𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐨𝐛𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐭𝐬

Between bars | Dwalin

Dwalin was sitting on the floor, right in the center of his cell, locked behind a door and bars. His brow was furrowed the entire time as he peered through the cracks in the door that separated him from the outside, tired of being locked up for weeks. He was waiting for the food, for it was already noon. Apparently the man who was in charge of serving the food was taking longer than necessary, but this time it was important that he arrive as soon as possible, because, obviously, Dwalin would not stay locked in that filthy place much longer.

Suddenly, footsteps were heard outside. Dwalin fixed his eyes on the light streaming under the door and could see a shadow standing just behind it.

"Here's today's food, big bear," said the man, handing him the tray with the food and... With something else. Some keys that were secretly kept under the napkin.

"Thank you, laddie," Dwalin said in a low tone of voice, picking up the tray and putting the keys away. First of all he had to leave his plate empty before proceeding to carry out his plan, especially seeing that that day there was meat on the menu and not that annoying green food.

He finished removing the remains of meat from the bone and placed it on the plate with the rest of the bones. Then he pushed the tray aside, got out of bed, and got ready to carry out his plan. He took the keys that he had left under the pillow and put one of them in the lock, careful not to make noise, and then, just as cautiously, he leaned out to look around, seeing that, apparently, the way was clear. He left the cell and closed the door carefully, beginning to walk towards that place he had planned to escape.

However... Some damned onlookers had their eye on him.

"Where do you think you are going?" asked a prisoner from his cell, getting several more prisoners to peek between the bars.

"Shut up for once and get into your own business!" Dwalin replied, shouting in a whisper.

"Get us out of here, you bastard! We had agreed that we would all go out of here!" the prisoner from before whispered in a cry.

"Give me time! I have to carry out my plan quickly!" Dwalin said in a voice that was louder than normal.

Suddenly, at the end of the corridor, a shadow could be seen walking in his direction, and that alerted Dwalin.

"Shit!" he whispered, clenching his teeth and clenching his fist.

"Hey! Prisoner! Don't escape!" the guard yelled, running to capture Dwalin as he alerted the rest of the guards with a gualquitalke. Dwalin didn't know at times what to do, other than to look everywhere.

"How did you get out of your cell!?" the guard asked, but Dwalin decided to run up the stairs, for the area below was infested with guards. His plan was to go upstairs, because just before entering the jail, he could see some stairs next to the wall that went down to the roof of a house and then, he could go down to the street. That could be his salvation, and he was wondering for weeks how he would get there by hearing the guards and prisoners talking and, at the same time, observing everything with curiosity. He had already devised his plan, but it was another thing to be able to carry it out. At the moment everything was playing against him.

He kept running, trying to find the passage that would help them all to get out of that prison, as it was connected to the showers and, after eating, many prisoners normally decided to take a bath. It would be perfect for all of them to warn the rest that they could escape when the guards were clueless, since the entrance to the small passage was quite well hidden. There was an exit near the passage, just one floor up.

Dwalin, however, was not entirely sure whether to get them all out, as he didn't know the crimes each of those prisoners had committed. But, in order to escape, he had to promise them all, promise that he would help them get out of bars.