Chương 44: Escape 2

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CHAPTER 44

It barely took many steps and turns for Raven to disappear and ultimately get lost in general. She had taken the right path and from there, guessed which route she had seen.

Surprisingly, she chose to follow her instincts and getting lost turned out to be her end result.

She had always been one that her instincts weren't wrong. But instead of taking her out of the palace, Raven soon got to figure out, it took her deeper.

'Aishh. This is no worse than me trusting Layla's senses.' Raven lamented.

Just making mention of that name made her conscience prick her in remorse. She did not want to leave Layla behind but there was no time.

And if she missed this chance of escaping from the Dragon's Den, then there was every likelihood that she might never get this opportunity again.

Knowing Xavier's antics already, it was either he reinforced the barrier or ensured tighter security. Whichever one it was, she could not take chances.

She had only been gone for an hour and now the full palace was searched. On the other hand, her situation became worse.

'At this point, I would get caught.' Raven finalized in her mind. 'However, if I can stay out of sight, in time I can frustrate their efforts, take any form of one of the men here and use that means to escape.'

Nodding her head at her plan, she took a quick glance at both sides of the high corridor she was currently in before running to keep to the shadow on the wall.

Seeing the path was clear from where she stood, her steps quickened and she hurried past different corners in an attempt to find the stairs that would lead her to the lower corridor or even the passageway.

But her survival instincts alerted her to stay wary of her surroundings.

No doubt, this was a huge Aisle so it wasn't surprising to see it had different routes to take and based on how long she's been running from one corner to another, it only proved her point.

'How will I get out of here?!' she frustratingly groaned in her head.

Ever slowly, Raven cautioned herself while taking light steps ahead and peeped from upstairs. Looking down from the place where she was, she could see several people running about the place.

'Okay, one more crossing over these stairs and then I can access a window, perhaps.' She noted inwardly as her feet came to a stop at the top of the twin stairs.

Thankfully, the men searching for her were at the base and had their backs to her. Therefore, she could quickly jump over and avoid being seen.

Looking straight ahead, she drew in a deep breath and made the jump from the part where she stood to the next step.

Due to her distraction, the second she jumped while keeping watch and hoping the men had not seen her, Raven almost missed her footing when she landed and fell forward on the ground.

Wasting no time, she scrambled to her feet and rushed back on course.

The thudding of her heart against her chest made it difficult for Raven to still her breathing. Quickly she placed a hand over her chest, hoping to control her breath.

As if having almost fallen and come rolling down the long flight of stairs wasn't enough, she heard her searchers below converse.

"Hey, I saw something jump over there," one of the people yelled out to the others.

"You sure?" Another one questioned quickly.

At this point, any leads were welcomed to him. It was better than seeing nothing.

"Yes," the first man replied.

"Okay, let's check it out."

Her eyes widened in trepidation as she immediately rose from her crouched position and scurried off, taking the next path to her left.

The moment her eyes landed on the path ahead, her heart flew straight into her chest as she peered deep at the pitch darkness that seemed to envelop the surrounding.

Gulp!

An eerie feeling and aura of dread surged from the depths of the seemingly endless passage, sending the thrill of fright running down her entire body.

It did not take a minute for goosebumps to appear on her skin. At that moment, every fibre in her body screamed for her to take a turn and leave.

However, Raven felt a familiar pull coming from the end of that path. One she could not describe.

As familiar as it felt, she could not shake away the bad vibes it gave on her person.

'No. I cannot be here. There are no windows or paths here. I must go back.' Raven pricked her sanity before it was too late.

Something about how the place brought back the dread from her dream. She could tell that something bad was coming. Or in this case, it was already there.

Taking a turn, she rushed back to the entrance of the passageway and stopped dead in her tracks.

"I am certain of what I saw. It was not a shadow, but something passed," the first man voiced strongly.

"We shouldn't be here in the first place. Let's go back," a third voice, an unfamiliar one from the two she had heard before, spoke up.

"No. We should check," a fourth voice chipped in.

"I do not know but I sense something from this part of the palace. Let's return. It must have been a fluke of the eyes," another man, the fifth agreed.

"No. If he says he saw it, then he did. Keep moving."

With those final words from the second man, rather than the sound of their boots retreating, Raven heard them become louder.

Swallowing hard, she turned back on her heels and clenched both hands by her side.

"I do not know what lies at the end of that door, but it is either that or I am caught by Xavier's supporters."

Her eyelids came to an abrupt close as she resolved within her on what course of action to take.

Without further ado, she unclenched her fist and lifted her right leg.

****

Seated in his study, Xavier kept a close watch on the mirror's surface while it showed no image at all.

He had decided to come here like every other day to think and relax his mind.

Earlier on when he checked in on Raven nothing seemed to be wrong, but soon, he heard movements in his palace.

"Mirror, show me what is going on."

Immediately the mirror lit up, coming to life as it brought forth the midpoint of the chaos.

Standing by the side of a door, Sky was seen pointing both hands in different directions as she dished out her command.

"Search everywhere. Find her."

Xavier's eyes glinted instantly. He was no fool for him not to know what that meant. Only one person would make Sky be on edge like this and he needed no reminder as to whom.

'What in the devil's name has happened now?' Xavier questioned while keeping his firm gaze locked on the screen.

*****

At the same time, Raven took closer steps towards the depth of the passage, not stopping for once to see what went on behind her.

She had come too far to bother. Even if she wished to go back now, she couldn't anymore.

To make matters worse, the closer she got, the harder the pull she felt towards this place. And the look in her eyes changed, as several colours swirled in them.

Soon enough, her feet suddenly stopped in front of the gigantic gold and black doors with the head of a dragon at the centre.

Slowly, she lifted her eyes, as they made a mark with the big ring-like handle hanging from the nostrils of the Dragon's head.

Like a spellbound servant she reached for it and pushed the doors open.

CREAK!

The loud creaking sound reverberated all around her, sending dread down the hearts of all those who heard it. To Raven though, it was an invitation.

Slowly, her lashes fluttered close and open again as her right leg moved on its own. Gently but majestically wither hands swaying to the same rhythm at her side, she brought her foot down on the ground and into the danger the door kept hidden.

0_0

GASP!

*****

Somewhere far in the palace, a pair of blue eyes snapped open to the sound of slow heavy heartbeats, drumming hard against his eardrums.

With eyes as sharp as could be, his brows furrowed deeply as he uttered begrudgingly. "It has been breached."

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