Rasmus woke up in the middle of the night due to the extreme cold. He's still alone in the room and it is very dark.
He always hated the dark.
So he decided to walk out of the room and saw a small and single lamp lit on the table.
Everyone's also asleep. He looked around scanning them one by one until he saw Annabelle. She's sleeping between Mei and Xin.
He quietly walked towards her and leaned closer to her face. She was shivering, meaning that she's very cold.
"I'm sorry I brought you into this…" he whispers and leaned closer to leave a kiss on her forehead.
He then leaned back and made his way to the door. He left the house and went to the boat. Sitting on the edge of the deck and watching the lake despite the pitch blackness everywhere.
Even though he hated the dark, it still somehow comforted him. Because it hid the tears that he didn't know were staining his cheeks.
Rasmus used to visit the port with his cousin. The house was built there after the king learns that the two would sneak out just to go to the shore and play.
After his cousin moved out for being betrothed to another princess, Rasmus started going to the port by himself. And the last time he went there was with his father and he was the one who brought the boat there.
He promised his son that he would teach him how to fish on the lake. And that was before he was killed.
There used to be two boats there, the other one was used to escape when he was kidnapped.
After a few hours. Rasmus went back inside the boat and started to fix what he could to make it work. But not only the engine is broken, there is no fuel and a lot of wires are burnt.
Frustrated and angry. That's what he felt as he stared at the boat that would never work again. He walked back to the ground and went back inside the house. Everyone was still asleep but they were all cold. The lamp had already stopped working.
He looked up. Forcing himself not to shed more tears. And once he successfully did so, he went back outside and stayed there to be a look out.
He kept his mind blank because he knows that if he starts thinking of everything that's happening. He's just gonna blame himself and blaming will not get them out of there alive.
About a few hours before the sun rises. Rasmus decides to walk around the perimeter. And that was probably the best decision he made for the day because he saw some men closing in to their location.
He hurried back to the house and started waking everyone in a frenzy. Rasmus is the only one who has been in that forest so they have no choice but to follow him wherever he goes.
They ran and ran in the forest until the prince was sure it was safe enough to stop.
"We're lost. How will we find our way out now?" Jamie drawls as she tries to catch her breath.
Wan would have agreed with her but he remembered the map that was given to him. He put it in his back pocket so he would easily be able to use it.
They were in a hurry when they left the house. The only important thing they got to bring with them is the map and the walkie.
They left the rest including the bows and arrows.
Wan quickly put out the map and Rasmus was the one to check it. He immediately pointed out where the location of the port was. And based on the direction they ran to, they're not that far to reach a small village.
The village is one of the few independent communities in Salem. It's more of a stop by for travelers and they don't really care much if they take in wanted people. As long as they get paid, they can keep a secret.
"But we don't have any money. We left most of our accessories in the minefield. We left the bags. And now we're poor and cold!" Monina rambles frustratingly as she keeps pacing back and forth.
"I'll take care of it." Rasmus says as he hands the map back to Wan.
"Are you gonna pierce a bullet to his head to force him to make us stay?" Wan's snarky comment made the younger frown. Although he sounded playful, but sarcastic. It offended Rasmus and he never thought he would be able to feel that away.
That statement made everyone quiet and look at him. Waiting for his response.
"I will negotiate with them. Because it seems pretty clear to me that I'm the only one who speaks my mother tongue here." He said back in the same tone and looked at the others. It hurted him how they all looked away and it made him feel so alienated.
It felt like back to zero. Like the first day of school where everybody looked at him as if he is a vermin. It gave him goosebumps and Rasmus felt a big lump in his throat. But nothing hurts more than to see his own girlfriend avoiding him.
Rasmus forced himself to stay rational. He didn't wanna lash out just because of a comment so he decided to walk away first. The others just followed him and it became more quiet.
An hour later they reached the village. There were a few people but nobody bothered to even spare them a glance. Everyone looked like travelers who made their stop because of the cold winter.
Rasmus brought them to the biggest hut which is probably the inn. It was warm inside and all the other guests were having beer or hot coffee.
"Go there." Rasmus points at the corner of the hut where there is enough space for his friends.
"And you?" Ross asks.
Rasmus only looked at him blankly before walking to the bar. Ross decided to follow him while the rest went to the corner he pointed.
"Haluaisin kuljetuksen maan ulkopuolelle. Minulle ja ystävilleni. Ystäväni sanoi, että voisit auttaa." Ross looked at the younger surprised when he suddenly spoke Finnish.
He looked at the man on the other side of the bar and noticed him grin. Focusing his full attention to them. Ross realized he must've looked like a lost puppy so he immediately composed himself.
"Ja kuinka paljon voin saada prinssin ja hänen pentujensa kuljettamisesta hänen kanssaan?" The man asks. His accent sounded Russian and the way he talks back to Rasmus seems as if he's bargaining like he has the upper hand.
"Ihmiset kanssani ovat voimakkaita ihmisiä. Nimeä hintasi ja annamme sen, kun olemme turvallisesti kuljetettu." Ross observed as the two conversed more, he noticed the man looking at their friends and seemed to be thinking.
He understands not a single thing but when Rasmus suddenly wrote something Finnish on the paper that the man gave him, even signing on it with his blood. He knew that there was an agreement. The man yelled something to one of the women that was serving the guests there and she immediately went to prepare hot cocoa.
Rasmus and Ross walked back to the others.
"We'll leave in a few hours. They'll take us back to Salem Port where there will be an export to a private port to Paris. There will be an inspection but he promised to get us a pass." Rasmus explained to them and it helped everyone to ease up a bit from their worries.
"And the pay? How much did he require?" Cullen asked.
"I took care of it." He said and moved to the side when the waitress came with trays of hot cocoa. She placed it on their tables and then moved back to bow at the prince before going back to serve others.
"We're all going out of this place. Let us pitch in. You don't even have any money." Wan said to him and grabbed one of the mugs to warm his palms.
Rasmus scoffs and looks down at him.
"I have no money with me. But just so you know. My identity is worth a lot more than you will ever be." He said with an irritated tone as he glare at Wan and then he walked out of the hut.
"Do you really have to say that?" Cayden says to him as he stood up and followed the prince.
After the two left…
"Aren't we being too harsh on him? He just did it so none of us would get hurt." Steel said and stared at the exit door where he last saw the two.
"We're harsh on him? We came all the way here to rescue him." Jamie scoffs in disbelief.
"He killed those men like they're just video game characters. Is it even true that he was scared when Yuri died?"
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