Mon Étoile

Chapter Two

Spotting the untouched plate of food kicked aside, Léo remarked, "You should eat, Brother."

He didn't move, but asked in a hollow, hoarse voice, "Have you done what I asked you to?"

"I've been to see her," he replied. "She is well, Hercule. Quite the mouth on her, as well. I wouldn't have taken you for wanting that kind of fire."

"Why do you lie to me, Léo?" Enjolras asked, his voice dull and depressed sounding. "Father's already been to see me. He told me that she tried to escape and was killed in the struggle."

Brows furrowed, Léo said, "When did he tell you this?"

"Half an hour ago," Enjolras said glumly.

"That's not possible," Léo said slowly. His eyes suddenly widened and he said, "I have to go." Hercule stared after him in confusion but said nothing.

............................................................

The cold of the walls seeped into my skin as I sat in the dark. Dried blood coated my wrists in crusty ringlets that made me feel slightly anxious. Pounding footsteps rushed towards me, causing my head to shoot up. A dark figure was at the door and seemed to be fiddling with the lock.

The voice of Léo said, "We need to go. Now."

"What are you talking about?" I snapped.

Finally getting the door opened, he rushed in and grabbed my upper arm, and pulled me to my feet as he explained, "They're coming in here to kill you. Shut up and come on." I bit back the retort dancing on the tip of my tongue and followed after him. The chains around my wrists still cut into my flesh as he dragged me along through hallways and corridors.

He seemed to know the palace like the back of his hand and soon we came across a line of double doors. Opening one of these, he pushed me in and said, "Stay here I'll be back." Glancing up and down the hall anxiously, he shut the door. The shock of what had just happened froze me in place for so long it was almost an electric shock when I became aware of what was around me.

I was standing in a lavishly furnished room. The outside room I stood in had a table, a desk, a couch, and a few chairs. Behind a pair of curtains was a carefully made bed and a large wardrobe. Even one of the chairs or blankets in this room could have fed Gavorache for months. On the table sat a bowl of fruit and a small plate with an unfinished meal.

My stomach grumbled, but I turned away from it and moved cautiously over to the window. Looking outside, you wouldn't have been able to guess that half of Paris lived in poverty. This window only showed the lavish parts of Paris and other parts of the palace. The door behind me opened and I whipped around, glad to see it was only Léo.

"You need to hide, now," he said quickly, rushing towards his wardrobe. To my surprise, he went just beyond it to the wall. The walls were made of large bricks that had to weigh at least fifty pounds each, if not more. After staring at it for a moment, he lay his palms in the center of two of the bricks and began to push. To my surprise, the wall gave way, turning inwards to reveal a dark passageway. Panting slightly, he gestured for me to go in.

"Thank you," I said quickly, rushing in. With my help, he got the wall shut, leaving me in the dark. And not a moment too soon. The moment the wall was closed, I heard the door to the room bang open.

"What is the meaning of this?" Léo demanded.

"The girl is gone," Lord Enjolras thundered.

"What girl?" Léo asked. Props to him for sounding genuinely confused.

"That brat your brother has gotten himself tangled with," Lord Enjolras thundered. "We were heading down to her cell to behead her and she disappeared. She's weak. There's no way she could have broken out on her own and the lock wasn't forced. We're just doing a routine search."

"Believe me, Father, if a woman in distress appeared in my room, I would know," Léo said, a smirk in his voice. I rolled my eyes. After half a dozen minutes or so, the footsteps disappeared and the door shut. His light, happy expression gone, Léo opened the wall and let me out into the sunlight. I was momentarily blinded as the light hit me in full force, but after a moment of blinding, I could see again.

"Thank you," I said, attempting to move the chains from my bleeding and irritated wrists.

His expression remained drawn as he said quietly, "Look, I saved you for my brother's sake, but if this turns out to be more perilous than it's worth, I will turn you in."

"Then just get me out of the palace," I countered. "You don't need to hide me. I just need to get Hercule and get out of here."

After thinking a moment, Léo said, "Getting him out won't be easy, at least not for a while. After your escape, they will be on high alert until either you are caught or they are confident they fixed the issue of how you got out."

"Then what would you have me do?" I snapped.

"I will keep you hidden and make sure you survive until things settle down and then I will get you and my brother out," he promised.

Narrowing my eyes, I asked, "Why? You just said that this is potentially perilous to you. Why would you help us and get nothing out of it?"

"I never said I'd get nothing out of it," Léo countered. "It will be a week or more before I can get the two of you out. Until then, you will explain to me why you and Hercule did everything that you did."

My eyes narrowing slightly, I studied him before asking, "Why are you so intent on figuring us out?"

"My older brother has always been the good son. He was always the one who said and did the right thing. He has never in his entire life been a bully or violent in any way. My father wants me to believe that Hercule has turned feral and violent and uncaring, but it doesn't make sense. He wouldn't become like that just out of nowhere."

"Because he didn't," I said.

"Then will you tell me everything?" Léo asked, staring at me intently. I stared into his desperate and confused eyes with uncertainly as I thought about it.

Finally, I said, "Okay, I'll tell you the story of the revolution."