The Fall of Dewan

Chapter 8 Hiding

 Artemis spent little time celebrating his kill. He ordered two of his men to remove Cassius and Leif's bodies from the throne room and display them at the entrance of the castle.

"Display them how?", one of the soldiers questioned.

"Creatively", Artemis responded. "Just make sure it sends the message to any remaining Dewanians that the royal family is no more".

The two soldiers did as they were ordered. Leif's body was hung from the entry way arch of the castle and Cassius's head displayed beside it on a stake. Neither of the soldiers felt any pride doing so, both plagued by the realization that the two boys were still just children.

Artemis demanded the rest of the men search the castle. "Find the girl. This war isn't won until she joins her brothers".

Genevieve had done as she was told. After leaving the throne room she had run as fast as she could to the servant's quarters and climbed in the cupboard as Cassius instructed. As she sat in the tight space she could almost pretend she was still a young girl playing hide and seek with her brothers and Addy. She was lucky she still had such a small frame or she would not have fit.

She was in the cupboard for hours before two soldiers finally came and searched the room. When she heard them enter she held her breath, heart racing so fast she thought it might burst. She listened as the soldiers talked, neither looking particularly hard. One said, "I hope someone finds the girl soon. I want to get out of here" tThe other replying, "I know. I kind of hope she's already dead though. I took no joy in watching Artemis kill the other two".

Genevieve prayed she had misheard what the second had said. Lief and Cassius couldn't be dead. Silent tears fell as she remained in the cupboard. Any pain that she had felt in her cramped legs was now gone, replaced by the pain of a broken heart.

No solider found Genevieve that night, Artemis demanded that the soldiers continue searching but they were all exhausted from battles of the previous days. None had the bravery to deny him to his face, so all simply agreed to go search while instead finding a place to nap. After hours of sitting, Genevieve finally decided it was time to move. If her brothers were truly dead no one was coming to find her, she needed to flee.

It was around midnight when Cecila and Gerold finally reached the castle. Cecila dropped to the ground and wailed when she spotted her sons' dead bodies, Gerold never shedding a tear- instead staring with a pale face and sorrow filled eyes. He eventually gathered Cecila into his arms. "There's nothing we can do for them now. They are gone. But Genevieve's body is not here. If they had her, she would no doubt up up there with her brothers. We still may be able to save one of our children", he said as his voice trembled.

The thought of Genevieve still alive calmed Cecila and gave her a new sense of purpose. She slowly rose to her feet, still unable to put weight on her left leg. "If we are quick and quiet, we may be able to sneak in through the east gate," she said as she pulled herself on to her horse. Gerold followed without a word, sharing her same sense of determination.

They were able to get into the castle without anyone noticing, but the issue became what to do once inside. They spent a little over an hour looking for Genevieve with no avail and soldiers were beginning to wake from their slumbers. It was difficult to creep around a castle when one could hardly walk and the others' head was still spinning. They began to retreat back for the east gate, they would regroup and tend to their wounds, then come back with a plan. Both were about thirty feet from the gate when they heard a voice behind them.

"What a nice surprise. I was quite upset that I wasn't able to kill you both myself at the border. Looks like I'll still have the chance", the voice said.