Head in the Clouds

Chapter 19: Break In

Ko's heart could barely take the excitement he felt sitting in the bushes near the hidden entrance. It was twelve- twenty-five in the morning, and there was no sound left aside from the idle chatter of the three prison guards at the front door just a few feet away. Another five minutes passed, and a few guards exited the building as a few more walked up to the entrance.

Now was their chance. They crept over to the gate. Deidre unlocked it while Ko kept a lookout.

"Where'd you learn to do that?" Marveled Ko when she got the gate unlocked.

"Trial and error," she whispered.

The gate creaked open but not so loud as to alert the guards. Cautiously, Deidre stepped through the gate finding herself in a dark, damp room.

Ko pulled something out of his bag, and with a click, the room was lit up. Deidre looked down at his hand. It was a sort of contraption that projected light.

"Flashlight," he informed her in a hushed tone, "It makes light."

She was too focused to be amazed. She refocused her attention to the task at hand- getting to the staircase.

The room was tiny, so tiny in fact that if she and Ko may not have been able to move much more than a couple of feet each. There were mops and brooms leaned up against the walls as well as a bunch more supplies. This had to be the supply closet.

"This must be the maintenance closet we saw on the map," she whispered to Ko, "I still don't get it. Why the hell would it be here?"

Ko shrugged, "Maybe they didn't expect to house such a dangerous guy when they built it."

"Still, it's a stupid design," she replied, "The staircase should be only a few feet this way."

Ko nodded. Deidre approached the door and rested her ear against it. She didn't hear any voices, so the guards must still be changing out. She knew they would probably only have a few moments left.

She peaked out the door, and when she realized it was safe, lead Ko out the door. They traveled down the left side of the hall until they found the door they were sure was the staircase. Much to their dismay, twisting the doorknob did nothing.

"Locked," Deidre reported. As she knelt down to the door's level, Ko touched her arm.

"Let me," he instructed, "I can do this in my sleep."

Deidre backed away from the door allowing Ko to get down to eye level. He pulled two short, stick-like contraptions from his pocket. She noticed his hand was back to normal, but he seemed to be missing an arm to attach to it.

"So how's the missus?" A man's voice traveled down the corner of the hall.

"A pain in the ass as usual," the other reported bitterly, "I had to sleep on the couch again."

Their voices only drew nearer as Ko spent his time on the lock. Deidre grew anxious. What would she do if they were caught? Would she fight? Would she lie? Would she have to kill them? Murder is a guarantee for execution, but she didn't have a choice. No, murder is wrong. She'd have to accept her punishment. She was going to be right in prison with the rest of them.

"We're in," reported Ko.

Deidre breathed a sigh of relief knowing she didn't have to kill anyone.

The stairwell was eerily quiet. The last sound Deidre heard was the clicking of the door being closed. As they stepped down the stairs, Deidre imagined someone would jump out at her just for fun.

Ko, on the other hand, was enjoying every moment of their escapade. He loved breaking in at just the right moment and sneaking around places he was forbidden to go.