighter. Her shoulders relaxed and she peered down at the ground as she rubbed her forehead. Baelish was kind enough to put a hand on her shoulder and speak warmly to her. "I apologize for this morning. I truly do," he told her.
"Why are you apologizing?" Myrna asked as she moved her eyes from the floor and to his face.
"This handmaiden here used to be one of my best girls. She is now using her talents to help me inside the castle walls instead of outside them," he gave a quick glimpse to the woman and she smiled back in an almost alluring manner. That had been the first time Myrna saw her change her expression. "So, technically she still belongs to me but let's keep that between us three," he returned his mischievous gaze to Myrna.
There was only one reason for Baelish to be here, so Myrna did not wait another moment. "I have no idea how to speak with Sansa. Our plan isn't going to work," she said.
It was as if Baelish did not hear the words coming out of her mouth. Instead he smiled, and as he slid his hand off of Myrna's shoulder he walked towards her handmaiden. "Her nose should be checked. Would you please escort her to Maester Pycelle's chambers?" he gave an order and the handmaiden nodded her head as he exited.
"With me, my lady," the handmaiden awaited Myrna near the door where she stood.
When Myrna left her room she saw Baelish hurrying off down the opposite way they were walking. It was unlike him, but Myrna focused on where she was heading now. Not one word was spoken between her and the handmaiden. Myrna kept her arms crossed the entire way, not walking too close or too far from her. It was not too far from her own bedchamber when they stopped and the handmaiden knocked on the door and opened it. She held the door open and waited for Myrna, almost impatiently. A deep sigh came out of Myrna's mouth and she uncrossed her arms while stepping inside the room.
A dry cough came from a back corner, but Myrna could not see who was there and when she turned the handmaiden disappeared and the door gently closed behind her. For a second she stood there not sure what to do and anxiety made her feel paralyzed. A musty smell filled the room and there was dust along the tables that held small and large potions and salves of all colors. Facing inside the room again after finding the motivation to move she saw a bed to her right against the wall and someone was laying down. When she moved in to see who it was she felt a familiar pang of anger and jealousy. Sansa was taken here as well but she was no longer in her wedding gown and was dressed down in a loose beige dress with fluted sleeves. Baelish knew about this, Myrna came to the realization as she took a few more steps toward the young lady.
Her eyes were closed. Myrna wondered if it would be alright to wake the girl up. Quietly, she found herself a spot on the bed to sit on but once she did an old man's voice spoke up from the back of the room. The old man that helped Sansa when she fainted was slowly making his way towards them. Pycelle was his name, if Myrna remembered correctly. "Is there, uh, something I can help you with my dear?" he asked with his voice croaking.
"I wanted to make sure Sansa was doing well," Myrna lied. She did not want this old man to touch her face now that she thought about it. Besides, it feels like that was not the true reason Baelish sent her here but it was probably for the best to keep his name out of it.
Pycelle blinked rapidly and slightly groaned as he seemed to be making up his mind on what to say. "I... I am glad you are here, in fact. A meeting was called for the council so if you would please... Just keep that girl company. Be sure not to wake her up if you can. I will send for someone if I cannot make it back on time," he had already begun shuffling towards the door. Myrna feared the man wouldn't even make it out the door, but he did and now she had been left alone with Sansa.
Sitting on the edge of Sansa's bed proved to be very boring. Myrna decided this was a waste of time, but did not know what else to do. She began tracing her finger up and down the bandages on her injured hand. When she saw a tiny knife sitting near some of the potions on a dusty table she considered trying to take the bandages off. Something rustled behind her which cut her train of thought. Sansa's legs moved and Myrna peeked over her shoulder.
"Is he gone?" Sansa pushed herself up, looking wide awake.
Myrna narrowed her eyebrows. "You're not sleeping?" she asked in a surprised tone.
The pretty red haired girl shook her head and eyed the door. "He's not coming back, you think? Baelish said the plan won't work if he decides to come back..." she slowly stopped talking when she saw Myrna grow angry.
"What in seven hells are you talking about? You're not supposed to know anything," Myrna became flustered thinking she was double crossed.
"At breakfast this morning before the wedding I spoke with The Hound and he managed to pass along what you told him one evening," Sansa muttered. "Then Petyr Baelish had a word with me right before the wedding. I knew what I had to do to make the best of my circumstances..."
"Hold on. When you fainted... that was just for show?" Myrna stood up from the bed and it made Sansa sit up straight, alerted by Myrna's reaction.
"Please," Sansa held out her hands. "There must be a reason for both of us to have ended up here so please keep it down. Someone may hear us..." she gently pleaded.
Crossing her arms over her chest, Myrna began pacing around the room feeling angry and confused. "So... all of this was set up!? You pretended to be ill while I get my face bashed in by the Mountain so we can end up here?" Myrna spoke as she thought. Not fair, she left that part inside her mind. Simply not fair. Why must I endure actual pain?
"I think it will be happening soon," Sansa put strength in her voice so she would get across to Myrna. "Also, I am sorry about your face..." she sounded sincere.
"You mean us being taken away?" Myrna let her arms fall to her side and she faced Sansa. "You truly think so?"
Sansa swung her legs off the edge of the bed and smoothed out the wrinkles in the skirt of her dress from lying down. "Why else would Baelish have set this up?" she asked.
"That would make sense," she felt more hopeful now and the two of them had nothing else to say.
Soon the quiet in the room became awkward. Sansa held her hands on her lap like a lady but her eyes wandered around the room. Myrna crossed her arms again and paced slowly around. She eyed the knife again, and went to pick it up but put it back down when she saw Sansa gulp. Underneath her bandages her skin was becoming itchy. Taking the bandages off sounded wonderful but she wanted to wait until she was sure it was healed. Then she walked towards the window where the sunlight was filtered through muck on the window. It had not been washed in ages.
"What else did you two talk about?" Myrna abruptly asked, not enjoying the silence.
The girl paused before answering. "Me and who?"
"You and... The Hound," she elaborated.
"Honestly... that's all we talked about," Sansa answered.
Myrna wanted to ask more, but a noise from outside the walls kept her mouth closed. In the distance the sound of bells ringing echoed throughout the city. Myrna and Sansa stared at one another. Her green eyes were filled with fear. When the bells rung that was never good news for the people inside Kings Landing. A clash of footsteps suddenly came down the hallway but went past the room they were in. Knights were in a rush to get somewhere, and when Myrna decided to try to go out and see Sansa made a fuss. "No! Keep the door closed," she ordered but Myrna did not listen. She cracked the door open and peeked out but nothing was to be seen. Literally nothing. Every knight that had been posted inside the corridor was gone.
"No one is out there," Myrna told Sansa as she continued to peer out. "No, wait..."
There was movement down on one end of the corridor, she noticed right after she spoke. It was too far to see what it was, but as it grew closer she saw it looked like a person but they were draped in black. Sansa was speaking behind her, but Myrna was too busy trying to figure out who this was. They looked ominous, and their speed seemed to quicken as they drew nearer. Sharply she slammed the door and locked it. When she twirled around to look at Sansa she saw the girl went from afraid to terrified. "What is out there?" she stammered.
"We need to keep quiet," Myrna whispered and she gently grabbed the girl's arm and pulled her towards the back of the room. Before they even made it to the back wall three loud booming knocks came from outside the door. They faced the door and kept walking back until they both were pushing their backs against a cold wall. Another three knocks banged against the door, and she felt Sansa jump as they were now holding onto one another. Their eyes were locked on the old door, afraid of what lied on the other side.
In the corner of her eye she saw Sansa turn her face towards her and leaned in to whisper in her ear. "Could it be Baelish? What did he look like?"
"This guy was wearing a black cloak. Couldn't see a thing," Myrna whispered back.
The sound of their ragged breathing was the only thing Myrna could hear as they tried to figure out what to do. A few minutes went by and she noticed Sansa growing anxious. "Perhaps it is him and we are missing our way out of here. He hasn't knocked, maybe he left?" Sansa suggested.
They both froze when the loud knocks returned but this time a voice came from the other side. "I know you are in there ladies. I was sent for you," the man shouted.
"That's not Baelish," Myrna noted quietly.
Sansa continued to look at Myrna. "He must of sent this man. We should go. Shouldn't we?" she sounded unsure now.
The voice bothered her. It was slightly familiar, or at least she thought it was. When she tried to match the man's voice with a face she could not do it. As much as this felt like a bad idea, they really had no choice. Somehow Myrna had to get out there and find The Hound. If this man's words were true, he should lead them to him. "What other choice do we have?" Myrna replied.
"You go first," Sansa stammered and swallowed nervously.
Agitated, Myrna agreed with her and began walking towards the door. When she approached the door it was hard for her to reach the door handle. Fear was holding her back but she willed her way through it and turned the door handle slightly. From behind she heard Sansa take in a deep breath. When the door was a crack open, fingers inside black leather gloves squeezed their way inside and grabbed a hold of the door. The door knob was ripped out of Myrna's hands as the door was forced open and the man completely concealed in a dark cloak was now in front of them. An overwhelming feeling of uneasiness made her legs go weak. Not only were they staring at the man, but he stared back with no eyes they could see because of the hood. Despite not being able to see his face Myrna felt all the attention was on her. She squeezed her hands into a fist to stop her fingers from trembling.
"Where are we going?" Sansa weakly but successfully broke the tension between the three of them.
The man waved his arm and hastily began speed walking down the corridor. They followed behind from a distance, and surprisingly they had left the apartments section with ease. Every single knight in the area was not at his post. The bells were still singing throughout the city. Every clang of the bells gave her the chills, mostly because of the unknown. Myrna hated being in the dark about what was happening. When she would check on Sansa she saw the same uncertainty on the girl's face. Something told her she should not question this man so she followed her instinct.
The way they were going was familiar to Myrna. She had just been here a few nights prior. Before them the man was leading them to one of the smaller towers in the Red Keep. The entrance to the dungeons, Myrna felt herself come alive. They were going to free The Hound. Both Sansa and her waited as the man fumbled with some keys and managed to unlock the entrance door. As he walked in, Myrna made her way past him and went on ahead. "I know where he is," she called back to them. When she turned her head to talk to the cloaked man, he paused for a second as if he took what she did as a slight. Ignoring him for now, Myrna quickened her pace and went to the end of the room.
When she approached the last cell she grabbed the rusty bars and peered in. "Sandor?" Myrna spoke to the darkness.
There was a grumble, then a silhouette moved in the darkness and came out. Sandor still looked the same from earlier that day; the swelling had gone down in his face but he still looked rough. He had not been in his cell for long this time and the place did not seem to have put any affect on him yet. Before he said anything he noticed something behind her. Myrna looked back and saw the cloaked man jingle the keys again and tried to figure out which one was for his cell. Sansa stayed back, not knowing where her place was.
"We're getting you out. It's time," she told Sandor.
He looked puzzled, and kept a cautious eye on the cloaked man. "Who's this whelp?" he rasped.
The man stopped looking at the keys on the ring and it almost seemed he gave a warning glance to The Hound. "Sandor, please!" Myrna scolded. "He's the one getting us out of here," she continued.
"Well hurry the fuck up. I don't like the sound of those bells," he muttered. "What's going on out there anyway?"
"We don't know," Sansa joined in meekly. The man helping them had gone back to finding the right key and at last he found the one that fit. The jail cell screeched as the door swung open, and The Hound eagerly walked out and gave a look back in the cell as if glad he would never go back in there. Part of Myrna wanted to embrace him, but it did not seem to be the appropriate time. Besides, he reeked of the cell. "Now where to?" Sansa asked the man after he put the keys away.
"A secret passage. People wait for us near the Blackwater Bay," the cloaked man spoke, but his voice was coarse as if he were disguising his real voice.
The Hound looked him down. "You mean the rumored ones down there?" he gestured towards the stairs that led down deeper into the dungeons. The man nodded. "Seven bloody hells... I'm not going down there," he cursed and paced away from the stairs until Myrna yelled at him.
"We have no choice! Why are you acting like a child?" she shouted at him.
"I'd rather cut through everyone at one of the gates outside the Keep than crawl through a pitch black hole in the ground. I probably won't even bloody fit," The Hound said.
Sansa made her way next to Myrna and look at The Hound. "You say you'll cut through people, but with what?" she argued.
"You have no weapons here. There's no point in fighting," Myrna agreed.
The Hound boomed with laughter and it echoed in the chilled, dark room. "You two are ganging up on me now? That's sweet," his smile slowly disappeared and he looked at the steps. He sighed. "Fuck. Let's get this over with," he marched towards the steps and the cloaked man went down first, followed by The Hound.
"Ready?" Sansa asked Myrna.
Myrna nodded, and the girls went down the steps side by side. It nearly was pitch black, like The Hound said. They took their time step by step so they would not hurt themselves. The steps were slimy, and at one step Myrna felt her foot go out from under her. Before she could fall, Sansa grabbed her arm and helped her back up. "The fuck is going on back there?" they heard The Hound's voice call from below them.
"We're fine. Just wait for us please," Sansa replied and from that point Sansa and her locked arms as they continued all the way down.
"Thanks," Myrna whispered.
"It's no problem... I just can't wait to go back home," Sansa whispered back.
Guilt overwhelmed Myrna. Baelish came to her mind, and his desire for Sansa. Her promise to him made her feel like an awful person. Myrna held onto Sansa tighter but the girl did not seem to notice. When they finally made it to the bottom of the stairs there was a single torch on the wall and the cloaked man went to grab for it. The Hound subtly made his distance. The four of them quietly made their way through a narrow, damp, and dark passage. They passed a few chances to turn down into another dark passage. What bothered Myrna the most was the stench. It was the stench of the dead. After awhile Sansa put her free hand up to cover her nose but Myrna knew that probably did not help much. It did not seem to bother The Hound. He stayed focused, and stared straight ahead past the cloaked man.
A cackling noise came from ahead, but whatever was there was too covered in darkness to see. Myrna froze, and Sansa did as well. In the corner of her eye she saw The Hound reach for his belt but remembered he had no weapon on him. The cloaked man continued on ahead and from the shadows unveiled a scrawny man. He wore no shirt and his ribs were visible. The man looked like he barely ate in weeks. Instead of asking for help, he rose the sword he held in his hand and yowled as he ran towards the cloaked man. Everything happened so quick. With his free hand, the cloaked man grabbed the scrawny man's wrist and twisted so the man was forced to drop the sword. Then he dropped the torch so he could grab something off of him and thrusted something into the man's stomach. Blood splurted out of his mouth, and he was gently lowered to the ground.
The Hound went ahead of them and inspected the man as the one helping them picked the torch back up and continued walking. With a deep breath, Myrna and Sansa approached the dead man on the ground and walked around him as The Hound stole the sword he was using. "A prisoner that was somehow set free," The Hound remarked.
"Will there be more?" Sansa asked with fear in her voice.
"If there are, I can protect you two now," he tucked the sword away onto his belt and they continued to follow the light from the torch that was ahead of them.
For a second Myrna thought they lost the man helping them. The light disappeared, but once they walked further down they saw he had finally crept into one of the smaller passages on their right side. Cursing, The Hound had to bend his knees and keep his head down as they entered the small passage. The ground was made of a bunch of tiny rocks and their footsteps made crunching sounds. A few times Myrna and Sansa almost tripped because of the uneven surface. Any amount of time in this passage would be annoying.
"Will this ever end?" Sansa asked after what felt like an hour had gone by.
"I don't want to hear you two little northern birds complain. My bloody back is killing me," The Hound said between heavy breathes as he stood nearly at head level with them. If Myrna were a few inches taller she would be ducking, too. The ceiling was right above her head and Sansa nearly touched it as she was slightly taller than Myrna. If she thought about it too much she felt her chest start to tighten up.
"I'm just glad we were able to break out of here before we were forced to marry," Myrna changed the subject.
She thought she saw Sansa peek at The Hound after that comment but she blinked her eyes and looked ahead. The Hound had nothing to add to that. Feeling stupid, Myrna decided to keep her mouth shut.
Finally, a brighter light appeared from the end of the passage. "Is that what I think it is?" Sansa sighed.
"About fucking time," The Hound grumbled.
The three of them hastened their pace. It really was what they thought it was; their exit out of the dirty, dark dungeon was just a few meters away. When they approached the hole The Hound was the first one out. He sat down and slid his rear off the edge. After inspecting the area quickly he turned around and reached up for one of them. Myrna let Sansa down first, trying not to make her jealousy too obvious when she saw The Hound carry Sansa down. Then she sat down and reached for him, and he grabbed her by the waist and put her on her feet gently.
Sunlight made Myrna's eyes hurt but at the same time she felt so relieved to be out of the tunnels and outside the Red Keep. The bells were ringing louder now that they were outside of the walls. A cool breeze made the tiny hair on her arms stand up and Sansa made a remark on how much better she felt now. The man leading them out of here was right, and she saw that he was waiting for them along the outside of the Red Keep's wall. They were right by the Blackwater Bay, and among the shore there were parts of ships being washed up. When Myrna looked at The Hound he still seemed uneasy being here. She approached him and tried to touch his arm but he nudged away and continued to follow the cloaked man. She frowned, and decided to do the same.
At a distance along the bay she noticed one of the main gates to the city. At first Myrna thought they were walking straight toward the gate but the man stopped at a wagon that was left along the wall. Something moved in the back, and Myrna realized there were people inside.
A familiar face came jumping out the back of the wagon. Myrna felt herself smile even though she was confused. "You made it back!" her lovely Dornish accent was like music to her ears. Brenda was smiling at all of them, but the first person she welcomed back was not who she expected. Myrna watched as she hugged the cloaked man, and he held her. Somehow Myrna felt as if she had seen this before.
The Hound marched next to Myrna and leaned in so she could hear him. "Did you know she was going to be here?" he angrily asked. He really did not trust Brenda anymore, it seemed.
"No," Myrna said sounding distracted. Her eyes were locked on Brenda and the man who helped them. Then Brenda pulled his cloak down so she could give him a kiss. He had curly black hair down to his shoulders, and when she saw his face Myrna felt the life slip out of her. The world went spinning around her, and she saw the ground come up to her.
The Hound caught her before she fell to the dirt, and she began hyperventilating. In the background she could hear Sansa sounding worried. "What's wrong?" he demanded. Myrna turned herself and clutched onto his shoulder, burying her face into his neck. "Tell me," The Hound gave her a squeeze.
"That man was Nicholas...my brother," she choked out.