The Prince and the Slave: Book Three

Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

The streets of Hollinwood were heaving as people came from all over to visit the Hollinwood Market, one of the biggest in Angrokor.

Abey swallowed nervously and gripped William's hand tighter as she looked at the crowd in front of her. They had ventured out of the wood early that morning, and it hadn't been long until they found themselves on the edge of the town. They were currently stood in a small, deserted side street, the busy traffic of people quickly moving past them and never giving them even a glance.

"Trust me, it's perfect Abey" William tried to reassure her. "Barely anyone will notice us in a crowd as large as this, we'll just blend in" he said confidently.

Abey gave a small nod. It wasn't them being spotted that scared her, it was the memory of what had happened last time they had been to a busy market place. Last time she had been kidnapped and sold back into slavery, kept in misery and isolation for a month before finally managing to escape and find her way back to William.

'It won't happen this time' she told herself defiantly, 'This time I won't let us get separated'. She gripped William's hand even tighter, determined never to let go of it, as they swiftly stepped out of the side street and into the flow of the crowds, constantly scanning around them for any sign of the Royal Guard.

It had now been made known that the Prince had gone missing, and that everyone should be on alert for him, though the reason for his disappearance was kept vague, and most people were unsure of whether he had run away or been kidnapped. There had been no mention from the Palace of the slave girl accompanying him, as far as they were concerned Abey didn't exist, and so neither did most of the Kingdom.

William couldn't help but feel uncomfortable as several people passing them gave him odd, confused looks, as if trying to place him. He would give them a small smile before hurrying on, not giving them chance to recognise his face, and hoping that he now looked enough less like his old self so not to register as the Prince.

In his plain clothes, he blended in well with the rest of the people, and before they had left the safety of the forest, Abey persuaded him to let her cut his hair, arguing that he was the Prince, and that people would recognise him from pictures of the Royal Family no matter what he was wearing, but if he was to change his appearance, he would no longer be the William everyone was looking for.
William couldn't think of anything to say back, so had simply agreed, and Abey had taken great delight in cutting William's hair using the small knife he had brought with him.

"I've wanted to do this ever since I first saw you" She'd told him as he sat in front of her.

"I'm glad I made such a good impression" he'd replied, trying to keep the nervousness out of his voice, watching the locks of hair falling to the floor around him.

But now he had to admit Abey had been right. Where it had once fallen messily almost to his shoulders, constantly getting in the way, it was now shorter and more manageable, though still just as thick and sticking up in different directions.

He ran his hand through it, more out of habit than necessity, and glanced at Abey as they walked with the crowd. She was staring straight ahead, her eyes flicking left to right as she took everything in.

William couldn't but laugh as they reached the top of a small flight of stone steps, watching Abey's eyes widen and her mouth open slightly in amazement.

"It's impressive, isn't it?" He grinned at her.

Abey didn't look at him but nodded slowly. "It's...big" she added, not able to find a word to describe the sheer vastness of the sight in front of her.

At the bottom of the stone stairs a row of about 50 stalls stretched to either side, each one more brightly coloured and enticing than the next. Behind the first row of stalls there was another row, equally long and equally vibrant, and behind that another row, then another, and another.

Abey strained her eyes trying to see where the last row of stalls were, but they just seemed to go on, up to the horizon and beyond.

"Come on" William's voice cut through her dazed mind, and she dragged her hypnotised gaze from the endless market as she was gently led away from the steps and across the street to an unassuming and easily forgotten building, unable to divert attention from the splendour just across from it, a small sign above the door with writing and a picture of a dog chasing a rabbit on it, and another small written sign in the window

They stepped inside the building and Abey saw that it was some kind of tavern or Inn. The room was gloomy compared to the bright midday sunshine outside, but not in the oppressive or intimidating way Abey was accustomed to in gloomy rooms, but gave a cosy, welcoming atmosphere.

"Hello, may I help you?" A round and friendly looking woman said, stood behind a large mahogany bar, with shelves of different coloured bottles and casks behind her, and handing a tankard to a rosy-faced man who was leaning on it.

"Yes," William answered, walking up to the bar with his arm around Abey's waist to keep her close. "I noticed the sign in your window saying you have rooms available?"

"Oh yes of course!" The barmaid replied brightly, "How long are you wanting to stay?" She asked, lifting a small wooden box onto the bar, opening it and rummaging through its contents.

"We're not too sure, a couple of days perhaps." William said as the barmaid held out a key to them with a smile, closed the box and put it away where she had got it from.

"Here for the markets, are you?" The rosy-faced man slurred merrily to them. "Best in Angrokor they are!" He raised his drink and gave them a lopsided smile. Abey and William smiled politely back, before starting to follow the barmaid to their room.

"You're wife's very pretty, Sir! You're a very lucky man..." the slurred voice called after them.

'Yes, I am' William smiled to himself, closing his arm tighter around Abey as they were led to a wooden staircase.

"Just up to the top, then first on the left" The barmaid explained. "I've given you the room with the best views" She added conspiritively. "If there's anything you need just ask for Posie, that's me" she said as she started back into the main part of the Inn.
"Oh, one more thing!" She suddenly reappeared, "What's your name? Just so I can put it down in the books. Mr and Mrs...?"

"Benson" William said without a thought. "William and Abey Benson."

"That's great. I'll leave you to it, shall I?" She smiled and gave a wink, before returning back to her post behind the bar.

"Benson?" Abey asked as they climbed the stairs.

"An old friend." William replied "Always comes in useful to have a fake name, you know" He grinned at her as she raised her eyebrows at him.

They reached the top of the stairs and found the door they were looking for. William slipped the key in the lock and opened the door, both of them peering inside.

The room was small but perfect, a dresser and stool stood in one corner, as well as a chest of drawers, a water jug and bowl - not unlike the ones Abey had used at the Palace - placed on top. A comfortable looking bed sat underneath a large window on the opposite wall.

William laughed as Abey swiftly dropped her bag on the floor and jumped onto the bed, kneeling up and resting her arms on the windowsill as she looked out at the view. She smiled as she felt William climb up behind her and snake his arms around her middle, resting his chin on her shoulder.

"Wow" He said "That really is the best view, isn't it?"

The room looked out over the market, and from the high window they could see just how far it expanded into the distance. They could also make out the hazy outlines of mountains or cliffs, almost undistinguishable from the swirling clouds, and were almost sure they could see the glinted specks of the sun hitting water.

"Where's that?" Abey asked, pointing to the far away mountains and small strip of sea.

"I'm not certain of it's name," William began, pausing to plant a kiss on her cheek. "But it's where we're heading too" He grinned.
Abey grinned back at him, before turning her gaze back over the view. They stayed where they were in companionable silence for a few minutes, until Abey suddenly let out a laugh.

"What are you laughing at?" William asked, slightly bemused.

"It's just funny. Thinking, no-one knows we're here. We can literally do whatever we want." She sighed happily.

"Yes, we can." He said with a mischievous grin, "Like this!"

Abey squealed as William started to tickle her ribs, not giving her time to react properly. She carried on squealing for him to stop as he laughed at her feeble attempts to push him off. Eventually he gave in, and they collapsed onto the bed, giggling breathlessly.

"Come on, let's go have an explore" William said once they had both got their breath back, quickly kissing her before standing and pulling Abey to her feet...

"You're Majesties! You're Majesties!!" The Royals looked up in surprise as the guard burst through the doors of Dining Room and flung himself onto the floor to bow in front of the King and Queen.

"Good Heavens, what's wrong? Can't you see we are in the middle of our meal?" The Queen said, annoyed by the nature of the guard's interruption.

"I apologise, Your Majesty, but it is urgent!" The Guard had now knelt in front of the Queen and was still trying to regain his composure.

"What could be so important it has to disrupt our dinner?" Georgiana pouted, she could see nothing more important at that moment than herself and her meal. The Queen ignored her and bid the Guard continue with a wave of her hand, making Georgiana pout even more, she didn't like being ignored.

"We think we've found them." The Guard said, causing the Queen to lay down her cutlery, and the King to look up for the first time. Ever since his son had disappeared, the King had seemed to diminish, and spent most of his time by himself in his study or in the library, and was more or less silent these days, letting his wife do the talking for the pair of them.

"Where?" The Queen demanded, unable to mask the excitement in her voice.

"In Hollinwood, Your Majesty. In the Markets. We have had several reports of sightings of a pair that fit the Prince's and girl's descriptions."

"Well what are you waiting for? Go and get him!" The Queen cried, rising slightly out of her chair.

"We have already sent a team to go and confirm the reports, who will then send for assistance should they need it."

"And then you bring him back. By force if you need to, just bring him back" The Queen said, sitting back down.

"And the girl, Your Majesty?" The Guard asked.

"Leave her. She is of no importance" She replied, turning her attention back to her meal as the Guard bowed once more and hurriedly left the room.

The Queen smiled, happy in the knowledge she would soon be reunited with her son, the King stayed silent, but started to feel hope in his heart that he would see William again. Georgiana grimaced and pushed her plate away. All this talk of the Prince had put her right off her dinner...

The plan was to stay in Hollinwood for a few days, making the most of the large crowds to move around in unnoticed, giving them chance to rest properly and gather anything else they would need before moving on. And so the following days were spent seeing all that Hollinwood Market had to offer.

Abey found it hard to take everything in. The dazzling sights, exciting sounds and exotic smells overloaded her senses in ways she had never experienced. It was the third day they had spent exploring the Markets, and it felt as if they were no closer to reaching its end.

William had been to the Markets a few times before, on official Royal visits, but even that couldn't prepare him for the experience of seeing them like this, like they normally were - and he found himself just as overwhelmed as Abey was.

"Here, try this one" he said, handing a small, fried thing to Abey, who took it and dubiously placed it in her mouth.

They were currently walking around the food section of the Market, where they were able to try different delicacies from almost everywhere in the world, from Angrokor itself to far-off exotic places they had never even heard of.

Abey scrunched up her face as she chewed, then nodded slightly as she swallowed. "It's not too bad, actually. What was it?"

"Fried toad" William smirked at her, laughing as she suddenly stuck out her tongue, trying to get rid of the taste. "Hey, stop that!" He laughed again as he ducked to avoid Abey, who was now trying to hit him.

"That's disgusting! Why would you let me eat that!" She scolded him, also laughing as she continued to hit him on the shoulder.

"You just said you liked it!" He grinned, Abey opening her mouth in fake indignation before falling into fits of giggles as William started to tickle her, getting his own back.

A shout sounded from somewhere nearby, and the Market around them seemed to fall silent, listening to what was going on. Abey's laughter faltered as she saw William had frozen, a scared look on his face as he frowned in the direction of the voice.

"William, what's going on-" Abey began, unable to make out what the shouting voice was saying. Before she could finish William suddenly set off, grabbing her hand dragging her along, speeding up until they were almost sprinting, weaving through the crowd, trying to find his way out of the endless maze of stalls, heads spinning around to look at them as they ran past.

"William, please, what's going on-" This time Abey stopped herself, as they both skidded to a halt. She knew exactly what was going on.

The Royal Guard stood directly in front of them, and they simply stared at each for a moment. The silence heavy and unnerving.

"THEY'RE HERE!" The Guard suddenly yelled. And all hell broke loose.