Ami stomped back to her room. She outpaced Martins, who practically jogged to keep up with her. Hallways lit by gaslights grew dimmer as Ami left the comforts of the family residence. No servants could be seen, but they might have been flitting in the shadows for all Ami could tell. No doubt her stepfamily was fast asleep. But she doubted she would be getting any sleep tonight.
The more she thought about it, the angrier she got at her father. How could he do this to me? In her father’s office, against his icy stare, she had dared not stand against him. But she had to decide her next course of action.
Wouldn’t it be best to leave as soon as possible? Tonight if she was able. But there was so much to prepare. And where would she go?
She feigned exhaustion with a yawn when she and Martins parted ways. Once his footsteps faded, Ami flew into action.
She got out the carpet bag she brought with her measley possessions years ago when she arrived at the manor. She threw an extra dress and underclothes in the bottom of the bag. She didn’t know what would be more useful- a servant’s uniform or a dated lady’s dress. She chose both, slipping into the maid’s dress and packing a gown. She didn’t need much in the way of clothes, and she would just wear lots of layers under her winter coat. It might be cumbersome to move, but save space in the luggage.
Adding minimal toiletries, candles and matches, paper and pen, and a small sewing kit, Ami knew her biggest worry was money and food. She had no money. There was no getting around that. But she did have a forgotten store room with pearl necklaces, diamond rings, and gold bracelets.
Going over her room one more time, she shut the door and ran on tiptoe to a door not far down the hall, a candle snub emitting a soft glow before her. She knew where the jewelry was kept, because she’d cleaned it all half a year ago before storing it securely. Half of the jewels she stuffed in the bag, the other half she hid in her clothes. Hopefully she could sell some of the pieces.
Remembering seeing an atlas before, she located it and into the bag it went. A map might save her life once she left the area she grew up in.
All that was left was food. She didn’t know where her next meal would come from, she hardly knew where the morning would find her. But hopefully in the nearest town boarding the first coach of the day destined for anywhere other than here.
In the kitchen she gathered her leftover bread, dried jerky, canned vegetables, a flask of water, and her favorite tea blend, just because. She figured she could stretch the food two days if she had to.
Lacing up her sturdy outdoor shoes in the mud room that led to her little garden, she eased out the door, on alert for any sign of movement in the gloomy night. Met with stillness, she cautiously ventured away from the door. Ghostly shadows loomed in her garden-tomato stalks looking ghastly, herbs shivered and reached their petaled fingers towards her.
Ami took off, one eye peeled on the manor as she swiveled her head back and forth. The Rhineton estate, home of the third highest military leader in the empire, was vast and most likely guarded. Ami had no idea as she’d never attempted escape before. She knew the front of the estate was fortified by a gate that enclosed the whole estate. But there must be a weakness in the defenses; namely, her abandoned garden. She hardly ever found anyone back here. Nobody had a reason to be there.
Her path ran to the fence beyond her garden. A thick forest grew on the other side. Slamming her back against the iron fence, she checked that no guards lept from the shadows to drag her back to her prison tower. Not a soul was seen. She turned to see what she had to work with. The space between bars was large enough to squash her bag through but not her body. She’d have to climb.
Raising her head, she guessed the stakes were her height and a half tall. The spikes meant to impale her worried her, but she’d climbed her share of trees and fences as a child and hoped she could avoid them.
First to get her bag on the other side. A firm push through the slim poles, and it lay waiting for her on the other side. Rubbing her hands on her dress to free them from perspiration and then tying her loose skirt around her hips, Ami jumped at the fence, finding her footing and gripping the slender stakes, before using her momentum to clamber to the top.
That was easier than I thought. She gingerly maneuvered around the spikes, and carefully lowered herself on the other side until she was hanging a few feet off the ground. She dreaded the drop, but it couldn’t be avoided. Slam! She landed with the barest of stings on her feet, but was otherwise fine.
Right. Here we go. Ami wanted to stay in the cover of the trees, but didn’t want to get lost in the forest. So she planned to travel at an angle to the left of the manor, until she met the main road that would guide her to the nearest town.
Once she was a few trees deep, Ami broke into as fast a run as she could in the dark. The moon was nearly full and gave her enough light to make her way, dodging hanging boughs and trapezing over fallen logs. About five minutes later the trees thinned, and though the manor to her right was closer than she liked, she made a beeline for the gravel road just ahead, clear of the woods.
When she reached the road, bending to catch her breath, she laughed giddily, freedom at hand. She turned her back on the manor towards the lonely, unknown beyond, anticipating her new life. Until the snort of a horse stopped her in her tracks.
She whipped around and found a grizzled guard on a gray steed staring at her. He didn’t look surprised to stumble on an out of breath young woman. Did that mean he was expecting her? Ami sighed.
The gray-haired man broke the silence with a gruff voice. “Where are you going at this time of night, miss?”
Ami scoffed. “Just getting some fresh air, sir. What brings you out tonight?”
The man wasn’t shaken. He jerked the horse around, pointing. “Time to go back to the manor, miss.” He was armed and large, in good shape for a man of his age.
Ami begrudged herself for not bringing a weapon. Not that she’d have the guts to use it. There was no way she could outrun a man on horse, and if she didn’t go back willingly, she had no doubt he’d drag her back. Who knows if her father wouldn’t have her locked up if she behaved like that. Glaring at the guard, she stomped down the road in the direction of the manor she now knew was her prison.
The man escorted her all the way through the gate, past another guard glaring at her, around the whole manor back to her tower, not uttering a word. He watched until she stalked in her kitchen, slamming the door shut behind. When she entered the bedroom she never thought she’d see again and leaned out the window to look outside, the guard hadn’t moved, and probably wouldn’t the whole night.
Ami’s second attempt to run away happened two nights later. She skipped a night to throw the guards off, and tonight happened to be cloudy and dark. She waited two, three, four hours after every light in the manor was extinguished before she left, taking painstaking effort to make no noise.
This time she made it halfway up the fence before an exasperated, “Miss,” cut off her ascent. Startled, she slid to the ground, landing painfully, and glared up at the same grizzled guard who’d snuck up on her again.
Without a word, Ami limped back to her tower.
On her third time she tried to outsmart him. During the day she’d stashed the bag she’d never unpacked in an old shed on the other side of the property. Then, she avoided the kitchen door altogether, opening a window to slide out of that was nowhere near her earlier attempts. But just outside the window the old fox was waiting for her.
As she silently pulled the pane shut between them, she could have sworn he was holding back a laugh.
After her fourth try was thwarted before she made any headway, Ami sighed. “Aren’t you tired of this, sir?”
This time he chuckled. “Aren’t you, miss?”
She shrugged. “You know, you could just let me go. I’m sure no one would blame you if I just disappeared.”
He shook his head. “I can’t justify disobeying my lord to let a young woman wander alone god knows where.”
Ami pondered that. “May I ask your name?”
“Grimes.”
“Would you like some tea, Mr. Grimes?”
He raised his eyebrows, but grunted, “Alright.”
And so Ami had her first guest in the four years she'd lived at the manor. She only had the kitchen table for him to sit at as the other rooms were full of junk. But he didn’t seem to mind, and she was confident in the tea she could offer him.
“I made this blend especially for muscle relaxation. I like to drink it after crouching in the garden all day,” she explained, bringing the water to a boil. He watched her like a hawk as she scurried around the kitchen, searching for the right tea leaves from her collection, turning off the heat on the stove, and pouring the steaming water over the leaves. She placed the teapot on the table and poured the minty tea in two cups, not taking any notice of being watched.
He didn’t sip until she did, but when he tasted the tea he nodded. “Not bad.”
Ami grinned. She chatted a bit about the herbs she used in her homemade teas with Grimes grunting a reply or two until they fell into comfortable silence.
“Mr. Grimes, how long have you been a guard at the Rhineton estate?”
“This is my fifth year. “
Amy raised her eyebrows like she was impressed. “You’ve been here longer than I have.“
He didn’t elaborate, so Ami asked him another question. “What did you do before you came to the manor?“
“I was a soldier under Commander Rhineton for many years.“
This was news to Annie.
After refilling his cup, she asked timidly, “Are you telling my father every time I try to leave?”
He tapped the table. “Not since the first time.”
Ami smiled shyly behind her teacup.
That was the last time Ami tried to run away. But her carpet bag remained packed, hidden under her bed, ready for any chance to flee.
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