Queen Bee

Road Trip

    The world is a blur of light as we take off at full speed, passing the farmers and fields of mud and grass. Sawney makes us stop at the first stream we come across in our path, the a new forest now begins to thicken and surround us like a mob. We stand, side by side, no one quite knowing what to say as we listen to the slopping of water coming from our horses mouths. 

    "How long will it take?" I ask, wishing the horses would drink faster. 

    "On horseback? Two days probably. Depends on the horses...or if we have any set backs." Sawney answers, filling his canteen with water. The sight of it make reminds me that my mouth is dry. 

    "What about them?" 

    "You said they're moving with an army? Probably the same amount of time since they got a head start on us. We'll have to stop at the nearest town not in Franse for supplies." He rubs the back of his neck, strapping the canteen onto his belt. 

    "Why no Franse?" Olivier says, suddenly interested in the conversation. 

    "Because they might be looking for us." Olivier makes a noise I've never heard before and continues to stroke the neck of his horse. 

    "Are we even going to have time to stop?" I pull my horse, whom I've named Argo, away from the water so we can start our journey again. 

    "Unless you don't want to even make it to Astaria, then no. We'll just make time." Sawney quickly mounts and begins riding down the beaten path, forcing Olivier and I to do the same. Finally, we couldn't have started soon enough. 

    "Water! Fresh water for the weary travelers! Water! Fresh water!" A man calls out to us amid the hustle and bustle of the city. We do as Sawney advised and don't stop until we get to the nearest city outside of the Frense border. The sound of chickens squawking and wooden carts jumping over rocks threaten to overwhelm my ears as I lean down and ask the vendor "How much for a canteen of water?" 

    "Two taels or one tael with a pretty smile." The man smiles widely through a greasy, unshaven face that makes me shudder. 

    "We will be giving you two taels." Olivier sneers, now hurrying along beside me. We find a place to tie our horses and huddle together to regroup. 

    "We don't have any money." I say, wanting to get the obvious out of the way. 

    "Yeah. I don't need money." Sawney looks around as he speaks, like he doesn't even know he's talking. 

    "How do you plan on buying supplies if we don't have a kenzing between us?" 

    "Watch." Sawney saunters to the other side of the congested street where the musky merchant now presides. He leans on his table, then quickly backs away when the man swats him. Olivier and I watch as Sawney turns and points at us, at me, and says something to the man. As soon as the man looks at me and smiles that weird smile again, Sawney swipes one of the many canteens off the table and shoves it in a pocket I didn't know he had. Olivier mutters something in Frense covers his hands with his face. I decide to play along by waving and smiling at the man. Sawney takes this chance to grab another canteen and attach it to his belt in the back. The man looks grumpily, though that might just be his resting face, at our sly friend and begins digging into his pockets. My eyes go wide when the man pulls out a drym, begrudgingly handing it to Sawney. Sawney pockets it, then takes a quill from the man and begins to jot something down on a piece of paper. Sawney sets the quill down, winks, then turns and steps away and onto the street. This plan would have worked perfectly, if not for one thing. As soon as my guard turned around, the canteen he attached to the backside of his loop appears before the merchant man. The man begins to yell something as I watch Sawney's face turn red when he realized what hes done. Sawney takes off like an arrow, shooting himself through the crowd and over to us. He grabs my arm and Olivier's, forcing us to duck into an alley way not far from the crime. He shoves us behind a barrel smelling of old ale, but not before a dark figure comes up from behind him. 

    "Man!" I yell, the words dying in my mouth. Sawney draws his sword just in time to clash with this new man, the sound of metal on metal ringing through the alley way. 

    "We didn't do anything!" Sawney cries as the man, much larger than himself, kicks him to the ground. My heart races, threatening to rip open my chest. I watch helplessly as the dark man brings his sword down, changing direction at the last second, and pounding the hilt of his sword into Sawney's head. Olivier speedily stands, racing over and attempting to disarm the man. I'd like to try and help, but I'm paralyzed as the man takes out the prince as well. His cloaked head slowly turns to me, a hungry look in his eyes. Only when he's inches away am I finally able to move myself. I scramble up, holding onto the wall for support. I go to run, but his strong arms pin me against the wall in a second. All the evil outcomes flood my senses as I attempt to scream. It comes out in a whimper and my second chance is taken when my mouth is covered with a sweet smelling rag. My eyes feel heavy and my breathing slows as the man slowly lets off me. My legs sag to the ground and my consciousness flees me, leaving me alone in the cold, bitter darkness once again. 

    The sound of Sawney yelling jolts me from my sleep. 

    "I'm gonna rip out your-" his words are replaced by a muffled voice and the creaking of wood. I look over, the effects of the gas lingering still. The world is in slow motion, moving sluggishly. Like a bumblebee. I laugh to myself. Olivier sits next to me, tied into a wooden chair, as is Sawney. My eyes drift to him, his body writhing around as he attempts to break free of his bonds with a gag tied around his mouth. My push my head up and realize that I, too, am in a chair. I lift my arm up as I realize that I have no restraints. 

    "She's awake." A deep voice says behind me. I blink, trying to regain focus in my eyes. A man, dressed in black just like the one who attacked us, is now squatting in front of me. Before I realize it, he's grabbed my arm and is tying it down with a rope. A ringing in my ears distracts me as he continues with my other arm.

    "You better be careful." Olivier growls as the man begins to tie my legs to the chair as well. I push my head against my shoulders, the pressure relieving some of the pain and ringing. 

    "You, stay here and guard. The rest of us have some other business." That same deep voice says gruffly, his voice sounding distant. 

    "Yes, Sir." A door opens, then is slammed shut and it gets eerily quiet. Sawney has stopped struggling, replacing it with heavy breathing. I sit up. my head beginning to clear up as the world comes into focus. We're sitting in a dark, stone room with windows at the top of the walls. Through the windows I see the feet of people walking through a street in daylight. A single one of the men dressed in the all black outfit sits at a table in front us. He seems a little smaller than the man before and sits there holding a spear while awkwardly watching us. 

    "Are you alright?" I turn to see Olivier, looking weaker than before. I'm sure that blow to the head didn't help his case. 

    "Yeah. You?" He nods, casting his eyes to the ground. I take in a deep breath, trying to calm myself and my heart before it kills me. 

    "Who...who are you?" I ask, turning my fear into will power. I suddenly remember the knife in my pocket.

    "Not that it's any of your business, Princess, but we're just some people trying to get some money off of nobles like you. And him." The man's gaze turns to Olivier, who meets him with a glare. 

    "I'm not a princess." I say matter-of-factually, hoping he can't tell my voice is quivering. The man snorts, calling out my lie. 

    "Your face is pictured all around Astaria, as is his in Franse. We're not daft." If his face wasn't covered by a black mask and shadowed by a cloak, I'm sure I could see him smirking. 

    "I never said you were." 

    "Adela-" Olivier warns, but I give him a look that tells him to shut up. It's better if I don't think about the plan that I'm about to enact. 

    "I'm sure you thought it." I sense some anger in him as I poke the beast. 

    "No, why would I do that?"

    "Because nobles, such as yourself, always think that your smarter than us common folk." So that's what this is about. 

    "Really? I always thought the civilians are such intelligent and wise people. Especially the men. Always so smart, strong, and kind. Wouldn't you agree?" I let out my girlish princess laugh, hoping to draw him into the bait. He takes it. 

    "Yeah." I let a few moments pass, forcing myself to not think about my next actions until I do them. Finally, I can't bare it anymore. 

    "Could you possibly untie my legs? It kind of hurts. Also could you loosen my wrists a little, they're starting to get red." The man stands quickly, then falters. Olivier gives me a look of confusion. 

    "You're just trying to escape, aren't you?" He asks, going to sit back down. 

    "No! Why would I do that? I mean, you've probably already got, like, this whole place booby trapped so I can't escape anyway, right?" 

    "Right. You're right." He stands again, leaning his spear on the chair, and makes his way over to me. He gets down on one knee and begins to unfasten the knots. I look down at him, smiling, and I feel his cheeks go warm. He throws away the ropes and begins on my right arm. 

    "Just loosen them, alright?"

    "Of course." I reply, forcing back trembles. He loosens the rope, then turns away to do my other hand. I begin to slip my right hand out of the rope, slow enough so he doesn't notice as he works. My heart beats faster, a bead of sweat rolling down my face. In one motion, I will myself to quickly slide my arm out, grab my pocket knife and swing it out-plunging it into his hand. Olivier and Sawney jump. The man lets out a scream, giving me time to slip my other hand out and rip the knife back out. He stares at his blood soaked hand for a moment, pulling his mask down to breath, then turn to grab his spear. A surge of strength enters me as I grab his shoulder and turn him around. I shove him into a wall and his hood falls. My hand forces the knife into his neck. I look at his face as he slowly falls to the ground and realize he's not a man at all. He's a kid. My age, or younger. I only realize this as I watch him bleed out on the ground below me, the darkness that forced my hand lingering in my chest. He lets out a few wet, warbled noises. A coldness grips me as his body jolts one last time before going completely still. The weirdest part about seeing a dead body is how frozen it is. And maybe the fact that I'm the one who took its life. I bend down, taking the knife out slowly from it's place in the boy's neck. The dark, red blood begins to ooze out like a waterfall now that it's gone. I shut his eyelids and find myself trying to rub the blood from his chin off with my thumb. It just leaves a red stain on the both of us. 

    "Adela?" Olivier says, his voice muffled from behind my wall of thoughts. I stand and face him, swallowing my emotions. Olivier looks at me, I ignore his fearful eyes as I go over and begin cutting through the ropes that hold him to the chair. Sawney stares the dead body behind me, a look of surprise in his eyes. 

    "We have to get going." Is all I say as I finish with Olivier. He begins rubbing his wrists as I move onto Sawney. 

    "Yes." He says in a whisper. Once I've finished with Sawney and he's taken his gag off, we check to make sure we have everything before escaping through an unlocked door. The sickly sweet smell of blood is quickly replaced by the aroma of burning coal, though the blood smell still stays stuck in my nostrils as we guide ourselves through the streets. The sunlight fades, swapping the giggles of children with the calls of men and replies of the pretty ladies who roam the streets at night. 

    "Let's find a place in the forest to stay the night. Preferably next to a stream." Sawney finally says after we manage to find out horses. 

    "We don't have time to rest! We have to make it to the castle before Jules and his army!" I argue, stepping up onto Argo. I just realize that I've been gripping the pocket knife with white knuckles, and slip it into my belt pocket. 

    "Adela, we need to rest if we want to have enough energy to make it through the day. We can get up early and set off again." His usual tense voice is replaced by a softer, soothing one. I nod, even though I don't agree. 

    It doesn't take us too long to find a place to camp. We find a small pond where Sawney says is a good place. I tie the horses to a low hanging branch as Sawney clears an area for us to sleep and Olivier collects fire wood. Before it gets too dark we've made ourselves a nice little place to spend the night-complete with a fire and everything. As we decide where to lay, Sawney awkwardly moves to the farthest end of our clearing and lays down there. 

    "Don't want to interfere." He says, also claiming that he needs to keep watch on that side while we do the other. I unbutton my belt, the knife falling to the ground. I join Olivier on the ground as he watches me. 

    "What?" I say, moving my stuff to the side. 

    "Are you..okay?" He asks. 

    "Yes, why wouldn't I be?" I lay down, hoping he just drops the conversation so I don't have to think about it. 

    "Adela," he says sternly, joining me on the ground. I look at him, trying as hard as I can to not let the tears fall. 

    "I did what I had to do, right?" I mean for it to come out as an annoyed question, but it leaves my lips sounding like a plea. A plea for him to tell me what I did was justified and there was nothing else I, or anyone else, could have done. The more I think about, the less sure of that I become. He turns away, staring thoughtfully at the stars above. I look too, because the hot tears come water-falling down and I can't stop it. Olivier reaches out and grabs my hand, giving it a squeeze. 

    "Princess Adela," he starts, his words hushed yet powerful. "Ever since I first saw you, I knew I loved you. That is why I memorized these words for you. I wanted you to understand me, when I tell you that I don't understand you at all. That..that is what you call 'cheesy'?"

    "Yes." A small laugh escapes, and I immediately feel guilty about it. 

    "I love you, Adela. This may be very premature, but it is true. I believe every moment is to be valued, so I must tell you before it may be too late." My hands tremble. 

    "But I killed him." I admit it to myself. I admit it to him, even though I know he was there. For the first time I realize that I actually care what someone else thinks. Maybe it's because I love him too. I scold myself. How can I be thinking these things when my families life is on the line and I'm about to lose my home. 

    "Yes, I know. I do not support what you did, but I want to support you. D'accord?" 

    "I'm tired. I think I'm going to sleep now." I turn away, his grasp leaving my hand. I'm freezing. Not only because of the coldness of the night, but because of this emptiness I feel inside as I try to block out the world around me. I don't sleep because I'm not really tired. I'm angry.