Crimson Rose: The Crooked Man and the Crooked Cat

Chapter 15: The Escape

Emily grabbed the doorknob, but the door wouldn't open. "Mama, unlock the door. Please unlock the door." Emily asked. "Forget it, Emily. Mom locked us in." said Annette bitterly.

"But why would she lock us in?" Emily asked, close to tears. "Because she's under Mother Goose's curse. She won't listen to us." Suddenly, they heard someone approached the bedroom door. "Shh!" Annette motioned Emily to be quiet.

"Dearies, is everything all right?" Mother Goose's voice said on the other side of the door. Emily was about to open her mouth when Annette covered it.

"Don't worry, dearies. I can help you. I can unlock the door for you, but when I do, you must give me the sword." Annette gritted her teeth. "No! I won't give you the sword! Forget it, lady!" she said angrily. "Don't be afraid. I won't hurt you. I just want your sword." said Mother Goose.

"I know what you're planning! I'm not falling for any of your tricks!" Annette said boldly.

Then Mother Goose said in a tone that made their blood run cold: "If you don't give me the sword, you will pay dearly for your disrespect! I'll give you one night to consider my offer!" With that, she left.

Annette sighed in frustration. "This is really bad. Mom's under Mother Goose's spell, she locked the door on us and Mother Goose threatened us to give the sword to her."

"I miss Mommy, Annette. I'm scared." Emily said, hugging Annette's leg.

"Don't be scared, Emily. We'll figure out a way." Annette said, patting her head. "We just can't let that witch stay in our house! We've gotta figure out a way to drive her out!" "But how? She locked us in." Emily said. "Don't worry. Like I said, we'll figure out a way."

Annette looked around the room. She laid eyes on her bed, and then she looked at the window. An idea popped into her head. "I think I have an idea." she said, smiling. "What?" Emily asked. "We'll escape through the window."

"How?" Emily asked, confused. "We'll use the sheets and the blanket as a rope to climb out the window."

"Oh."

So Annette started to take the blanket and the sheets off her bed. She tied the ends of the sheets to the end of her blanket. "Tie this end to the bedpost. I throw the other out the window." Annette said. Emily tied the sheet end to the bedpost. Annette threw the other end out the bedroom window. She looked down.

The distance from her bedroom window to the sidewalk is roughly 12 feet. She didn't know how long the sheets and blanket is, but that doesn't matter. She needed to get to Northington and find Noir and Hoots.

She carefully climbed out the window and climbed down the wall. "Annette, be careful." Emily whispered nervously. "Don't worry, I'll be okay." Annette carefully climbed down the wall to the ground.

She stopped at a window. She peered inside and nearly gasped. Mother Goose was close to the window! But thankfully, she saw Mother Goose's back.

Mother Goose didn't see her. Annette sighed in relief. Wasting no time, she quickly hopped onto the ground. She turned to Emily. "Okay, Emily! Now it's your turn!" whispered Annette.

"Me?" Emily whispered back. "Yeah! Climb down! But be careful! Mother Goose is nearby the window!" Emily started to climb out the window. "Be careful, Emily! Don't you worry, I'll be right here." whispered Annette. She grabbed the bottom of the makeshift rope and pulled it away from the window's view.

Annette was nervous. She kept checking on the window. If Mother Goose found out they were trying to escape, it would be over for them. "Come on, Emily. You're almost there." whispered Annette. She looked at the window. Mother Goose wasn't there.

"So far, so good." Annette thought. Emily was nearing her arms. Suddenly Emily slipped and fell. Annette immediately reached out and grabbed her before she hit the ground.

"You okay, Emily?" Annette asked. "I'm okay." Emily replied. "Good. Come on, let's go." Annette said. They walked through the streets of Paris. Annette thought carefully, retracing the path she came from.

Remembering the path she walked though, they walked into the right direction. "Are you sure you know the way to this "secret place?" Emily asked. "Trust me. I know." Annette said. They ducked under broken fences and under cluttered garbage.

Then the world around them started to change. The concrete and steel structures around them faded away into trees, brambles and leaves.

Emily was shocked by the sudden change of the background. "Wow! What is this place?" she asked in wonder. "We're in the Crooked Woods." Annette said. "Is this the secret place you were talking about?" Emily asked.

"Yeah. But whatever your see in this world, you mustn't tell anyone, not even Mom." "Why?" Emily asked curiously. "Because I made a promise to Noir that I wouldn't tell anyone about his world. I'm planning to keep that promise." Annette said as they walked towards Northington.

Suddenly, they heard loud caws. They looked up and saw three large ravens with glowing red eyes flying in the sky. "Ravens?" wondered Emily. "Somehow, I got this feeling they're not friendly." said Annette nervously.

The ravens cawed harshly as they dove towards Annette and Emily. "Emily, run!" cried Annette. They started to run, but the ravens caught up with them. They pecked and clawed at Annette's hands and head.

"Ahh!" Annette yelled in pain as the ravens attacked her. Emily was frightened.

She tried to shake off the ravens, but they kept attacking her brutally. "Emily, run! Get help, quick!" yelled Annette. "But what about you, Annette?" asked Emily anxiously.

"Don't worry! Find Noir, Hoots and Hickory! Tell them I need help!" Annette yelled. Emily quickly ran down the forest path. But then three more ravens appeared and started attacking her as well. Poor Emily screamed with terror as the ravens attacked her ruthlessly.

"Annette, help me!" Emily screamed. "Emily!" Annette yelled. She tried to shake the ravens off, but they still kept coming. They pecked at her with their razor-sharp beaks and talons. Annette felt weak.

She felt herself about to pass out. But she had to keep awake. She had to save her sister from the ravens, but they're just too strong. "Those ravens...they won't stop attacking...my sister's in danger...there has to be a way to save her! Please, help me!" Annette thought desperately.

Suddenly, the Rose Sword started to glow. "What the...! What's happening?!" Annette said in wonder. The ravens took notice and stopped attacking Annette. Annette looked at the sparkling sword in awe.

She unsheathed the sword and looked at it. "Why is the sword glowing?" she wondered. The sword glowed even brighter and enveloped her in a bright red light. The ravens, blinded by the red light flew away into the sky. After a few seconds, the red light disappeared.

Annette stood there, dumbfounded, unable to comprehend what had happened. "Whoa! What on Earth happened? I feel a bit strange."

"Annette, help!" Emily screamed as the ravens attacked. Annette rushed towards her and swung her sword at the ravens. The ravens stopped attacking Emily and flew away into the sky, cawing.