3 Escape

Darrella lay in the copse and stared up at the branches. Lement had given her control as soon as they'd landed. She stood up and checked herself for injuries. Amazed that there weren't any, she brushed off the leaves and twigs that had clung to her flimsy nightgown.

"Now what," she asked.

"I don't know. We need to leave the island, but we're in a nightgown and have no money. Also, if your cousin discovers you've escaped, we might be in danger of being captured again," Lement noted.

"Surely he won't be able to kidnap me off the street. Is Annelon completely lawless?"

"Well, he was able to nab you once already. I wouldn't put it past him to do it again."

"Any recommendations? I don't know what I should do now."

"Let's head to the port and see if we can get a ship off the island. Maybe we can work for our passage. I can charge the heat stones the steamers use. That has to be worth something. From what I understand, ship captains spend a hefty sum paying guild mages for that service," Lament said.

"Won't that get us in trouble with the Mage Guild?" asked Darrella.

"Not if they don't know about it. I expect my services will be well worth the cost of passage to another island."

"Okay. Let's go."

Darrella walked out of the copse, wincing as she stepped on twigs and rocks with her bare feet. She stepped into a cobblestone street and sighed in relief from not having to navigate through the wooded area any longer.

Upon spotting Darrella, a woman wearing a black dress with frilly white lace along her neck frowned at her.

"Excuse me, ma'am," said Darrella to the woman. "If you know the way to the port, would you please direct me to it?"

The woman stepped back and her eyes widened and her expression softened. Her head swiveled to look at the white tower and then back at Darrella, "Did you just escape from the castle young lady?"

Darrella bent her knees and stepped away and ran off.

"Wait, don't run! I can help you!" cried the woman before Darrella.

Darrella heard the woman but kept running. "Do you think the whole of Annelon is in on the prince's misdeeds, Lement?"

"I don't know. I think she yelled that she can help us. Do you want to see what she has to say?"

"I'd rather play it safe than sorry." Darrella had taken a few turns and found herself in a narrow alley between a red brick building and another made out of lumber and cob. The end of the alley was blocked off by a tall wooden fence. Darrella walked up to the fence and pushed against it. "I have no idea where I am or where to go."

"Well, lookie, lookie what dropped into my neighborhood," said a man behind her. He had walked into the open end of the alley and was halfway to her. Two other men stood behind him. He was tall, heavily built, and wore a dingy tan overcoat and torn black top hat. His face was had a scar running the left side from his temple to his chin and hadn't been shaved in a few days. His yellow teeth showed black gaps as he spoke.

The two men behind him were shorter and wore black bowlers tilted down to cover their eyes and gray overcoats.

"Quick, give me control!" said Lement.

Darrella didn't even argue. With a thought, Lement took over her body. Raising her hands palm out and fingers up, using Darrella's body, Lement braced one leg in front of the other and spoke a short incantation.

Force blasted from the palms of her hands, catching all three men and lifting them off their feet. They flew about four feet and landed in a sprawl within the alley. Lement ran up to the men and braced again, sending another concussion blast to each of their heads, knocking the men out.

Lement scooted over to the smallest man and stood over him. Grabbing the gray overcoat, he rolled the man over to his stomach. He then tugged on the shoulders of the overcoat and pulled it off the man. He wrinkled Darrella's nose but donned the coat anyway. Anything was better than the nightgown they were currently wearing.

"You should've left one conscious, so we could ask him where the port is."

"And tell them where we're headed? I don't think so. I'm going to check them for money. We'll need money."

"We're going to rob these men like common criminals?" Darrella asked.

"Would they have treated us any better? Desperate times call for desperate measures."

If Darrella had control, she would have rolled her eyes, "Please tell me you don't use clichés often?"

"Whenever possible. It alleviates the need to think," replied Lement. He continued searching the men and soon found a large wad of cash.

"Doesn't this much money seem like too much for such scruffy fellows?" asked Darrella.

"I think so too. We should get as far as possible from this neighborhood. It's likely this money isn't theirs and the real owner will come looking for it soon. Do you want control back?"

"No. You keep it until we're safe. You're better prepared for emergencies than I am."

"See? I'm not so bad after all, am I?"

As Lement left the alley wearing the oversized and smelly gray overcoat and began walking down a cement sidewalk, they continued their conversation.

"I'll admit you've been extremely useful. So, thank you Lement. I hope we can find you a new body as soon as possible."

Lement knew better than to argue with Darrella about the status of their shared body. Instead, he suggested, "Let's find a clothing store and get something better to wear and ditch this smelly overcoat."

"I thought we were going to skedaddle out of the neighborhood first?"

"We look a bit dodgy ourselves. I think we should fix that problem and then move on."

"Okay," replied Darrella. They turned a corner and found themselves on a wide open plaza with many shops lining the perimeter. Spotting a used clothing store, they headed toward it and entered, ringing a bell attached to the door as she did so.

Fortunately, Darrella appeared to be the only customer in the shop. A young woman approached them and stared wide eyed at her, crinkling her nose at the smell. She asked, "Are you okay miss?"

"Yes. I just need some new clothes. I'm in a bit of a hurry, but I have money. I can pay."

"There's no need for that miss. I think I can tell what's happened to you. You were kidnapped and taken to the castle by the prince, weren't you?"

Darrella's eyes opened wide and her lips parted. She started to head toward the door, but the woman laid a gentle hand on her arm.

"There is no need to run miss. We know what the prince does and can help you." The woman gently led Lement to the back of the store and behind a partition.

"What? That scummy Prince Kell is known for kidnapping girls? asked Lement using Darrella's voice.

The young woman pursed her lips and nodded. "I'm afraid so."

"How can you help me?"

"Once the baby's born, we can help you find a good home for it. We can also help you find a good job and a place to live. Our organization is called Eyes on the Royals."

"What? I'm not pregnant. I just escaped from the prince and am trying to get off this island."

"You weren't raped and let go after you got pregnant?" asked the woman.

"No. You're telling me he's so bad you have an organization to counter him? Why doesn't someone put a stop to him?" Lement asked. He was appalled that an authority figure would act in such a manner.

Darella spoke to Lement, "I'm taking control now. I want to speak with this woman." She took over her body.

"I'm afraid there's nothing anyone can do. The king allows his son to run rampant, and the law won't interfere or prosecute him. We do the best we can to help the victims after they're released. I'm amazed you were able to escape. May I ask how? We can use that information for helping other young women in your situation."

Darella didn't know how to respond. Lement said, "Tell her that your method won't work for anyone else, so there's no use in explaining how you did it." Darella repeated what Lement said.

The woman looked disappointed but didn't press for more information. "My name is Nellina. Let me get you out of that ratty overcoat."

Darella took off the overcoat, exposing the flimsy nightgown. Nellina covered her mouth with her hand and exclaimed, "Wow. You did just escape, didn't you?"

Darella nodded, "I did. Can you find me something appropriate to wear? Again, I have money."

"Likewise, again, I say there is no need for that. We have funds to help young ladies like you, even if you're not pregnant."

Nellina picked out a light tan cotton dress, black leggings, brown socks, a pair of boots, and a dark gray jacket. Darella entered a curtained off dressing room and donned the apparel. Exiting the room, she looked at her image in a mirror. "This is great. I can't thank you enough!"

The doorbell rang, and Nellina pulled Darella back behind the partition. Nellina then exited from behind the partition and said, "Hello. May I help you — oh! Maybelle! What are you doing here?"

"Nellina! I saw a young woman on the street a few minutes ago who needs our help. She ran off before I could talk to her though! We need to find her!"

"Don't worry Maybelle. She's here, and I've already given her clothes to wear."

"Oh good! Where is she? Behind the partition?" Maybelle approached the partition in question and rounded the corner, stopping as she spied Darella. Nellina joined them.

Darella recognized the woman in the black outfit she'd seen earlier as she had exited the copse of trees after escaping the tower.

Darella gave the woman a thin lipped smile and waved at Maybelle, "Hello."

Maybelle grabbed Darella's hands and looked her in her eyes, "Are you okay, dear?"

"I'm much better now, thank you so much. I really appreciate you trying to help me. I'm sorry I ran from you, but I didn't know what to think, and I was afraid."

"Perfectly understandable," Maybelle paused and let go of Darella's hands. "We have ways of keeping you safe and getting you home. Do you want to wait here until the baby is born?"

"I'm not pregnant. I was able to escape before anything happened."

Maybelle's eyes opened wide and she opened her mouth, jerking her head back, "What? You escaped before the prince was able to have his way with you? He didn't let you go after tiring of you?"

Darella smiled, "Yes. Although, as you saw from earlier, I was less than well dressed for the escape."

Maybelle smiled back. "Indeed. I was shocked when I saw you earlier. No wonder...."

As they spoke, the bell at the door rang again. Nellina left from behind the partition and approached whoever had entered the store. Darella heard Nellina say, "What are you doing here? Get out!"

"We're looking for a little chickidee that robbed us a little while ago. She's behind your partition, isn't she?" Darella recognized the voice of the man who had accosted her in the alley. She began swiveling her head left and right, looking for a back exit.

Maybelle whispered, "Don't worry dear. I'll take care of this." She exited from behind the partition and approached the men. "Gar, you and your two goons get out of here if you know what's good for you!"

"Maybelle! We're just looking for the wench who robbed us of our cash and took Nef's overcoat. We're guessing she's one of the prince's cast-offs and is here, isn't she?"

"You have five seconds to leave before you'll wish you'd left," threatened Maybelle.

"Okay, okay. No need to get rough with us. If you see that woman, let her know we won't forget what she did!" Darella heard the door open with the sound of the bell again, the men leave, and the door close.

Nellina and Maybelle walked back to behind the partition. "We better get you out of here sooner than later. Those boys work for the prince sometimes and are likely on their way to his men to let them know where you are."