Chapter 15

Soon enough, Thérèse  and Bernard reached Bayonne. Their horses' pace slowed as they trod down a gray stone path towards wrough-iron gates. Thérèse  locked eyes with Bernard. He nodded once briefly, as if to reassure her. She swallowed the lump in her throat. They both looked towards the castle. There were three guards out front; one on either side of the gate, and another behind it. The two in front of the gate were lounging lazily. One leaned up against it, biting his nails. The other looked like he was on the edge of sleep. His head bobbed slowly towards his chest, then snapped back up as he struggled to stay awake. The third paced slowly back and forth, silently counting down the seconds until the end of his shift. Thérèse  and Bernard continued their approach. 

As the guards heard the sound of hooves coming down the path, they snapped to attention. When Thérèse  and Bernard were thirty feet from the gate, one of the guards called out to them. 

"Who goes there?" he yelled. 

"Thérèse , of the royal family of Argence, and Bernard, of the army of Argence." Thérèse  responded. Tension filled the air as the three young men realized who they were speaking to. 

"Have you come to surrender?' the guard behind the gate asked. 

"No." Bernard replied. "We are here to meet with your leader." Bernard shot a nervous glance at Thérèse , unsure of how to continue. "We..we want to work towards an agreement that suits both Argence and Bayonne. Take us to whomever is leading this usurpation." 

The two front guards turned to look at the one behind the gate. He nodded and waved Thérèse  and Bernard forward. 

"Very well." he said. "Let them in. Open the gates." 

Each of the front guards grabbed one half of the gate and pulled it open. Thérèse  and Bernard rode cautiously through. 

This isn't right. Thérèse  thought. It shouldn't have been this easy. Something's not right. 

—

Henri led his group down the overgrown forest path towards Bayonne. They were silent as they rode. The four of them understood the difficulty and trials they were about to willingly endure. That didn't make it any easier. 

When they reached the end of the path, they dismounted. 

"The path ends here. We'll have to go the rest of the way on foot. The sound of the horses would be a dead give away. Tie them up here. It's only about a mile walk." Henri instructed. 

They started their short hike towards the stolen palace. Even though it was only a mile, it was laborious. It was mostly uphill, and the group was constantly tripping over rocks, tree branches, and other clutter strewn about the path. The trail towards the castle wasn't well-known, and so it wasn't well-maintained. It was difficult for them to walk without the noise of heavy breathing and curse words giving them away. Somehow, they made it. 

The wall of the palace seemed to appear out of nowhere. It jumped out of the forest like a sudden assailant. There was a collective sigh of relief as the wall came into view with no one guarding it. They were safe, for now. All eyes turned to Henri, waiting for directions. 

He started towards the wall and waved for the others to follow him. It was nearly invisible. The wall in front of them was massive, and entirely brick. A few windows were carved out higher up for the back rooms of the castle. Ivy and moss grew along the back, flourishing in the dark, moist environment. Henri began to run his hands gently along the layers of stone. What he was looking for was a single brick, marked with a faint "X" that had been carved when the castle was built. It had withstood the trials of time, somehow, and now would provide a way for them to slip inside undetected. After ten minutes of caressing the bricks, Henri's fingers felt the small grooves of the ancient carved letter. He placed both of his hands on the wide brick and pushed with all of his strength. Nothing happened. 

"Help me!" Henri hissed at Zin. The mountainous man also placed his hands on the brick. The two of them threw their combined body weight against the stone. It made a grating sound as it sunk back into the wall. Stone ground against stone as the two men pushed. A few feet away, a column of brick popped out a few inches from the rest of the wall. It was the edge of a secret door. Mehala and Caram gripped as much of it as they could with their fingertips and began to pry the door open. They were fighting against years of decay and forest overgrowth. Eventually the pair managed to open the door. It swung out towards them, hitting the wall with a heavy thump. Everyone froze for a moment, hoping no one had heard. When it seemed clear, the group scurried hurriedly through the door. Zin was the last one in. He ducked through the doorframe and grabbed the edge of the door with one giant hand. He took one last look at their surroundings, then pulled the door closed, plunging them into inky darkness.