The Prince's Guide to True Love's Kiss {Published Version}

Lesson 42

Lesson 42: Always Bring a Blade to the Ball

Through the stone walls of the dungeon, Grielle could hear the clanging of bells in the temple. She counted them aloud, "eight...nine...ten...ELEVEN..."

Time was almost up and they still had no way out. The cell didn't have a window to the outside, only a small, barred window in the door that looked in on the dungeon.

Grielle remembered the dagger hidden in the bodice of her gown, but it was little use to them if no one came to answer her calls. Without a guard patrolling the cells, there was no one to lure in and threaten. It did seem strange that not a single guard passed through the dungeon; she hoped they were all at the ball to watch over the royal family, not taken out of the way as Captain De Soto claimed.

A roar and thundering boom shook the cell.

Grielle flinched to see Moose crumple against the wooden door. "Moose!" she exclaimed, running to his side to help him up. "Are you insane?"

"Look," Moose said, pointing through the barred peephole window in the door to the cell across the corridor.

"What?"

Moose sidled out of the way so Grielle could see the other door. "The barrel and cylinder of the door hinges are on the outside of the door. The doors swing out so prisoners can't hide behind them when guards enter the cells, and—"

"Why does that matter?" Grielle asked.

"AND the anchored cylinders are bolted to that wood frame. I'm sure you can feel how damp it is down here. We must be below ground," Moose said, a wild smile growing beneath his neatly trimmed beard.

"Which means the wood will be soft!" Ludvig said.

Grielle squinted to get a closer look at the hinges through the dark. "And the anchors look orange with rust."

"If we give it enough of a shove, we can either push those anchors out of the wall, or move the door far enough out of the frame to lift it off the hinge," Moose said, pushing his shoulder against the door and planting his feet on the ground.

Grielle and the others joined in the effort. At first the door didn't seem to want to budge, but after several moments they heard the distinct metallic groan of bending metal and the crack of splintering wood.

"Come on!" Reyn hissed through gritted teeth. "Move, you good-for-nothing door!"

"Aaargh!" Ludvig roared before Moose collapsed on top of him in exhaustion.

"Look!" Grielle shouted.

A thin sliver of light had formed above the door. They had bent it a little out of the frame. Moose scrambled to his feet and with renewed energy threw his shoulder against the top half of the door. The gap widened the smallest bit. Grielle could have fit her finger through the space between the door and the outside wall.

"Can you lift it now, do you think?" Reyn said, wiping her damp brow on her sleeve.

Moose ran his hands over the dirty floor, grabbing a handful of grit to dry his hands, and stepped up to the door. He spread his legs wide and gripped the bars of the peephole window. "This will be heavy. I need to make sure I get this on the first or second try," he said, tongue flicking out to wet his lips.

With a grunt, he pulled up on the door. The grate of iron on iron sounded through the cell as Moose lifted the door from its hinges. Grielle withdrew the stiletto from the bodice of her gown. The door fell to the floor with a deafening crash.