Foul Instincts
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“What do we do?”
Brynne was on the verge of tears. She had spent hours trying to find any trace of her parents, and all she’d found were dead ends—no one who knew anything about them had survived. The only thing that gave her hope was the fact they hadn’t been killed yet.
The only person in this entire world who could answer her questions was her mother’s friend, Lady Larken. But it seemed like that woman wasn’t going to be much help. Brynne was still hoping to find some answers from her when she heard an excited voice. She looked up to see a familiar face.
“Oh! It’s you!”
It took Brynne a moment to realize it was a different young man than the one she’d met at the party. He had brown hair and blue eyes, but other than that he didn’t look too much different from the boy she’d met before.
“Yes,” he said with a smile. “I’m sorry I’ve been so rude.”
He held out his hand, which Brynne took gratefully.
“You’re the one who saved my sister!” she exclaimed.
“That’s right. I’m glad I did. You must be Brynne.”
Brynne nodded shyly as the young man pulled her to her feet.
“And you are . . .”
“My name is Ransom, and I’m here to rescue your parents.”
Brynne gasped. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
“But how? How are you even related to them?”
Ransom laughed. “Well, there’s a long story behind all of this, but the short version is that my mother was once married to Lord Joran’s father.”
“Wait, really?!”
She felt like someone had just hit her over the head with a brick. That explained so much! And now she had a way to get into the castle. If she could find Lady Larken, she might have an idea where to start looking for her parents.
“How did you know they were here?” Brynne asked.
“I didn’t know exactly where they were, but I knew they were staying somewhere in the city. So I figured if I went to the palace and talked to the guards, maybe they would tell me something.”
“So that’s why you came to the party!” Brynne cried. “You were looking for me!”
“No, actually, I was looking for my family,” he said with a sigh. “When I saw you, I thought maybe you could help me figure out how to find them.”
“I can try.”
“Really?!” He looked relieved. “Thank you!”
“I don’t think it will be easy,” Brynne warned him. “But I’ll do whatever I can.”
“Good. Because I need your help.”
Brynne frowned. “What kind of help?”
“You see, I’m not supposed to be here,” he said sheepishly. “I’m supposed to be in the dungeons.”
“Dungeons?” Brynne repeated. “Why?”
“Because I tried to kill my brother.”
“Wait . . .” Brynne’s eyes widened. “You what? Why would you do that?”
“Because he was evil. I knew it from the day he was born.”
“But he’s your brother!” Brynne protested. “You can’t just kill him.”
Ransom shrugged. “I don’t care. He’s gone now.”
“Gone?” Brynne repeated. Then she remembered her mother talking about something similar happening in the past. “Wait, you mean he died?”
“No, he’s alive,” Ransom said. “He’s been locked away in the dungeon for years. They say he’ll never come back.”
“How is that possible?” Brynne asked. “You said he’s locked up in the dungeon. Isn’t that supposed to be impossible?”
Ransom shook his head. “Not for him. My father has a special way of getting people inside the castle. He knows the secret ways. And because my mother’s husband was the king’s son, he was able to help us escape.”
“So how did you end up in the dungeons?”
“We were captured by the royal guard and brought here. My brother and I escaped, but we got separated during the escape. I don’t know where he is.”
“And you think he might be in the castle?”
Ransom nodded. “That’s why I’ve been trying to get into the palace, but I haven’t been very successful.”
“Have you seen any other children around here?” Brynne asked.
Ransom shook his head. “There aren’t many kids in the castle.”
“Then how can you be sure that your brother is in here?”
“I remember seeing him earlier today while we were on our way here. He was standing outside the window of the room where my parents are being kept.”
“Oh, my gosh!” Brynne exclaimed. “Maybe I can go look for him, too.”
“I hope you can,” Ransom replied. “But before you do, let me introduce you to some friends of mine.”
Brynne followed him down the stairs, where they joined a group of men dressed in white tunics and black pants. All of them had swords strapped to their sides, and most of them carried bows.
“This is my friend, Kian,” Ransom told her. “He’s the leader of our group.”
The man who’d spoken to her smiled at her. “Hello, Brynne. It’s nice to meet you.”
“Likewise,” she replied. “Are you going after your parents, too?”
“Yes,” he answered. “They’re also prisoners here.”
“Do you know where they are?”
Kian shook his head. “No, but I can show you where they’re being held.”
“Can we go now?” Ransom asked.
“Of course,” Kian replied. “Come with me.”
Ransom led Brynne through the castle until they reached a large wooden door with a small barred window set in it. The door was closed, but Brynne could hear muffled voices coming from within.
“Open this door,” Ransom ordered.
A guard appeared in the doorway, and Ransom pointed to Brynne. “She’s with me. She needs to talk to the king.”
The guard hesitated, then stepped aside so that Brynne could enter.
As soon as she entered the room, Brynne heard her mother’s voice calling out to her. Her mother sounded frantic and frightened. Brynne hurried toward the sound, but she stopped when she noticed two guards standing in front of her. One of them pointed his sword at her.
“Who are you?” he demanded. “And what do you want?”
Brynne took a deep breath. “My name is Brynne, and I need to speak to the king immediately.”
“Why?” the guard asked, sounding annoyed.
“Because he kidnapped my mother and my father,” Brynne explained.
“Kidnapped?” the guard repeated. “And who are these parents of yours?”
“They’re the king and queen,” Brynne answered. “You must have heard of them.”
The guard frowned. “I’m sorry, but we don’t know anyone named King or Queen.”
“That’s not true,” Brynne insisted. “I saw them just moments ago. They were right there in front of me.”
The guard stared at her for several seconds, then turned around and shouted, “Hey! Open the door!”
Several minutes later, Brynne finally made it into the king’s private chamber. She couldn’t believe her eyes. There was no longer a single person in the room—or anywhere else in the castle for that matter. Instead, the entire place was completely empty except for a small table set against one wall, a bed, and a chest sitting next to the bed.
When Brynne tried to open the chest, she discovered that it was locked. But then Ransom came over and unlocked it with a key that he produced from his pocket. Inside the chest were three pieces of parchment, each with a single word written across it:
***
After reading the words, Ransom quickly handed the papers back to Brynne. Then he knelt down beside the bed and began searching under it. After several seconds of searching, he pulled out a small wooden box. When he opened the lid, Brynne gasped. She recognized the golden crown inside immediately.
“Is that… ?” she asked, her voice shaking.
“It is,” Ransom answered. “Your parents are still alive, and they’re being held in the dungeon beneath the castle.”
“How did you find out about them?” Brynne asked.
“I overheard a conversation between two guards,” Ransom replied. “They were talking about how they needed to bring in another prisoner, and I assumed that meant someone new had arrived.”
“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”
“I wanted to be sure,” Ransom said. “And besides, I wasn’t sure if I should trust the information they gave me.”
“I see,” Brynne replied. “So what are we going to do now?”
“We’re going to save your parents,” Ransom replied. “But first, we need to get you some clothes.”
Ransom left the room so that Brynne could change, but he returned only a few minutes later wearing his own gray tunic and pants. He looked at Brynne and smiled. “Are you ready to go rescue your parents?”
“Let’s go.”
Ransom and Brynne headed out of the room and down the hall. They passed several guards on their way out, but none of them paid any attention to them.
After walking for several minutes, Brynne spotted a door that was slightly ajar. As they approached, she could hear voices coming from the other side. She and Ransom pushed the door open, and Brynne instantly recognized her father’s voice.
“No, I can’t let you take her,” her father was saying. “She’s innocent.”
Brynne gasped. “Father! What are you doing here? And where is Mother and—”
Her father cut her off by shouting, “Don’t say anything else! You’ll only make things worse!”
Brynne’s heart sank. She knew immediately that something terrible had happened to her mother and father.
“What’s wrong?” Ransom asked, looking concerned.
Brynne shook her head. “Nothing’s wrong,” she lied. “I just need to think for a minute.”
“Okay,” Ransom replied. “But hurry up. We don’t have much time.”
Brynne nodded and closed the door behind her. Then she leaned against it and took several deep breaths. She felt like crying, but she forced herself to remain calm.
“Where are my parents?” she whispered. “Why would they do this?”
Brynne stood there for several minutes, trying to come up with an answer to her questions. But nothing seemed to fit. Finally, she decided to try another approach.
“Who kidnapped them?” she asked.
“The king and queen,” one of the guards replied.
“The king and queen?” Brynne repeated. “But why would they kidnap my parents?”
“Because you stole the crown,” the guard explained. “They’ve been after you ever since you ran away.”
“The crown?” Brynne asked. “But I never even touched it. It was already in our room when I went to sleep.”
“That doesn’t matter,” the guard answered. “The king wants to punish you for stealing it.”
“You mean you’re actually working for the king?” Brynne asked.
“Of course,” the guard replied. “He pays us very well.”
“But he’s not paying you enough to kidnap my parents,” Brynne pointed out. “If he did, they’d be home by now.”
“Maybe he isn’t aware of what we’re doing,” the guard said. “Or maybe he’s just too lazy to send someone to get them himself. Either way, he’s the one who ordered us to kidnap you, and you’re the one who’s going to pay for it.”
“Wait!” Brynne shouted. “You’re not going to kill them, are you?”
“No,” the guard replied. “Not yet anyway.”
“But what are you going to do with them?” Brynne demanded. “Are you planning on selling them into slavery? Or will you keep them as prisoners until you can find a buyer?”
“None of those things,” the guard replied. “We’re going to keep them here until you come back and give yourself up.”
“What?” Brynne cried. “Why?”
“Because we’re going to execute you,” the guard answered. “We’re going to hang you right outside the dungeon door.”
Brynne felt sick to her stomach. “What?” she asked again. “Why would you do that? Why would you want to hurt me like that?”
“Because you killed the king,” the guard answered. “And because you tried to kill the queen.”
“I didn’t try to kill her,” Brynne protested. “She attacked me first.”
“It doesn’t matter,” the guard replied. “She’s our queen, and we’re loyal to her. So are the people of this kingdom. That means we can do whatever we want to you—and we’re going to do just that.”
The End