Page 35 of The Darkest Knight

“This is my second day. They haven’t hurt me,” Erin replied. “Someone brought me food once, but that’s it. I have no idea why I’m here.”

Tammie leaned closer to the wall, feeling a little comforted by the presence of another person, even if she couldn’t see her. “I’m Tammie Lockhart. Do you know anything about what’s going on? Who’s behind this?”

“No,” Erin replied, her voice tinged with fear. “But I heard the guards talking about someone named Meliot. Does that mean anything to you?”

Tammie’s blood ran cold. Despite her suspicions that the evil, powerful wizard was involved, hearing it made her stomach sink with dread.

Before she could say more, the sound of heavy footsteps echoed from the hallway outside her door. Tammie backed away from the wall, heart racing.

“They’re coming,” she whispered. “Stay quiet.”

“Tap twice if you’re okay,” Erin said quickly.

Tammie tapped twice on the wall, and Erin responded in kind. Just as she moved away, the door creaked open, and a hulking figure stepped into the room. It wasn’t Gunther this time, but another guard, his face half-hidden beneath a hood. He carried a tray of food, which he set down on a small table near the bed without a word.

As the guard turned to leave, Tammie mustered her courage. “Wait!” she called out.

The guard paused but didn’t turn around.

“Why am I here? What does Meliot want with me?”

The guard said nothing. He stepped out of the room, slamming the door behind him. The lock clicked into place, leaving Tammie alone once more.

Frustration bubbled up inside her. She wanted to scream, to demand answers, but she knew it would be useless. Whoever these people were, they weren’t about to explain themselves to her.

Taking a deep breath, she walked over to the tray. There was bread, a bowl of stew, and a small jug of water. Her stomach growled at the delicious smell of the stew, but she ignored it. She didn’t trust the food.

She went back to the wall and tapped twice. Erin responded immediately.

“Still here,” Tammie said quietly. “We need to figure out a way to escape.”

“It seems impossible,” Erin replied. “There’s a window in my room, but the castle is too high on the cliff. We could easily plunge to our death. And the door is solid and reinforced with iron bars.”

“Same here,” Tammie muttered, glancing at her own window. “But if we’re in adjoining rooms, maybe there’s a way to break through the wall.”

The idea sounded crazy, but it was the only thing she could come up with. If they could create a gap big enough to crawl through, they might have a chance of overpowering a guard or sneaking out.

“I don’t know,” Erin said doubtfully. “These walls are thick. It would take forever.”

“Do you have anything heavy in your room?” Tammie asked, glancing around hers for anything she could use. “Like a chair or something?”

“Just the bed,” Erin said. “It’s made of wood, but it’s too big to move.”

Tammie sighed, frustration gnawing at her. Her only hope was that Niall, and the others would come to rescue them.