Luna studied the papers, hope growing in her chest as a smile slowly spread across her lips. Emily had devised a plan to get her out of here, just like she said she would. The papers had blueprints of the palace written on them, and someone had circled all of the secret escape routes and drawn a line to show the route from this room, through the palace, through the forest and all the way to the abandoned cabin. As Luna studied the large map, the prince went to the doors and told both guards that the lady would need a minute or so to collect herself and then left the room, closing the doors behind him.
Luna tried to memorize every detail on the paper, every secret escape route and possible exit out of the palace and its grounds. In the room they were in, there was anXon the west wall where a massive tapestry was hung. She walked over to it and lifted its corner, confirming there were steps behind it that led to a door. She went back to the blueprints and made a mental note of anyXshe saw on the papers; those would be hidden passages. The route drawn started at theXin this room, down a hall, to an open hallway where there was anotherXon the opposite wall, and the secret passage from that point seemed to lead directly out of the palace.
She grabbed the paper and began to fold it in half to take with her when Emily stopped her. “You can’t take it. If you get caught with that, the king will know where it came from.”
Luna sighed heavily; there was no reason to put anyone else at risk. Emily and Prince Kieran had done more than enough. She put it back on the table, and once she was done memorizing as much as she could, she took a pot of ink and spilled it across the papers, destroying the evidence.
Tears were in Emily’s eyes as she tightly embraced Luna, her fingers tracing a reassuring pattern on Luna’s back. “Stay safe, stay strong.”
“I will. I’ll follow the blueprints and stick to the route. I’ll be careful.” With a heavy heart, she released Emily and padded towards the tapestry. She lifted the edge, revealing the stairs that would lead her to safety, but sheturned and looked back at her sister. “Until we meet again,” she whispered. Their eyes locked, a silent promise passing between them.
Luna then climbed them, the tapestry falling back into place behind her.
Chapter 17
Fleeing
Her heart pounded so hard she could feel her pulse throbbing behind her eyes. The hallway was damp and shadowed, the only light coming from small skylights in the ceiling. But with night pressing in, she was left navigating in near darkness.
She bunched up the skirts of her gown, keeping the fabric as close to her body as possible to avoid making sound and picking up dust and dirt. She wished she had pants—and a torch.
There was no turning back, no time to dally or second guess; it was now or never. She could figure out clothes, supplies, and money once she had her freedom.
The hallway shifted right—a telling sign that the exit was close, based on the map she’d studied and tried to memorize. Her ragged breaths echoed off the stony brick walls, the only sound besides her footsteps in the empty passage. As Luna continued down the path, the tunnel closed in, forcing her to duck and shuffle sideways in order to pass through.
Soon, she reached another doorway and pulled it open. The thin wooden door creaked with age. She stepped down two stairs, stopping behind what she assumed was the back of another tapestry. This must be the passage leading into another hallway, the only part of the route that was out in the open. Once she entered this hallway, she would need to find the other tapestry that covered the connecting passage, then she would be free. She put her hand on her chest, as if that would help slow her racing heart.
For several long moments, she stood behind the tapestry. When she didn’t hear any footsteps or voices, she peered around the left side of it. She looked up and down the red-carpeted hallway, which was lined with paintings similar to the hallway that led to the Grand Hall.
It was empty.
She breathed a sigh of relief. Everyone was still at the ball; that must have been why Emily and Prince Kieran planned tonight for her escape—they knew no one would be around to catch her sneaking out.
Summoning courage, Luna climbed out from behind the tapestry.
The hallway was stuffy and barely lit, but she wasted no time, running from painting to painting, probing the sides of each one in her search for the next secret passage.
Nothing.
None of the paintings budged, but she was sure the blueprints had said it was across and to the right of where she had come from. She retraced her steps. Standing before a large oak tree painting with a child swinging on one of the branches, she pulled at the edge of the painting again; there was no give. Frustrated, she stomped her foot. She jerked back in surprise, eyebrows drawing together; the floor sounded hollow. Quickly, she dropped to her knees, her hands scrambling across the carpet, searching for an edge.
There!
She grabbed the edge of the carpet and peeled it off the floor, revealing a trapdoor. Luna nearly screamed with glee as she fumbled and struggled to undo the latch. Just as she got it open, someone grabbed her arm and yanked her to her feet.
“Where do you think you are going?” Clyde asked, his tone sharp.
Where had he come from? How was she going to explain this? There was no faking innocence now.
With a scoff of annoyance, she pulled her arm away from him and squared her shoulders, smoothing her skirt. If she couldn’t play innocent, she was at least going to pretend to be confident. “Nowhere that concerns you.”
He lifted his chin. “Anything you do concerns me.”
She would have found those words sweet in a different lifetime, but right now, he was blocking her from her freedom.
His eyes darkened, and she shuddered in response. Memories of him holding his sword against her throat flashed in her mind; fear wrapped around her core, paralyzing her.
With a delicate touch, he brushed his fingers along one of her arms, pausing at her shoulder. “Believe it or not, Luna. I know you. I knew the second you entered that room, you’d use His Highness to access the secret passages.”
