the man in the back. I felt someone grab me, I turned around to fight them off when I realized it was when of Owen’s men. Another one had grabbed Isabel and Catherine. They ran down a hill with us, where we were reunited with Owen and Lady Mary.
Catherine and Isabel rushed to Lady Mary.
“They’re almost all gone,” one of the men said to Owen.
“Good,” Owen said. “I’m going to stay here and protect them, will you go back and help the men finish the job?”
The Queen
Looking back, I often think I would have done things differently, but I always come back to the same answer. It was what my husband would have wanted. He would have wanted me to stay and try to help people get out, so that’s what I did.
I ran through the corridors of the palace, trying to help as many people escape as possible. I knew that they could live for months inside the passageways, as long as they weren’t discovered. I ran through the hallways grabbing my confused servants and shoving them into the entrances. I had told those on the inside to look out for them. They would explain to them what was going on if I didn’t make it back.
I wasn’t sure how long I’d be running through the corridors of the palace when I first heard the clashing of weapons close to me. I ran in the opposite direction, only to hear them there too. I knew that I had to get to the nearest entrance as soon as possible. I looked around. I didn’t see any of my guards. I began to run as fast as I could towards one of the secret entrances.
Someone grabbed me and twirled me around. He was a tall man, with an iron strong grip. He smelled like he hadn’t bathed in months, and his breath smelled foul. As I met his gaze, I knew instantly that I knew him. He was one of Harold’s friends. He had aged, but I could never forget those eyes. They were cold and harsh.
“Not so fast Joan,” he said.
“Let go of me,” I said beating my fist against his chest. “Help!” I cried.
He slapped me across my face. “It’s too late for that,” he said. “The palace is taken, and soon enough, all of your men will be dead or captured.”
I need him in the groin. He groaned and then slapped me even harder. I fell backwards onto the ground. I touched my fingers to my throbbing head, and the damp moisture that was on my skin.
“If you don’t cooperate, I’ll beat you even worse,” he said. “ Now tell me, where are they?”
“Who?” I asked.
“You know damn well who,” he snapped.
“I’m afraid I don’t,” I responded.
He picked me up and punched me in the stomach. I bellowed over in pain.
“Igor that’s enough,” Harold’s voice boomed from behind me.
I turned around to face him.
“So, you remain but the rest are missing,” he mused. “Search the palace Igor, they must be here somewhere.”
“There’s no point in looking,” I said. “The King and Charles are both dead. They died in battle yesterday.”
I saw a flash of sadness in his eyes. “ I didn’t realize Charles’s had perished. I had hoped to spare him.”
I spit in his face. “You could have saved him by not starting this war,” I said.
His hand collided with my face. He grabbed my elbow and started dragging me down the hall. “Where are the rest of them?” He asked.
“Who?”
“Don’t play stupid; Isabel, Mary and that boy?!”
“Isabel and Mary are both dead,” I said. “ They caught the flu from Catherine and died suddenly. I don’t know what boy you speak of.”
He opened the door to my chambers, and shoved me in. I felt his hand colliding with my face again. I cried out in pain.
“You know what boy I speak of. The one that you have raised in place of a son. I know he’s here somewhere, and I know Mary and Isabel aren’t dead. Where are they?
“I’ve told you all that I know,” I said.
He continued to beat me for days. Days turned into weeks, until eventually I didn’t know how long had passed. But I never told what had happened to them. The truth was, I didn’t know. I know they must have escaped Harold’s men. I would have heard if they hadn’t. But after that, I truly had no idea what happened to them. I realized that it was better that way. I realized that it was safer for all of us if I didn’t know where they were.
Harold locked me in my chambers. I was stripped of my tittle, and most of my possessions. All of my servants were dismissed, and I was attended only by his servants. My existence became dismal, and almost hopeless. But there was hope. Charles had survived, and was hiding within the palace walls. When the time was right, I hoped that he would be able to make an escape. Maybe somehow he would be able to muster enough men to save us. I knew that the children had survived. If not Charles, I knew that they would come back for me.
Isabel
The day that we made our escape from the palace still seems like a blur. I remember being attacked, and I remember feeling like we wouldn’t escape with our lives, but then somehow we had. Somehow my father’s men had saved us. I remember feeling warmth that my father was still protecting me even in his death. It made me feel close to him.
After the attack, Owen began moving at a rapid pace again. He said there was no time to waste. I remember holding onto his neck as tightly as I could without chocking him. Looking back, I can’t imagine how hard it must have been to carry me through the forest like that. I wasn’t exactly a small child anymore.
We had only been on the move for a few minutes, when we heard the crashing through the trees and the animal sounds. I knew all too well what it was. I had only heard those noises once before in my life, and I would never forget them.
“Owen!” I screamed.
He looked over his shoulder. “Terrance, Luther, fall back,” he ordered.
“They’ll die,” William said.
“We could all die,” Owen responded.
When we reached the rock, Owen put me down.
“Only the royal heir can open it,” he said.
I heard Terrance and Luther scream, and looked back over my shoulder.
Owen turned my head away. “That’s nothing you need to see,” he said. “Now open it, or we could all die.
I held my hand to the rock, and a doorway appeared. After we had all entered, Owen told me to close it.
“What about the men?” I asked. “What if they’re still alive?”
He shook his head. “They’re gone,” he said.
“But..” I started to protest.
“Isabel, do as you’re told, and close it before someone sees us,” Aunt Mary said sternly.
I held my hand out to open it, and the door disappeared.
Owen took a sip from his water jug, and handed it to me. The moment the water hit my lips, I realized how thirsty I was, and began taking big gulps.
“Easy does it Princess,” Owen said. “We need to make our supplies last a couple of days, maybe even weeks.” He threw his sack down on the ground and opened it. He handed each of us a small loaf of bread, and some dried fruit.
“We can rest here for a few hours, but after that we have to move quick and fast. The sooner and farther we get away from the palace, the better.”
“Where will we go?” Aunt Mary asked.
“We will go as far as the tunnel goes. The tunnel ends at the home of one of the King’s knights. The king has thousands of knights that live in secret in case this ever happens. They will pass us from home to home until we are somewhere safe.”
“The guardians of the throne,” Mary said.
“Yes,” I responded.
“What about my mother? “ I asked. “Will she find us?”
He leaned back against the wall of the tunnel. “I don’t know,” he said. “I hope, but I don’t know.”
I began to feel my eyes flow with moisture. “She’s all that I have,” I said.
He rushed over to me, and put his hands on my face. “Now, you have me now. I promised your mother that
if anything happened to her, I would take care of you.”
“What if she’s not alive anymore?” I asked weeping.
“I’m sure she’s alive. If she hasn’t been able to escape from the palace, then I’m sure she’s hiding in the passageways.”
“But someone could find her there. Someone found us there remember?”
“Hush now child,” Aunt Mary said trying to sooth me. “You’re mother would want you to be brave right now.”
I didn’t feel brave at the moment. I felt lost and confused. I had never felt so alone in my entire life. In the last 24 hours, I had lost not only my father, but now my mother too.
“It’s ok, I’m here,” Catherine said walking over to me and grabbing my hand.
“Why don’t you let me tell you a story?” Aunt Mary asked.
I nodded. The last thing I remembered that night was climbing into her lap with Catherine, and Aunt Mary stroking my hair.
Owen
“You were very brave today,” I said to William.
He shrugged. “If the King knew he would be mad. I’m not supposed to pick up any weapons, or fight.”
I knelt down to talk to him. “William, the King would always want you to save his daughter’s life over following orders. Not a lot of knights can say that they’ve saved a princess twice, or even once.”
“But shouldn’t I obey? I mean especially now that the King is gone? I feel like I should obey his wishes more now than ever.”
“William, the King was really proud of you, and if he was watching over us today, he would have been proud of how brave you were. It took courage to fight those men.”
“I killed them,” he said.
“You had to,” I replied. “I killed