“Wait, Vera, I’m wondering…if you would help me.”
“Help you do what?”
“Help me get out of here.”
“Is he…keeping you locked in there?” Her voice sounds closer, like she’s taken a step forward.
“Yes.”
“Why? Why is he locking you in there?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know what they mean to do with me.”
“I’m sure he doesn’t intend you any harm.” She doesn’t utter the words with the least bit of confidence.
“No, I think that he does.”
“What would make you think that?”
My thoughts scramble…this girl is a witch, too. She could be just as horrible as he is. But… it’s not as if I have any other options. “I saw him do things on the way here.”
“What did he do?” Her voice has fallen to a whisper, yet it sounds closer like she’s leaned down on the other side of the door.
“He killed people. Not just people—children. He killed children. Is that… normal for him?” I ask, though what I’m really asking is if it’s normal forall of them. I hear her suck in a breath.
“H-he really did that?" She asks aghast. “Normal…no. I--I don’t know the prince anymore. I used to know him, but that was a while ago. I can’t get you out of there. I’m sorry. I—I should go.”
“Please?” I ask desperately when silence looms between us again, I wonder if she’s already fled. “Vera?”
“It’s not that I don’t want to get you out of there. It’s that I can’t,” she says, her voice hushed. “I can’t break through the lock on these doors. I’ve tried with a different door. I’m sorry.”
“Wait—could you bring me something? Some rope? A really long rope. And food? I’ll need a lot of food, nonperishables.”
It’s quiet for such a long moment, I’m certain she’ll never agree, and she’ll likely alert the prince to my request. “I can do that.”
“Really?” I ask, voice pitching several octaves in my eagerness. “You will?”
“Yes, but not tonight. It will have to be tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow,” I repeat. “Thank you.”
“I have to go now.” I hear the light pattering of her footsteps this time before I can even utter out a goodbye.
I just need to hold out for another day, and I’ll have the necessary supplies to make my escape. The sun sets, and the prince has yet to return. I should be sleeping after a severe lack, however, I’m too wound up. I want to be awake when he comes back and see him go to bed before I shut my eyes. I hide my bag of supplies between the cushions of the couch and pray that he doesn’t notice my missing blanket.
I make sure to lock Div back in the trunk where I found him. Hours pass before I finally hear the sound of his footsteps coming down the hallway, a shuffling, and the sound of voices. He’s not alone. There’s a thump against the door and the sound of giggling. The door starts to open and then immediately shuts again. “Wait—I…uh…forgot the nought's in here,” the prince says.
“She’s in there?” a girl gasps.
“Yeah…I’m not entirely sure what she’s gotten up to today so I should probably check that she’s not going to ambush us or something. She’s a little…wild.” The girl breaks out in another chorus of giggles, and I shoot a withering look toward the ceiling. Based on the sounds of their slurred speech, both of them areverydrunk.
“Oh Gods. I’msosorry she made you marry one of them. That’s terrible,” she pouts.
“Let me just—wait one second.”
I press my back flat to the arm of the couch as the door clicks open, and he pokes his head in. “Hey,” he says softly. I don’t grace him with a response as his eyes scan the room to see if anything is amiss.
“Okay, it's fine,” he says as he ushers her in. He pointedly doesn’t look at me as he leads her to his room, but the girl, with chocolate brown curls framing her face, stops and gawks at me.
