The Twelve Days of Christmas

Chapter 23

As we emerged into the quadrangle, the air bit at me. I was nowhere near dressed enough for an outdoor adventure. With just a flimsy pair of PJs on and not even having managed to grab my coat on the way out the door. Dylan would fare a little better than I in his jeans and hoody, but I doubted he would be warm. “Come on, I just need to find the right door.” He was still pulling me along.

“Dylan, we need to be careful. We can’t get caught poking around like this.” I tried to keep my voice low, but in the darkness, everything seemed to be magnified. The slightest sound seemed to bellow. Meanwhile, Dylan seemed completely unconcerned as he rattled the door handles. Trying to find the one that he said was a fake.

His theory was that there was a concrete tunnel leading under the palace and then under the fence and into the park. Except it made no sense to me. Why would they leave a door to a tunnel like that unlocked, anyway? It would be a massive security breach, surely. Then, to top it off, the entrance from the park would be even more of a risk. Anyone could get into one of the most heavily guarded buildings in the country.

I was just about to tell him as much when I heard him, “Bingo.” I was dumbfounded, but I stood there behind him looking over his shoulder and, sure enough, he had found it. Behind a simple green painted door was a dark, cold and scary tunnel.

“I am not going in there.”

“You have to.” It turned out I did have to, unfortunately. Dylan grabbed my arm and pulled as we both heard the whistling from behind us. Someone had entered the quadrangle and we couldn’t stay there without getting caught. My mind raced to Ben and how disappointed he would be with me. For lying to him for a start, but also for getting myself into trouble. He trusted me and I had betrayed him. Although, I did feel as though I had gotten a punishment just by being forced into the tunnel.

It was awful. It smelt damp, and I was sure I could see things moving across the ground. Dylan said I was imagining things, that there wasn’t enough light to see anything. We picked our way along the wall. Taking one tentative step after another. The wall felt like it was oozing liquid beneath my fingertips. If it hadn’t been my only hope of finding my way, I would have snatched my hand away from its surface. “Dylan, we should go back.”

“Whoever was out there might still be out there.”

“Maybe, but how are we going to get back if we don’t, at some point, take that risk?” I hoped I was making sense, but with the alcohol sloshing through me, I wasn’t so sure.

“So, there is no one you want to see? What about Alice? You’ve mentioned her often enough.” I paused. I did miss Alice, more than I had ever thought was possible. She was staying in my flat, so she wasn’t even far away. All we would have to do was to make our way through St James Park and we would be at the shop. I could wish her a Merry Christmas. I could get her advice on everything that had gone on. More importantly, I would see a friendly face.

“Why are you so eager to get out of the palace?”

He started tugging me forward again, and I nearly lost my footing. “I’m not. I am, however, desperate to know where this tunnel comes out. There must only be a handful of people alive who know its location, and I will be one of them. I will have a royal secret to keep.”

“I can’t decide if that is ridiculous or genius. Fine! We can go to the shop, but a single rat touches my feet and you will be lying face first on the ground.”

“You’ll be fine.”

I couldn’t believe we were down there and I couldn’t believe Dylan hadn’t been more prepared. The least he could have done would have been to bring a light with us. Instead, we were completely in the dark. I was convinced we were going to get turned around and end up stuck in the stupid tunnel forever. Well, or until the King next decided to head out of the palace alone, anyway.

Dylan stopped. “What’s wrong?”

“There’s a wall.”

“There’s been a wall the whole time.”

“No, in front of us there is a wall. Stay here.”

“Stay where? Where are you going?” Where ever it was, he didn’t feel the need to answer me, but with our connection broken, I felt completely alone in the darkness. I mean, I knew I felt safe in the darkness normally, but this was something else entirely. It was like being completely blind. There was no way for me to keep myself safe or know where I was.

Out of nowhere, light streamed through a c***k. “I found the door. It can only be opened from the inside, though.”

“So, what do we do?”

“Leave it slightly open, I guess.” I stepped out through the metal door and into the frosty night air again. Not that it had been any less cold in the tunnel, but the park felt safer, at least. I watched as Dylan carefully closed it and put a stick in between the door and the frame to stop it locking in place.

From the outside, it looked like some sort of shed. Like the sort a groundskeeper would keep his tools in. It looked completely like it belonged in every way. On the outside, the metal door was covered in timber and pretend walls had been put up too. It even had a pitched felt roof.

Then I heard a movement behind us and the fear shot through me like a lightning bolt made of ice. “Who are you? Why are you coming out of the King’s tunnel?”