You Can not Leave The Castle!
"I did not come in the company of my family!" blurted Elizabeth in a manner that revealed deep emotion. Her words were undoubtedly pregnant with meaning and Ezekiel could not have missed that much.
He sighed.
Then Elizabeth spoke for clarity sake.
"I came in the company of a kind old lady and her daughter."
Then suddenly remembering the major reason for which Mr Graylock had been a partaker of Lady Osborn's company, Beth added.
"… and husband."
Ezekiel hummed softly.
"So it was in this other family's carriage that you had journeyed here to Aegremonth?" asked Zeke eagerly.
"It is as you have said, kind sir," Elizabeth asserted rigidly.
Zeke remained silent letting an odd silence linger on in the air of the now poorly lit prison.
Apart from the fact that dusk was approaching, the source of light within the prison had begun to grow dimmer by the hour. Hence, night time in the prison was fated to be a dark, lonely and tormenting one for Elizabeth but for Sigrid's intervention in finding the modest piece of jewellery which Zeke had kept away in the inner part of his outer coat.
Without wasting further time, Zeke went on with his actual intended interrogation.
"Lying carelessly near the entrance to the hall of Termarth, we found a modest piece of jewellery…"
Elizabeth's interest was piqued by now.
'And…?' asked Beth eagerly in her mind.
"The item found resembles a necklace and I recall you saying you had gone in search of your missing ornament when you had accidentally stumbled across the King's room… Now… if by all means you can provide the proper description to what we found… then you shall have the item returned to you and in addition… your freedom from this pit tonight. Now that I have spoken my terms clearly, acquit yourself by your own hands... Elizabeth!"
Saying nothing in a hurry, and being very careful not to express her excitement outwardly, Elizabeth let her mind travel back to her home and the memory of how the necklace had appealed to her once her Bessie had handed it over to her on that said day of her departure.
"Oh Bessie you have good eyes because if it were just me I wouldn't have understood how this particular item could bring the dress that I would wear tomorrow, to actual life." These had been her words to Bessie before leaving for Aegremonth in the company of Lady Osborn, her daughter, Giselle and the ever kind Mr Graylock.
Beth could remember every shape of the item, what part it curved the most and the mimic of a jade stone that had been forged into the silver necklace as a pendant by the maker. She was grateful now that she had carefully observed the ornament closely enough before departing because right now her life was hanging at a thread's nail because of it.
Meanwhile the period that elapsed as Elizabeth deliberated on remembering the description of the necklace, Zeke's doubts grew and he wondered if Briceus had been right in his suspicions all along.
——
"… and that is what my missing necklace looks like," said Elizabeth with a smile of triumph on her face. She was thankful that she had done things right to save her head.
Therefore feeling confident in all she had just muttered, Beth was curious to pave her way back home and never to take such a ridiculous and dangerous adventure ever again in the future.
'But how do I begin my journey home when it is almost dusk and I am sure that Lady Osborn and father would have left by now. Although I am disappointed that neither Giselle nor anyone else came to look for me all this time and just left me behind.
Perhaps I am really an unlikeable person and once I have succeeded in getting out of here, I will be sure to rely solely on myself in the future,' concluded Beth in her heart.
Meanwhile, feeling impressed that Sigrid had not been wrong in blindly assuming the maiden's innocence, Ezekiel got out the necklace and presented it to Elizabeth.
"Then… I believe this to be yours, lady Beth."
Ezekiel's words resonated in her senses lingering on for some seconds but her actual focus was on the necklace- Louisa's necklace. It was seemingly harmless but so far, it had brought a lot of misfortune her way and in just one day.
The fact also that her address had swiftly changed from "Creature of the dark" to "Lady Beth", caused her brilliant green eyes to flourish beautifully with bright sparkles expressing her gleefulness.
She took the necklace and held on to it tightly before recognizing Zeke's presence again.
"Kind sir, thank you! Thank you for searching this out for me-"
"Oh, you are getting it all wrong. It was all the cout lady's doing, Sigrid. I can so comfortably mention her involvement in the matter now that all suspicion has been cleared and for that... On behalf of the king, we are truly sorry for the false alarm and gross misunderstanding," said Zeke.
Elizabeth nodded then looked at the culprit of her problems and how she held onto it as if it shouldn't dare escape her eyes one instant to cause her more troubles.
After a minute or two, she returned her gaze towards Ezekiel.
"I was wrong in the first instant, kind sir and with the darkness that unfolded and everything else, I dare say the king had his reasons for tagging me a mystical suspect.
Right now my immense gratitude resides with the kind lady Sigrid and with you also…But I do not know your name, I will like to remember it in the future..."
"I am Ezekiel and as you have possibly noticed, I reside by the king's side," revealed Ezekiel.
"Thank you then, master Ezekiel! I shall take care to tell of your kindness in the future. Now, when do I leave the castle? Help me thank the king for his benevolence. I won't forget it," said Beth with a mushy smile on her face as she exited the prison interiors hurriedly.
She could not spend one more minute within those depressing prison walls.
Zeke had silently watched her walk outside the prison, making it past him and the other knights by his side.
But once she had tasted the liberty at the alternate side to the prison, his coarse voice stopped her in her tracks with what he muttered next.
"The problem is... miss Elizabeth... that even though you are free… you can not leave the Castle! Not yet much less today. This is the directive given to your case, under the King's command."