Queen Bee

Sickle Sweet

    The lights are off and no one is here, that's how I know something is going to go wrong. 

    "Sawney?" I ask, frantically searching for our target. Sawney seems to mindlessly wander, running his hand along a table with maps and other objects scattered across it. 

    "I don't understand," He picks up a piece of paper, "The guard said this is where Jules was!" Suddenly, the door bursts open and Sawney drops the map, startled as he puts his sword up. From a separate set of doors emerges Jules and a posse of soldiers. 

    "I see you've finally decided to join me, what a pleasant surprise!" My heart starts to thump, my face paling. Sawney runs up to the king but is quickly defeated by a soldier who disarms him and throws him to the ground. 

    "You really didn't think you could come in here and kill me so easily, did you?" He looks down at Sawney with a snarl as my friend ceases to move. Then the king turns his head to me and smiles. 

    "I was going to send for you, My Dear. What are you doing here so soon?" Anger rips at my chest as I lunge myself at him. I prepare my knife, aiming at his chest but am deflecting with a simple bash of a sword. My knife goes flying and my wrist is suddenly covered in blood. 

    "I'm going to kill you!" I say through clenched teeth, holding my wrist as it's filled with a numbing pain. Before I can attempt to attack him again the soldiers force me down on my knees. 

    "It seems you may need to calm down a bit, Dear. Take her to a cell so she can gather herself." He begins to walk away, and with a flick of his hand the soldiers force me on my feet.

    "Where's my father and mother!?" I try to rip myself from their grip, but it's no use. Their claws have a hold of me like an iron clamp. Jules stops, then says thoughtfully, "I killed them, of course." The world goes red, tears filling my eyes as I begin to fight harder to escape from their grasp. Jules begins walking away again and all I see is me plunging my knife into his heart-again-and again-and again. The image fuels me as I plop myself on the ground, twisting every which way as the soldiers drag me out of the throne room. I scream, for help, for Sawney, for the time to stop moving as ti wrenches every one of my cells out and tears them into shred. 

    "Stop moving, you little t**t!" One of them hisses in broken English, digging his fingers into my arm. My vision is blurred, so I can't see where we're going. Not that I really care. I stop for a moment, only to refuel and start struggling again. As we descend a set of cold, cement stairs I feel their grip loosen. I tug away my arm from one of them, forcing them to let go. As soon as they do, my head bangs against the stairs. They all stop, staring down at me and cussing as I feel myself slowly and painfully lose consciousness. 

    Light starts to bleed harshly into my eyes, forcing a painful headache into my skull. I sit up and the world begins to circle around me. 

    "Olivier? Sawney?" I say with no reply. The sound of water dripping and the small squeaking of mice force me to take in my senses. I'm in a cell in the dungeon of the castle. At least, I think I am. I've never been down here before. Hay lays scattered across the small stone floor. I sit in the wooden bench that hangs from the wall to regain my thoughts. I tried breaking into the castle. We got caught. Sawney might be dead? I don't know where Olivier is. My parents... I smack my head, tears forming once again. There's no time for that now. I stand, brushing my pants off and make my way to the barred entrance of the cell. 

    "Excuse me? I need help! Excuse me! I need to get out of here!" I start to yell, attempting to shake the bars loose somehow and making a loud clanging noise in the process. In a matter of seconds I've summoned a Frense guard. 

    "cállate!" he says, which obviously means "shut up!"

    "You need to get me out of here, alright? It's an emergency! Please just help me!" He stares at me dumbly and I realize it's very possible not all of the guards know English. 

    "Shh." He says, and starts to walk away. 

    "Wait!" He stops and looks back, now agitated. I point to the door, then mime him opening it. 

    "I will give you money! Lots of m o n e y!" I sound out the words, drawing dollar signs in the air. He looks at me, then the door, then back at me and blinks. He turns around and walks up to me. I think I've might of done it when he suddenly grabs my arms and pulls me up against the cell bars harshly. 

    "Sentarse et cállate!" He says, then pushes me away from the bars. I stumble back and watch as he walks away. I sit on the bench with a huff. I'm obviously not getting out of here on my own. A mouse runs past my feet, scaring me as I lift them up in a fright. 

   "Comida." I jump again, the Frense guard appearing once again. He shoves a plate of food underneath a small slot on the bottom of the cell door. 

    "De parte de Su Majestad," He stops, then rephrases for me "Rey Jules." The name burns a nasty thought in my brain. The guard leaves once again and suddenly I have an idea. I pick up the tray and goop a portion of the off-color porridge onto the spoon and layer it on the lock of the cell. Hundreds of little rat eyes stare hungrily at me from the shadows. I drop a little of the food on the ground and make a trail to the cell door. Then, I lather more of the porridge on the cell bars until it climbs all the way up to the lock. I step out of the way as the mice get to work-hungrily sweeping up the food in hoards. They climb the bars, licking up any remains of the food until they come to the lock. I made sure to put a little on the inside. I'm not sure this will work, but I do know that it will take a while if it does. I pull my knees up to my chest and try to relax on the hard bench as the mice make hissing noises and try to chew through the metal. A heavy block of anxiety sits in my chest, making it hard to breath. I force down a few shallow breaths and wipe away the tears in my eyes. 

    "The king gave us direct orders. Are you going to disobey him?" A familiar voice comes in to ear shot. The sound of the Frense guard arguing is there as well. Then, another Frense man's voice. Finally, the guard lets out a sigh of despair and goes quiet. My heart skips a beat when I see who it is. 

    "Anna!" I call out, jumping off of the bench and running to her. I push my arms through the bars and pull her in for a hug. 

    "Hey." She says, and I can tell somethings off. 

    "What's the matter? What's going on?" I pull back, forcing her to look me in the eyes. 

    "I've come to get you out. But, uh..." her voice trails off, her eyes leading me to another figure in the corner. Yet another Frense guard. They're like gnats-when there's one there's hundreds close by. 

    "Come on, let's you get you out of here." She says, unlocking the door. It creaks open as she waits for me to exit. I feel like a caged animal, scared to leave the small comfort of the cell. I muster enough courage to step out, letting Anna take my hand and lead me as the Frense gaurd forces us out of the dungeon and back into the castle I know. 

    "What's going on?" I ask. Anna keeps a firm grip on my arm. 

    "Shh, it's all right." Her voice reminds me of my mother. The walls seems to close in, making my home unrecognizable. I don't even realize the hallway we are in is the one where my room is until we make it to my door. Anna pushes me into the room, looking back at the guard. 

    "I can take it from here." He shakes his head, following us in the room. He slams the door shut, locking it, then looking around my bedroom as if he's searching for something. 

    "Anna, please tell me what's going on." I plead as she sits me on my bead. She sits right next to me, pushing a strand of my hair behind my ear. 

    "Adela, you've grown quite a but the past few years. And, well," she nervously glances at the guard who stands firmly at the door. "I'm not really sure what's going on, or how to explain whats happened. The, uh, His Majesty requests that you get cleaned up." I know she's talking about Jules, making me want to puke. 

    "I can't, Anna. I can't-" She places her hands on my shoulders, holding me still and peering directly into my eyes, 

    "Adela, you have to." Her motherly warmth is gone, replaced a coldness I'm familiar with. She gets up and goes into my bathroom, sloshing a bucket of water into my tub. I stand, the eyes of the Frense guard following me as I move to be closer to Anna. Steam rolls off the top of the tub, inviting me to take a dip in it. 

    "Are you getting in with your clothes on?" She asks, almost with her usual sarcastic sound in her voice. I slowly begin to undress, pretending that the guard isn't there. My confusion outweighs my fear at the moment, making me feel naked on the inside as well. Anna helps me in the tube, the heat of the water overtaking my senses. It burns. The scorching heat allows me to feel something other than bleak and afraid, so I allow it to fester and burn my skin. Within minutes the water has been tainted a light brown. Anna hands me a wet cloth and I absentmindedly rub it over my skin. 

    "I don't think he knows English. I think we're free to talk as long it doesn't look like we're speaking about...certain things." Anna says, pasting a large grin on her face. It takes me moment to understand, but soon follow suit. 

    "What happened to the others I was with? Sawney and...the prince." I catch myself before saying Olivier. 

    "Who is Sawney?" Anna forces a giggle as she kicks a bucket under the drain of the tub. 

    "The guard." I imitate a giggle as well, hoping it doesn't sound as fake as it does in my head. 

    "He's alright. I think some of the prisoners were tending to his wounds the best they could in the dungeon." I wring the cloth out, accidentally opening some of the cuts on my knuckles. The water now has a slight red tint, like iron. 

    "And the prince?" I ask. 

    "Not sure." I stand, ready to get out and to find out whats going on. Anna quickly reaches in and pulls out the drain as I get myself out. She quickly wraps me in a towel and tells me to wait. A bead of ice cold water drips off my hair and on to my shoulder, forcing a shiver to engulf me. I can't help but notice the Frense guard as he picks at his sleeves. He's a giant of a man, almost taller than my door. His shadow looms over my bedroom like a bear in the night. 

    "Here you go." Anna reappears with a dress in hand, saving me from the cold as she helps me to get dressed. I silently notice Anna is taking much longer than usual. As soon as she finishes, she quickly brushes out the tangles in my hair. She gives up eventually and just puts it into a quick braid, causing a slight headache to reappear in my head. 

    "Anna..." I start to say, the words wobbling in my mouth. "I'm scared." I wait for her response as she gives me a look of sorrow. 

    "Alright, time to go!" She smiles again, cutting the moment short as she starts to shove me towards the door. The giant guard grabs me by the next and motions for Anna to stop with his other hand. 

    "I need to come-"

    "Non." He says, his voice deep and harsh. 

    "Anna-" I start to say, my arms reaching to her as the man begins to drag me away. 

    "Please, I just-" The man reels back and shoves Anna into the wall. Then he quickly turns and marches down the hall with me in tow. My brain wants me to call out for her, but the words can't make it out. A horrible feeling of failure seizes control of me, begging me to do something I don't know. Moments that seem both like hours and seconds pass until the guard reaches his destination with me. The dining hall. The doors come open and that feeling of failure is replaced with panic. I fear who is on the other side of the doors, waiting for me. My heart jumps. It's Olivier. My heart falls. Also at the table sits King Jules, and he's wearing a crooked grin.