REDEMPTION

23. THE PLAN.

Audrey turned in her sleep, her body felt sluggish plus she did not know how long she had been asleep for. The last thing she could remember was seeing Midnight in her room, but, that had to be a dream right? And the dream she had, was it real? Or was it just an illusion? And if it was, what did she have anything to do with it?

She realized that she could not move. Her body was tired, too tired to even lift a finger but she still tried moving. She could not. Audrey tried to open her eyes, but it took sometime. Bright light penetrated her eyes making her squint. It took her more time to get used to the light and when she did, she noticed she was tied up.

Her head was banging so loud that she felt her soul drifting from the world. She had been poisoned. She was sure of it. Her body was numb, her fingers had turned black and her veins were turning into a shade she had never seen before. Moreover, they were glowing. But what caught her attention was her eyes. She was not sure why but she could not see. She was not totally blind but, she could not what was where or what she was wearing. Audrey’s vision was blurry.

Audrey had never worn glasses before so she was sure something was wrong the moment she opened her eyes. She tried again, but it was no use. And for a moment, he vision seemed to be getting worse! She closed her eyes and tried focusing one her other senses. Her ears were working, thank the heavens, so she was not badly off. She could tell where things were from the vibrations they made as well as what animal they were from their sounds.

She used her hands to feel the place she was seated. It was rough and had holes in it. Her hands couldn’t go further since they were tied to her sides. Her feet were tied too but whatever had tied them was not attached to whatever had tied her mid section. She moved her feet and that’s when she realized that her feet were bear. She was seated on something wooden, it had to be a carriage. A neigh from outside confirmed her guess. Three down, one critical left to go. Audrey let out a sigh and hummed as quiet as she could be.

It worked. She could still talk. All that was left was to find out where she was. Who had taken her and the reason behind it. Later, she can find out where her family was. Something within her to her that her chances were slim and she later knew why.

A whip whacked something. The vibration from it allowed her to see what was around her. They were on a slim path that ran for miles. Around them were trees that looked somehow familiar to her. She could tell that she was the only one in the carried. Even though the design outside was quite lavish, the interior was not. Audrey was placed in a position that was kind of safe. If she had made the mistake of struggling to find a way out, she would have fallen through the hole that was not too far from her.

That would have let to a serious injury since the mechanisms that ran the wheels were right below the whole. Perhaps they were placed there on purpose. And if she had decided to stand and ask for help, the wood below her was too old to support her weight hence, it would have crashed under the pressure. She would not have had a serious injury but it would be fatal since the wood had to be carrying more defects than the mechanisms under the hole.

If this had occurred, the poison in her body would travel faster to its destination and with the help of the bacteria, her time in this world would have been ended abruptly. Audrey was sure that whoever had placed her there did not want her to leave and he made sure she wouldn’t. She also noticed that that person really wanted her dead.

Audrey’s chest tightened. She felt something threaten to climb up her throat. She did not have the strength to hold it back. She coughed and out came something sticky. Opening her eyes, she could somehow tell the color. It was blood. Her throat itched and burned. Tears slowly fled from her eyes. She breathed faster as pain shot from her chest.

Her whole body burned and she lifted her head. She held her breath, holding back a scream that threatened to scar the world. Audrey did not want to give her kidnappers the opportunity to know that she was in pain, or that their poison was working. Her heart palpitated faster signaling that the poison had reached it. This also told her that soon her whole body would be covered in the poison. And then…

For a moment, she stopped thinking. Her world became darker. Was this really it? What was wrong had she done to deserve this? Was she really wrong? Who was that little girl who resembled Millim? Was it Millim or was it another person’s past that Millim wanted her to have? Where was her family? Were they worried about her?

Her conscience told her that they weren’t. At least, her father wasn’t. Shawn would only do it because mother would not rest until she saw her again. Ralph would not know what was going on because his memory was wiped clean. She found herself smiling to herself. Her vision continued becoming darker but her eyes were open.

The tight feeling in her chest lifted miraculously. She could not see if the color of her veins had gone nor could she feel it. Audrey let out a breath she had been holding and started panicking. Her sight! Her sight was gone!? What cruel human could take away her only chance to appreciate the beauty of the world. Tears were falling from her eyes as she tried to think. Nothing.

“Calm down, I can fix it but not to a hundred percent,” a familiar calm voice said.

Audrey wanted to call out to Millim but she couldn’t. Her voice was gone as well. She never knew if a poison that could take away both her vision and speech. Shocked, she tried talking again. Hoping against hope that someone would realize she was having a nightmare and save her from it. No one did. No one saw her. Even the coachman who noticed a wiggle from inside the carriage carried on as if nothing out if the ordinary had occurred.

She concentrated on the other senses she had used before. They were all okay. Her ears were fine and her sense of touch was okay as well. All she was left with was her sense of taste. Audrey was no reckless risk taker but at the moment, she was desperate. She lowered her body forcefully on the shaky wood beneath her causing it to c***k, and kicked it. It tasted awful. It was worse than that one time Ralph had dares to cook in the kitchen. The food he was proud of made the member of their family have a simulacrum.

It might have tasted awful but Audrey smile was bigger bad brighter than before. She coughed up more blood. The banging in her head only grew worse and her body could not keep up with these constant fluctuations. Her brain ordered her to relax a’d she passed out.

The coachman continued in their journey to wherever it was that he was taking her. The old man was dressed in great clothes that matched the carriage he was driving. His white hair was combed backward and his beard was trimmed to show off his intelligence. One could tell that he knew what was going from the way he constantly tried to look into the carried. It seemed as though he was trying to confirm whether the lady inside was dead.

He had been paid good money to transport her to a deserted building that used to be a court house thousands of years ago. He had also bee given conditions. They were simple to follow and he was added more money just for memorizing them. At first, he was against it since the young lady was about the same age as his granddaughter but when money more than what he had held in his entire life was placed before him, he could not say no.

He was instructed to continue on with his journey, however when the mechanisms stopped, he was to assume that the lady had moved in her sleep. He was then to call for help claiming that his mistress had died due to a malfunction of the carriage’s mechanisms.

Furthermore, if she was to stand and fall beneath the carriage, he was to stop too. Since she would have been injured not only by the sharp planks of wood left on the carriage and part of the rotating carriage mechanism, he would still call for help. This time however, he was to blame the manager of her house for not ensuring that the carriage was safe for use.

This was a way for him as well as his benefactor to escape without being detected by anyone. And since the Angel family was widely known, no one would suspect their servants. If anyone did so, it meant they would be doubting the household as well. The old man was also a widely known coachman, wanted by most houses, both royal and noblemen. His word was always believed by many, whether he was right Or wrong. Whether he lied or not. This was because he was always stood his ground on who he was loyal to.

In this world, that was worth more than gems and money could buy. Everyone killed to get their hands on him but, they could not make their advances because of the Angel household. It was not only well known but was also treated equal to royals. The royals of the nation treated them like family. And it had been that way since time immemorial.

As the sun was setting, the coach arrived before a two old gates. They squeaked as they were dragged open. They entered and the gates were shut. The coach finally came to a halt. The old man got down and saluted.

“Is she still alive?” a voice asked, void of emotion.

“Am afraid so, sire.”

A group of people who had been waiting for them approached. Their faces told their story. They looked pissed, ready to killed whoever had the guts to provoke them. One of them, was dressed in an attire that outshined the rest present. His posture could tell you that he was important. He strode and halted beside Claus. His gaze was cold but no one could read his emotions from his face or how he behaved.

“Bring her forth.”

“Your highness.”

Two men who had followed him closely, walked passed him and opened the carriage door. They took Audrey out and dropped her roughly on the ground like a sack of potatoes. She had regained consciousness, however, her body was still unaware of her surroundings. She lay on the floor and listened.

“Worthless murderer, respect the Royal family!” Someone said this as they grabbed her hair, forcing her to kneel. This made her involuntarily open her eyes. The prince, lifted his hand. The guard stopped. Anger flashed in his eyes.

“Tell me why you had to kill your mother…” Claus erupted but stopped mid sentence. He wanted to say more but he stopped himself.

The Prince looked him in the eye and Claus knew he was in for it. Audrey could not tell why her “father” had stopped. Her heart had already stopped when he mentioned that her mother was dead. What was going on? She could not tell what she looked like at the moment. Her hair had become white with a black streak running from her left side. Her eyes were white as well. Her veins stuck out meaning that she was drugged and poisoned.

She was unkempt. Audrey was nothing like what she looked like. And no one would even recognize her.

“Who are you?” The prince asked.