“Look up,” Damion points. The overhang is actually hollow, I can just make out some light coming from a hole in the top.
“Is that what I think it is?” Orrian says, turning to face Damion with disgust. I shake my head in disbelief, Damion’s hidden entrance is a garderobe. Becker has mentioned these before when shaming our few measly outhouses. This is where the guards stationed here come to relieve themselves, their waste dropping directly into the moat below.
Damion nods in response. He plants his feet in a small nook in the wall and his hands in others. I now notice that there are several missing chunks from the wall leading all the way up to the chute. I sure hope all the guards are too busy to appear above, they might get a bit of a surprise if they look down.
Damion climbs upwards before Orrian tucks his knives away and copies his movements. Now it’s my turn, we slowly ascend the wall until we reach the edges of the chute. I try not to overthink my situation as I put my legs against one side of the chute and my back into the other. Orrian has it worse, after continuously refusing footwear in Tarrin, he now must scale the walls barefoot. We press against the sides and gradually we begin to approach the light above. Damion mutters a thanks below as Orrian catches him as he slips.
A moment later we pause in our climb. Damion unsheathes a blade above and begins widening the hole. Sawdust begins to drift down toward us but Orrian blocks me from most of it. Damion grunts a second before a loud snap cracks around the narrow tunnel. A chunk of wood clatters as it bounces on a stone floor and we pull ourselves up through the hole.
As expected, we’ve come out in a small privy chamber. Upon examining our clothes in the light of a small window, I find that there’s relatively little evidence of our method of entrance. Although, the smell is undeniable.
Orrian gives Damion a nod as we all push into one another to give the door enough room to open. Damion quickly checks our exit before we all come tumbling out into a narrow room. The space is not unlike the other section of wall that we breached in our escape.
Orrian takes the lead, blades ready, as Damion gives him directions by his side. As we move from room to room, no guards are in sight. They must know of the breaching of the outer walls by now. I remember how they had sent a signal between the walls to inform their neighbours of our escape, surely, they’ll be arming themselves and preparing to defend the inner city should our army make it that far.
We reach a set of steps leading downwards. We take the stairs two at a time but are careful to remain as silent as possible, we’re surrounded by another whole army of soldiers within these walls. Some of them might have rushed to the others’ aids but there are surely still far too many to take on alone should we be caught.
Orrian carefully opens the last door, we’re finally back at ground level. The plain side of one of the large halls stands looms above us. Another wooden door sits at the base of one of the large towers which sits connected to the edge of the hall. The two buildings block off our front and our right, a path stretches to the left around the outside of the hall. We need to get to the dungeon first which means avoiding the inside of the castle, that leaves only one route.
Orrian crouches as he steps out onto the path, he peers around each corner as we make our way through this new cluster of buildings. None of us straighten as we pass undetected beneath the height of the colony’s windows.
Orrian comes to a stop as the path narrows between the last two buildings. The path leads out into a lavish small yard. Flowers and vines trail over decorative wooden structures forming tunnels at the yard’s edges. In the middle, water gently cascades over an elegant lady carved from white stone. Three benches surround her and an uncountable number of birds dart between the pavestones and nests overhead.
“You see the door on the opposite side?” Damion whispers as he points out our destination. “Head through there and into the first door on your right.”
“We need to go to the cells!” Horas hisses.
“You need the warden’s keys first,” says Damion. “While you’re in there, I’m going to go up the steps to a different room a little further away. Wait for me in the warden’s chambers.”
“Where are you going?” Orrian asks.
“I can’t leave the other children here. They’re coming with us,” Damion says. Orrian curses but we all know that we’ll never be able to live with ourselves if we don’t take them with us.
Orrian steps out into the wooden tunnel, flowers weave their way through the planks overhead. We’re halfway around the edge when a door opens directly in front of Orrian.
A young woman in a stunning rose dress drops her basket as she steps out in front of us. She manages a startlingly loud scream before Orrian can get to her. He grabs her as she tries to duck back inside the door and clamps a hand over her mouth. She struggles and kicks against him but eventually he sets her down to the floor as she loses consciousness.
“Hurry,” Orrian orders Damion before sprinting for the warden’s chambers. There’s little chance that the lady’s terror will have gone unheard.
The rest of us wait in the hallway and guard the door as Orrian disappears inside to fetch the keys. Damion heads up the staircase
