11
1301 Words
“Grace, you are no help. You’re supposed to be keeping me awake.” I groan. It’s only a few minutes past ten and my eyelids are already drooping.
Grace rolls her eyes and stops reading from the poetry book. I was supposed to have read it by yesterday. “It’s not my fault you have no appreciation for the sophisticated arts.”
“I only like poetry when I’m not forced to read it.”
“You’re making no sense. We only have a few more pages to go, just try to listen.”
Grace launches into the next verses of poetry. I fall back into my bed and squeeze my eyes shut.
Grace throws a pillow from a nearby chair at me. “Pay attention. Augustine will be livid if don’t have this read by tomorrow.You have a four hour long study with him. Do you want him to rant the entire time?”
“How did he manage to convince William that I needed four hours of studying? There are much more important things I could be doing.” I sit back up in bed.
Grace ignores my whining and begins the verses of poetry. I obediently listen until the end.
“Was that so bad?” Grace asks.
“Maybe not, but I’m ready to fall asleep and I still have two hours until I meet Emilienne.”
“What do you want to do?”
“I don’t know. Something to keep me awake.”
Grace presses her lips together. “Do you want me to play something for you?”
“No, that helps me fall asleep, not stay awake. We need to do something exciting.”
“More poetry reading?” Grace offers this with a mischievous grin on her face.
I glare at her.
“It was just an offer. Do you want to…play a game or something?”
“What kind of game?”
“Marbles?”
I clap my hands together. “I haven’t played that for years.”
Grace runs from the room to grab a set of marbles from the Sitting Room.
She returns and we plop down on the floor. She spills the brightly painted clay marbles on the floor. Each one has the kingdom’s perfect white lily painted on top. They all roll in different directions.
Grace crawls over the floor, trying to gather them back together, “Can you help me?”
I sigh dramatically and begin helping her. After we’ve collected them, we begin the fierce competition. We continue playing all the way to midnight, even though we’re both lying on the floor in boredom.
Grace pulls herself up to her feet, “Do you want me to fix your hair before we go?”
“No, you don’t have to come. Just in case something goes wrong, I don’t want you to be there.”
Grace impatiently raises an eyebrow. “Let’s not waste time on this argument. I’m coming. Shall we go?”
I bite my lip, “Fine. Let’s go. I don’t want to keep Emilienne waiting all alone. She might not have her lady in waiting with her.”
We creep through the candlelit corridors. I’ve had the guards’ shift schedules memorized for years, and we easily slip by without being caught.
We reach the heavy doors that lead out into the courtyard. Grace and I pull them open and slip into the chilled night air. The moon shines down on to the cobblestones.
I stay close to the walls, hidden from any guards watching through windows. I scan the courtyard, and I don’t see Emilienne. Maybe she’s hidden somewhere, just like I am or maybe she’s just late.
Grace and I sneak around the perimeter of the courtyard. I can’t find her. We crouch in a shadowed corner, waiting for her to appear.
After several minutes pass, Grace whispers, “Maybe we should go to her room. She might have fallen asleep. Would she want us to wake her up?”
“Definitely. We’ll watch for her in the halls too.”
We slink back into the castle and to Emilienne’s room. I knock softly on her door.
There’s no answer.
I knock again, this time a little louder. Still, nobody answers the door.
The next shift of guards will be coming down this hall soon. I desperately try the doorknob, even though I know it shouldbe locked.
It turns easily in my hands.
I share a confused glance with Grace before I push the door open all the way. It creaks, revealing absolute darkness. There’s not a single candle lit inside. Light from the candles in the hall seep in through the doorway, but it’s not nearly enough.
Grace grabs a candle off a wall in the hall and brings it into the room. I close the door behind her to hide us from the guards. We stumble around Emilienne’s furniture to where her bed lies.
“Emilienne?” I whisper. The candlelight flickers, throwing shadows over everything. It illuminates Emilienne, asleep in her bed.
I grin, “Of course you fell asleep Emilienne. You make me sacrifice all my sleep, but keep it all for yourself.”
I put a hand on her shoulder, to gently shake her awake. My hand comes away wet.
I frown, “Gross, Emilienne, drooling in your sleep.”
Grace drops the candle to the floor. The flame dies as the wax spills across the floor.
“What are you doing?” I cry out into the darkness.
“Admira…you should leave. Go back to your room and I’ll get the guards.” Her voice shakes.
“What’s wrong?”
Her sweatyfingers find my wrist, “Come on, we need to get out of here.”
She drags me to the door, and swings it open.
“What happened?”
She lifts up my hand by my wrist, the one I used to shake Emilienne awake. It’s covered in blood.
I stare mutely at it. Grace watches me, tears gathering in her eyes. A scream gathers in my throat, but I can’t open my lips.
I rip another candle off its place on the wall. Hot wax spills on to my hand, burning at my skin, but I don’t feel it. I sprint back into Emilienne’s room. The rush of air extinguishes the candle.
Frustrated tears fill my eyes and I run back into the hall. Grace grabs me by my shoulders, “Calm down. You need to stop. Come with me so I can go get the guards. I’m not leaving you here alone.”
I twist away from her. I have to go further down the hall to get the next candle. I yank it from its place, this time walking slower cupping its flame with my hand to keep it from going out.
Grace follows after me as I stagger into Emilienne’s room. “This isn’t a good idea, Admira, you shouldn’t see this. We should leave, right now. You don’t want this image in your head. Please, just listen to me, Admira. Admira?”
I force the light in front of the Emilienne’s still body. A thin river of blood spirals around her neck.
The scream finally frees itself from my throat.
- Writer
