Compeer

Chapter XVIII

Completely blind, I was led through the hallways of the castle by my captors. There were three of them. Two of them I recognized to be Elliot DuPonte and Damon Percy; the third I had not yet discovered.

"Where are you taking me?" I asked, struggling against the hold of the person I did not know. All three of them laughed maliciously.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Damon sneered.

"Not so tough this time, are you?" Elliot asked smugly. If I knew where he was, I would have tried to hurt him somehow. Unfortunately, all I saw was blackness. I had been afraid of the dark at one point, but it was not my biggest concern at the moment.

I felt myself being led down a number of steps. I almost stumbled when we reached the bottom, but chuckling, Damon and Elliot held me upright. Then, I heard the creak of a door opened. A cool breeze caressed my face. We must have been outside.

"Tell me where you're taking me!" I demanded. When they laughed again, I said, "What do you even want with me?"

"Just revenge," Elliot answered.

"What did I ever do to you?"

"Oh, it is not just what you have done," the voice I didn't recognize said. "But also what that stupid prince has done. He has been nothing but trouble to the three of us! I finally possess an object that my foolish cousin will never see again! You!"

Cousin.

"Stephen!" I gasped. Stephen was my third captor! The blindfold over my eyes was suddenly removed and I was able to see Stephen's murderous smile. Looking around, I saw that we were in front of the castle.

"Hello, my dear," he murmured.

"I am not your 'dear'!" I exclaimed, jumping away from him. Elliot caught my arms and held onto me. He struggled a little, grunting while he tried to keep a grasp on my arms.

"Why do you fancy her so much, Prince Stephen?" he asked, glaring at me as I kept struggling. "She's nothing but a menace!"

"She is feisty," Stephen said, grinning. "I like it."

I flew out of Elliot's grasp in time to slap him hard across the face before I bolted down the cobblestone drive.

"Help!" I exclaimed, sprinting away from the castle. Elliot and Damon were blocking the entrance, so I could not go that way. I knew that nobody would hear me, but I continued to scream anyway. "Help!" Though their footfalls were too swift for me to hear, I knew that they were following me. I glanced over my shoulder and sure enough, they were right behind me. Containing a shriek, I continued to run, holding up the bottom of my dress as I did so. I sped up, my feet pounding against the stone.

The sun began to set. I ran for what seemed like hours, though I did not get far. I knew that they could easily outrun me, but they didn't. Why? Maybe they were just amused with my attempt at escape. They probably knew that I would tire quickly, and I was getting tired. It was a game of cat and mouse in which I was the mouse and they were the cat. No – they were the lion! Grimacing at the thought of them catching me, I urged my tired legs to speed up again.

Suddenly, the roar of hooves surrounded me. How did they get on horses so quickly? Before I could even look back I was swept up in the air for one agonizingly disorienting moment and placed on a black horse. Swiveling around, I saw that Stephen was the rider.

"Let go!" I screeched, trying to squirm out of his grasp. His arms were on either side of me, acting like a cage.

"Are you sure that what you are doing is wise?" he asked, his cruel eyes amused. "You will only fall to your death." Looking down, I saw the ground below us rush by. I stopped, knowing fully well how right he was. We were no longer on the stone driveway of the castle, but probably somewhere in the countryside. I had not even noticed the gate of the castle or the mansions flashing by, but it was hard to tell because of how dark it was quickly getting.