Forbidden (The Secret World Of Atlantis 2)

Chapter 10 - Chasing Freedom

I freeze in horror, looking around in panic, as I try to find a way out. Run! Eros yells through his mind and I for once I obey him immediately. I sprint towards the door, which I’ve come through and close it. I touch it, creating a seal on it. It won’t hold for long, but it might give me enough time to run away.

But as I’m about to turn the corner, I decide to stop and check if the air is clear. I duck back quickly, as I notice a number of Guardians patrolling the hallway. No! I’m trapped! I look back as I hear spells hitting the door. Then I get an idea. I know it’s a long shot, but it’s my only option this moment.

I disappear through the curtain and enter the secret room, sealing the door behind me once again. I can hear the commotion from the courtroom, as there’s only another curtain separating me from it. I hide behind the bench, so if anyone comes into the room, they wouldn’t see me.

A moment later, the Guardians are able to break through the door, that leads out of the courtroom. I wait in silence, crossing my fingers that no one knows about this secret room. If they don’t, I might even stand a chance.

“Find her and bring her straight to me!” I can hear my father yell dangerously close to the curtain. “Judge, I need to have a word with you,” he then grits through his teeth. Oh dear. This can’t be good.

“Wait for the courtroom to clear out,” the judge responds. “Prince Callisto, you’re free to go too. You’re not handcuffed anymore,” he then addresses Eros. I stiffen. I thought I felt him in the courtroom. He must leave, I don’t want my father to pull any more tricks on him.

“Of course, sir. I just wanted to thank you,” Eros explains. Where are you? I can feel your presence, he reaches out to me suddenly. I am so stunned, that I need a moment to respond.

I’m in a hidden room behind the curtain. No one, but the judge knows about it. I’m safe, now go, I’ve just pulled you out of danger, I don’t want you to jump straight into it again, I declare, hoping that he’s going to listen to me.

“Very well, then. You did thank me. I would head to the Royal Port if I were you, I believe the delivery ship for the Academy leaves in twenty minutes,” the judge responds to Eros. But his words make panic overtake me. Oh shoot, there’s no way I’ll get out of here in time. And my bag! My bag is in the judge’s office!

“I appreciate your concern. I best be on my way then. Farewell,” he tells them. I can hear his footsteps echoing across the courtroom.

“Do you think you can pull something like that and just get back to your life? This is far from over,” my father snarls, making the footsteps tone down. There’s a moment of silence, before Eros responds to his words.

“I never meant for this to happen … But you’re going to have to accept that whatever you do to me, is going to affect your daughter through the bond. Have a nice day, gentlemen,” he speaks in a cold tone, before leaving. I stay where I am, disappointed that he didn’t even bother to respond back.

“What is it you wished to speak to me about, Your Majesty?” the judge suddenly asks my father. I suppose this means, that they’re the only people left in the courtroom.

“About how you managed to find the witness in the last moment. I thought you said you wouldn’t extract any witnesses from the Academy, yet alone the main one. This was our deal,” father sneers at the judge.

“And I didn’t. She came to me on her own,” he explains, not sounding like he’s scared of the King one bit. I listen intently on the conversation, while trying to hear if anyone figured out there’s a door behind the curtain on the hallway.

“It doesn’t matter! You weren’t supposed to let her testify! I’ve already told you the only possible outcome of this trial! Or do you want to finish the way he was supposed to?!” I cover my mouth with my hand, to prevent a gasp from escaping me. I can’t believe my ears.

“I didn’t defy you, Your Majesty. I am sorry you think so. I was only doing my job and pleading that young man guilty after what I’ve heard, wouldn’t be right. You can threaten me all you want, but the hearing is finished. There’s nothing I can do for you,” the judge fights back with a sharp tone. There’s a sickening silence on the other side. It makes chills run down my spine.

“Don’t ever pull a stunt like this again. One more mistake … And you’re off,” father snarls in a voice so foreign, that it doesn’t even sound like his own. I listen intently, waiting for what is going to happen, but nothing. The judge only has two more words to say.

“After you,” he declares, marking the conversation finished. I can hear their footsteps echo across the empty courtroom, as the judge escorts my father out. But as the door closes behind them, I still don’t dare to leave my hiding place. What if Guardians come back to look for me? Or worse, maybe they are still inside, waiting quietly for me to come out of hiding? I pull my knees towards my chin, not daring to peek out from the secret room. I know I’m going to miss the ship to the Academy, but there’s nothing I can do about it. It’s not safe for me to get out of here just yet.

Not even a minute later, I can hear the door opening. I already think, that Guardians found out about my hiding place, but I soon realize, that this door remains closed. Someone’s in the courtroom. I listen to their footsteps, panicking as I can hear them heading straight towards me. Oh no. Not the secret room, please not the secret room. But as I hear the person pulling the curtain away, I freeze, doing my best not to move or make any other sound. Fear is eating me up, unable to sense the one, who found me.

“Get up, we need to leave,” I suddenly hear a very familiar voice. I rise from behind the bench slowly, my knees going weak as I meet Eros’s burning gaze. How was I not able to feel his presence? Was I so afraid, that my abilities gave away?

“I didn’t think you’d come find me,” I state, unsure of how to talk to him. We’ve left a lot of things unresolved after all. “And … You have my bag! How did you …?”

“There’s no time for this, follow me,” he responds in a cold voice. I’m not sure if he’s talking about what I said, or what I thought of.

“Wait, I need to change! I’m too easily recognized wearing this,” I argue. He gives me the bag, trying to avoid touching my hand, then steps outside and waits for me to change back into a normal citizen.

I do my best to be as quick as possible, but he still doesn’t look pleased, when I get out. “Finally,” he remarks, before nudging his head in the direction of the door I sealed. “We go through there. There’s a window nearby. The plan is pretty simple. We’re going to jump from there, one by one and open our wings right before landing, then hide them away quickly,” he explains, before opening the door without giving me a chance to respond. I rush after him, expecting to see a ton of Guardians waiting for us, but the hallway’s empty.

“Where did they all go?” I ask, without really expecting a response. And I don’t get it. I try not to feel hurt, but it’s hard not to. I force myself to push my feelings aside, I need to get out of here first. If I don’t, I won’t be able to do anything to change those feelings.

“I’ll go first. Watch me carefully,” he informs me, already opening the window. It’s scary, watching him climb onto the ledge and stand there. “You have nothing to fear,” he says after a moment of hesitation. Oh shoot, I totally forget, that he’s able to read my mind. I blush as I realize, what I’ve been thinking about before.

I gasp, as he leaps from the window suddenly, making me lean over and watch him fall. There’s a terrified scream building up inside me, as I think he won’t open his wings at all, but then he does, in the last moment. He lands silently and so effortlessly, that he already puts me to shame before I even jumped. He looks up, motioning for me to join him, then looks around to make sure no one’s watching.

I climb onto the ledge with a big lump in my throat. I can feel my stomach turning just by looking down. Eros is the size of a mouse, from where I’m standing. My legs begin to shake and I can feel panic building up inside me. He waves at me once again, this time a bit impatiently. Alright. I can do this. It’s the only way to escape my fate. I close my eyes, take a deep breath and then … I jump.

Somewhere midst falling I open my eyes, only to realize, that I’m forgetting something. Eros is already yelling at me: “Your wings! Open your wings!” I gasp, forcing my wings out of my shoulders. They come out just in time to make me slow down a bit, but I still land on the ground hard, rolling over a few times. As I finally come to a stop, everything hurts. Even my wings.

I turn to my stomach, making the wings disappear back into my body. “Are you insane? Why would you close your eyes?” Eros scolds me, panic evident in his voice. I pick myself up, knowing very well, that I can’t count on his help. He’s not willing to touch me just yet. His expression darkens as he reads my mind. “Don’t even expect me to,” he snarls and I gasp in shock.

“How can you be so heartless? Why are you acting like this after everything we’ve been through?” I ask, unable to keep my mouth shut any longer. I know he’s better than this.

“I’m not good,” he grits through his teeth, making my blood boil. That’s it. He’s pulled the last straw.

“Stop barging into my head, if you don’t have the intention of letting me into yours!” I snap at him, making his face fall blank.

“Then shield it,” he remarks nonchalantly. I stare at him, gaping. Is he serious right now? How am I supposed to know that kind of magic? “We need to go, are you okay to walk?” he continues, ignoring my thoughts for once. I just nod, unwilling to speak another word to him.

We turn the corner just in time because a moment later, we can hear the shouting of Guardians. “I swear I’ve heard her yelling here!” one argues, only making us quicken our pace. I do my best to keep my head down, but Eros is still attracting attention towards us.

“We need to split up. People are going to recognize me next to you,” I murmur. He only nods in response and turns the corner, while I continue towards the Royal Port without taking any byways. Somehow he still manages to get there before me. I can see his familiar walk from afar, then watch as he climbs up the ship.

Just as I’m about to breathe out a sigh of relief, I can see him stop and turn his gaze somewhere behind me. I turn around, noticing about a dozen of Guardians, making their way towards the Port. I can’t run! It will be too suspicious and they’re only going to catch me faster! My eyes meet with Eros’s.

Keep walking. I’ll tell the sailors to get going. When you see the ship moving, run, he orders me. I don’t respond, but I don’t have any intention of going against him. This is the only way for me to escape my father’s hand. And there’s no guarantee, that it’s going to work.

I try not to look over my shoulder, as to not raise any suspicions. But it’s so hard, not knowing how close they are. I take my chance only as I notice the ship beginning to move. I glance behind me, only to have one of the Guardians meet my eyes. He recognizes me immediately, but I don’t wait to see what he’s going to do. I know they’re coming after me.

I take off, holding the skirt of my dress up, so I can move more freely. I can see the tense look on Eros’s face as he watches the Guardians chase me. I can hear them yelling at me to stop. But I don’t have the intention of doing that. The ship is moving away a bit too quickly for my taste, but I push myself even harder, sprinting towards the edge of the pier. In that moment, I leap through air, my breath hitching in my throat, as I realize, that I’m too far away. I’m not going to make it.

I wave my arms around, trying desperately to grab the net, that’s hanging across the side of the ship, but I know it’s no use. I can already see myself landing in the water, losing the last hope of escaping my fate, when I feel a strong wind lift me up. In the next moment I land hard on the wooden planks of the deck. I grunt in pain, before raising my eyes to see Eros staring down at me with a blank expression. I already mean to smile at him, but before my muscles react, he turns around and disappears below deck, leaving me alone with some very flustered sailors.