by Day Leitao
“We’ll never be far enough,” Nia replied. “We have to hope they won’t find this tunnel. If they do, they’ll catch us regardless of our distance. Either this is secret and we’re safe, or it doesn’t matter.”
Was that Nia’s lullaby? With such thoughts, Karina would sure sleep like an angel. And the worst is that Karina agreed with Nia’s logic.
“Well, it’s true that I’m tired,” Ayanna said.
“We stop then,” Nia said.
Cayla looked displeased. A good thing that Ayanna had come prepared, because she took some blankets from her bag for them to sleep on. The downside was that the floor was rough, so sleeping there would still be uncomfortable even with the blankets, but on the upside, that was better than the comfortable bed in Karina’s prison. Ayanna grimaced when she realized there were only three blankets.
“I know. Two of us will have to share. I can share.”
“I can share as well,” Nia said.
Karina was relieved. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to share a blanket, even though she didn’t want to share it, but she didn’t want to sleep by Nia. She then wondered why only three blankets, and if one of them had not been originally supposed to be there. Nia? Herself? But this time she didn’t ask.
The group sat, and they all ate some dried fruit bar things and drank very little from the only water skin they had. Cayla touched what looked like her necklace, no longer hidden under her dress. The stone was red, however, unless it was the light, or lack of light, in the tunnel. Now, was that really her twin necklace? How did she even get it back, and in one piece? Karina didn’t ask anything, because when Cayla realized Karina was looking, she seemed embarrassed then quickly hid the crystal under her dress. Karina looked elsewhere, pretending she hadn’t noticed it even though it was obvious she had.
Later, Karina lay down because that was what everyone else did, but she was afraid of what could happen if she slept. The bluish light from the light crystal illuminated the side of the tunnel: brown rock, slightly shiny from dampness.
Sian walked through the hallways of the castle. More soldiers than usual had been deployed there, and he had on good sources that some people had escaped. All the hush hush and mystery just confirmed that the girl from the yellow tower had escaped. He couldn’t fathom how anyone could escape such a high security cell, but there was certainly more to the story. He wasn’t upset, though. If she was free, it meant he had a chance to learn what was happening, and adjust his course of action. And better than anything, he didn’t even have to chase information. His own father had called him there.
General Keen was sitting on his usual armchair, hands steepled.
Sian walked in and kneeled. “My father.”
“Get up and stop this nonsense. You’re my son, not some worthless nobody. You should never kneel. Sit down.”
Annoying his father was always satisfying. Sian got up and grabbed an armchair.
The General asked, “Do you know who escaped?”
“Odell’s high-security prisoner.”
A corner of his father’s mouth lifted. “Well informed, as always. And do you know who was with her?”
Sian didn’t know, and it annoyed him. His thoughts turned to Nia and Cayla, but that didn’t make much sense. “I assume that information has been kept secret.”
“It has, it has. The thing is: I don’t think she was Odell’s prisoner. Not in reality. He refused to have her executed, and I know that he helped her escape. Not only her, but our King’s traitorous ex-wife, as well as his annoying daughters. I told the King, I told him that they were plotting against him, but I can’t break Odell’s hold on him. He wants the girls back alive.”
Sian was surprised at how much, for once, he didn’t know. He raised an eyebrow. “And what are they plotting?”
“Magic, Sian, magic. They’ll take over the kingdom again. Those girls wield magic, and they are dangerous.”
Sian refrained from scoffing, but it took some effort despite the years of experience in keeping a straight face when his father started his nonsensical rants against magic. “I assume you brought me here to deal with this matter, then?”
General Keen had a satisfied smile. “Yes, my son. I have a task for you. I’ll trust nobody else. The girls and that woman must be killed.”
Whatever opinion Sian had about it, he buried them. “And you want me to order this?”
“Yes, yes, my son. But nobody can know about it.”
“Where are the girls?”
“They escaped. We’re combing the castle and the surroundings, and nothing.”
“They must be far away then. Let me just confirm: you want me to have Nia, Cayla, and the other girl killed.”
“There’s also the younger sister, Ayanna.”
Sian nodded. But there was something Sian had to say. “As you know, my brother, Darian, fancies the older sister. It could be a good chance for our family—”
“He’ll thank us for it, my son, he’ll thank us. Less suffering. Think about your brother when you spill her blood. Spare his pain of a broken heart. And he doesn’t need to know who did it.”
Sian nodded in acknowledgement. “I will deal with this—as soon as I find them. I just have one request, my father.”
Keen had mocking laugh. “A request?”
Sian didn’t lose his beat. “Let me deal with this. Personally. Anyone else involved, and the chances of the information being leaked will increase.”
“I trust no one else.”
Sian bowed and left. Child murderer. So this was his father’s opinion of him. He wondered what he’d done to rise so much in General Keen’s esteem.
12
Night Revelations
A hand touched Karina’s shoulder. She opened her eyes, surprised that she should be awoken when she shouldn’t have fallen asleep in the first place. It was Nia, who covered Karina’s mouth even though the girl had not meant to scream. Should she?
“Don’t worry,” Nia whispered. “I just want to talk.” She looked at the two other blankets on the floor where Ayanna and Cayla slept. “Away from the girls.”
The woman took her hand from Karina’s mouth. Karina was more curious than afraid, so she got up, careful not to make any sound, and followed the woman some steps away from the blankets.
Nia sighed. “What do you think of all this?”
That was a huge question, and Karina was not sure where to start. “You mean, me being here, and—”
“I mean why do you think he wants us to go to Lylah?”
“To destroy the shoes?”
“Do you believe the story the girls told us?”
Karina was not sure where the woman wanted to take this conversation. “You think they are lying?”
“Not them. Odell. I think he wants to help Lylah, not defeat her.”
The idea made sense, and yet it didn’t. “Why would he want the shoes destroyed then?”
Nia rolled her eyes. “That’s what he says. Now, think with me. Those tunnels are attached to the castle. Why does Odell know them and the king doesn’t?”
Karina remembered what Cayla had said. “He’s all wise and learned, isn’t he?”
“I disagree, but it doesn’t matter. You don’t need learning or wisdom to know secret passages, or else Ayanna couldn’t have led us here. You need only to know people who know the passages. Do you know who lived here before the king?”
Karina shrugged, surprised that anyone would expect her to know any history let alone history about an alternate world.
“Lylah,” Nia answered.
“The Queen,” Karina muttered. “What happened then?”
“Well, she was the queen, before the king. But then, they said she turned evil and was defeated. That’s the story they tell. But what matters for us is that Odell might know these tunnels because he knows the previous owner of the castle.”
“You think he’s evil?” Karina asked.
“I’m not even sure Lylah is evil. You saw her.
What do you think?”
Karina tried to remember the dark-haired woman who had visited her in her now distant room. “She seemed nice. But I don’t know. Cayla says she killed her mother or was involved in it. And everyone seemed nice in the beginning.”
“I know,” the woman had a sad smile. “But regardless, I think Odell wants us to take the shoes to Lylah. Well, that’s I thought before, but now I am more certain.”
“So you think we shouldn’t go there?” Karina asked.
“What? No. Let her have her shoes. But… I need to protect the girls. And my son. I think… I think they’re being sent as hostages.”
Karina remembered being tied by people who wanted to cut her fingers, and imagined how Lylah could do something similar. “We should tell them.”
“No. We all have to go. You know who’s after us, and Lylah might be the only person who can defeat him. We’ll have to side with her, but make sure she doesn’t harm the girls. And Odell or the king don’t harm my son.”
That was a bold change for Nia. Karina took in the information, thinking. She then said, “And you’re not going to tell Ayanna or Cayla about this?”
Nia shook her head. “They’re stubborn. Especially Cayla. She wouldn’t believe it. Or worse, she could want to protect her father and do something stupid. It’s best to let them think they will erase all evil from the world by destroying a pair of shoes.”
Karina almost laughed at the stupidity of that idea, until she remembered she had kind of believed in it not long before. She cringed. But something didn’t make sense. “But how can the girls be hostages if Odell said they were in danger? That the king was after then?”
“You have your answer in your question.”
Karina didn’t understand. “What?”
“Who said it?” Nia asked.
Odell. Of course. “Oh.”
“But,” Nia added, “there’s another possibility. Maybe the king does know about these tunnels, maybe Odell is not betraying him, and they are waiting to ambush us and prove that we are traitors.”
“Why send the girls then?”
“Maybe the King is after them.”
“But,” how weird that this thought only now occurred to Karina. “They are his own daughters.”
Nia shrugged and shook her head. “I don’t doubt anything anymore.”
Karina still didn’t understand. “But why? And why are you running away?”
“A somewhat similar reason you were put in that tower. He thinks I’m plotting against him, that I want to take his power. I was being watched, and things got worse after Leo was born.”
Karina nodded, partly understanding, but she still had a question. “And where does Odell fit in all this?”
Nia shrugged. “Maybe he’s protecting us. Maybe he’s pretending.”
Karina didn’t like that second option. “What then?”
“If we get ambushed, we’ll have to fight.”
She liked that even less.
Nia then said, “Go, sleep, you’ll need your rest. Don’t mention this to the girls.”
“I won’t.”
Karina started to walk back to her place and figured that at least she learned that Nia didn’t plan to slit her throat. Karina lay down feeling calmer than before, because she had one less person to fear. That floor was really uncomfortable, and yet, she dozed off.
“Karina, Karina,” someone called her. This time it was Ayanna.
Karina mumbled, “You too? Does it have to be now?”
“It’s time to move,” Ayanna said.
Karina covered her head. Getting up and continuing the walk was even worse than a secret conversation. And plus, it was still dark. “Let me sleep, just a little more.”
“We’re running away, remember?” This time it was Cayla who spoke.
Karina uncovered her head and sat, realizing it was obviously still dark because they were underground. And that was another reason not to get up.
“But this is a secret tunnel. It doesn’t make any difference.”
“We let you sleep for a while,” Cayla said, “but we have to go. We’re out of water.” She turned down an empty water skin.
Even Nia was standing, as if waiting. Karina rubbed her eyes and stretched. “You drank it all?”
“There were just a couple sips anyways,” Ayanna said. “Water’s supposed to run on the walls of the tunnels, but I think it’s further up.”
“What if it doesn’t?” Karina asked.
“Then we’ll have to find a stream outside,” Cayla said.
“That’s a thirsty walk up.”
“It’ll only get thirstier the longer we wait,” Cayla replied.
Karina got up, put her things in her bag, and was ready to walk with the group. They kept walking in that dark place, lit only by the dim crystal Cayla now carried. After a lot of walking, Karina felt insanely thirsty. She hoped to reach the running water soon, hoped it was clean, and also hoped they would not be ambushed somewhere. At least she was still full of hope.
Suddenly, Cayla stopped. “This is wrong.”
“What?” Her sister asked.
“We’re going down.” She stretched her hand forward to make the crystal illuminate ahead, but not a lot could be seen.
Karina looked around, thinking that the tunnel was flat rather than sloped down, although, yes, flat was still a problem. Ayanna turned to Nia, “Are you really sure this was the third door?”
“Yes,” Nia said. “Perhaps your teacher was mistaken?”
Ayanna thought for a moment, then answered, “He sounded sure.”
Nia rolled her eyes. “We all know that he’s good at sounding sure.”
Ayanna asked, “Do you want to go back?”
Karina only imagined walking some three or four hours without water, and didn’t like it. She said, “Maybe we should keep going and see where it takes us.”
“Yes,” Cayla replied, “but there’s no way this tunnel will lead us to the top of the mountain.”
Top of a mountain. That reminded Karina of something, something unpleasant. “Wait. Aren’t there jaguars in the mountains?”
“Not on the top. Around the lakes, in the valley.” Cayla replied.
“Lakes and a valley explain going down,” Karina blurted out.
“And water dripping,” Nia added. “Perhaps we are in the right tunnel, but even if we aren’t, I don’t see any option other than going forward.”
After an hour or so they found water dripping running along the walls. Karina finally drank. The tunnel didn’t slope up, but apparently, everyone was satisfied in getting to its end to find out where it would lead them. So much walking was tiring and the continuous darkness was oppressive.
They walked the whole day. Karina felt exhausted, but somehow her curiosity to find out where they were kept her feet moving and her body standing. A couple times she considered asking for the others to stop, but she didn’t want to show that she was more tired than everyone. Finally, Ayanna asked to stop.
Nia refused. “Look,” she pointed to the ceiling and walls, “the tunnel is getting wider and higher. I think we’re getting somewhere.”
Karina was sure they were getting somewhere: somewhere meaning further down the tunnel.
Nia continued, “We walk just a little more, to find out where we are. Then we stop for the night.”
Cayla nodded and got going, and somehow her sister followed. Karina didn’t protest because she noticed that the tunnel was in fact a little different. Did it mean they were near its exit? But then, wouldn’t it be safer to sleep inside? On the other hand, a few more minutes walking wouldn’t kill her. A few more minutes. After that she would put her blanket on the floor and lie down, regardless of what the others decided. But the tunnel got wider and wider, and the only reason they could not see much ahead was that it was curved. After a sharp curve, they reached a wide opening, more like a large cave, some five meters wide in each direction and high enough that the light from the crystal
didn’t reach the ceiling. Nia’s idea had been good, as this would be a more pleasant place to sleep than in the narrow tunnel. Karina didn’t wait for the others and spread her blanket on the floor. Ayanna did the same.
Cayla, for her part, seemed restless and illuminated all the walls, with Nia beside her. “Do you see a door?”
“Let’s keep looking,” Nia replied.
That conversation made Karina realize that there was something wrong with that cave: only one entrance, or exit. Her eyes met Ayanna’s, who seemed to have realized the same thing at the same time. But maybe that fear was pointless. After all, Nia knew how to find secret doors. They had come through one, and this place would sure have another. Perhaps that was why Odell said the girls needed Nia to guide them. Karina watched as Cayla and Nia examined the walls. This looked like a very difficult door, as they circled the place twice, going slower the second time, and also illuminating the higher parts of the walls. This didn’t look right, because the other time Nia had found a secret door she had acted as if they were quite obvious. The duo circled the place for a third time, and even walked back a little in the tunnel.
Nia was the one who decided to stop. “We need to rest. We’ll look again tomorrow.”
They all sat and ate. After that, Karina lay down and tried to forget everything around her, while the others started to discuss their situation. Cayla accused Nia of having lead them through the wrong door, and Ayanna of not having heard well the instructions. Nia thought perhaps this was a trap, Odell had made a mistake, or Ayanna had been mistaken. Ayanna thought Nia could have been mistaken and even started doubting her own certainty about the directions.
In the end, despite what each of them thought, they were all tired and had to sleep. Karina remembered that the time difference was not as much as she had first calculated, and it would be already two or three in the morning. If she didn’t find a way back soon, her parents would notice her absence. Still, at this point, upset parents was the least of her worries. She had to stay alive first, and then make sure she found a way back.
