Adeline

Chapter 3 - Victor

Luckily for the two, Adeline kept a set of spare clothes for men and women in the cabinet. She, in fact, had lots of clothes so that she could hide from the people that were looking for her. She forced Arthur into a shirt and tweed coat that were far too small for him but the trousers that she had were just fine for him. He chose not to complain about the fact that they didn't match. She took his clothes that he had been wearing the day before and burned them for heat in the frosty morning cold. Arthur had woken up cold and damp and when he looked outside, the stones and cobbles were coated with a layer of ice. The two stepped out into the cold air. Adeline didn't have a clock but she assumed that it was around 8 am when the sun had just risen. Despite this, the canal lay in shadow of the abandoned factory buildings which cast a deep grey and blue light across everything.

"Aren't we going to have breakfast?" Arthur questioned Adeline as the two began to walk down the cobbled pathway that led through the buildings. The colossal, empty things passed by like still giants, towering above them, silent. Adeline was wearing something that didn't suit her at all. A long brown dress, something that Arthur had not yet seen her wear before, with maroon laces at the bottom and around the corset. She had shining black buttons that went from the waist to the top of her neck and she wore a long dark brown tweed coat with a nice collar and a belt that tied around her hips. Her shows, which were another thing that Arthur had not yet seen, were black and laced up to her ankles. On her he'd she wore a dark brown hat with a red velvet ribbon circling the brown and a cotton flower wedged in the bow. Her hair, short as it was, was tied back and folded to her head so that it wasn't falling around her chin. She looked so different, dressed like a proper woman... almost normal. Arthur thought that if he had seen her like this in the first place, just walking down the street, he wouldn't have suspected her at all.

Adeline contorted her expression and carried on walking, " We'll be at my brother's house soon." She said as she stepped over a fallen pile of bricks in the path. It only took about 20 minutes before the two of them finally returned to more of a populated area. Arthur watched as the cold sun rose into the sky, the blueness spreading itself across the sky, pushing away the night-time colours. He tried his best to ignore the fact that walking next to him was Adeline, an escaped convict who he couldn't get away from. They moved out of the desolate district of abandoned factories and before long were moving through streets that were crowded and close together. Horses pulling carts and motorcars up and down the cobbled roads and people swarmed the busy shops and grocery stalls. By this time Arthur had not eaten anything since midday the day before, and was starting to feel hunger cramps.

"Adeline," He groaned, clothing his stomach in anguish, "Please?" She knew exactly what he meant because he had been moaning about his hunger pains since they had woken up that day and she had just had enough. She never knew that holding someone hostage would be so difficult as they needed food, water, clothes. They were such an inconvenience, but – she couldn't do anything. As they stood on the street outside the poky buildings that seemed so cramped and close together they were like Adeline and Arthur, Trapped shoulder-to-shoulder, Adeline pulled down her sleeves to cover up the hand cuffs. If anyone saw that the custom-made hand cuffs were on their hands, they would be caught for sure, for it was all over the news. Steam billowed out from the side of the street, and Adeline walked straight into it and into a small dark alley way that separated the houses. The floor here was puddled and covered in rubbish, which she didn't mind, but Arthur dodged them like the plague. And she knocked on a narrow dark, black door in the brick wall. The alley way was so small that Arthur could lean against onside and rest the top his head against the other. Footsteps were heard from inside the apartment and the door was opened.

Arthur didn't see who it was inside the door because the two were ushered in swiftly. They disappeared into the wall so quickly, like a wisp of smoke, disappearing into the cracks in the bricks. They were now in a narrow corridor, unlit and cramped. The walls were dark, navy green wallpaper and covered with family photographs and small lithographs. Dark Wood cabinets lined either side of the corridor, covered with ornaments and coats that had just been thrown onto them. Adeline took off her coat and hat and threw them onto the ground then waited for Arthur to do the same. He stood, back against the door and took off his coat to hang it on the empty hanger on the back of the door. The floor was covered in pieces of paper and ripped up newspapers and magazines. It was like a bomb and gone off in this house.