The Musketeer Girl

Chapter 18

Over half an hour had passed, yet no murder had been found - not even anything suspicious!! Porthos and Kayley had finished searching their assigned areas of the Palace and had already met up outside to begin the search of the gardens and maze; they decided that splitting up would be the best course of action so that they could cover more ground. But if they did that, there was the risk that they could mistake the other for the killer which would end terribly so they agreed to call out the word "bacon" every few minutes. It was a good call as they had bumped into one another quite a few times and the chosen word saved them from getting shot. However, once Athos had competed his own search and joined them in the gardens, he didn't know or understand the system they had made; it was extremely confusing when he continued to hear the word "bacon" be called out by his two friends. He couldn't help but wonder 'what the bloody hell are those two doing??'. Eventually, all three found one another which gave him the chance to ask; they chuckled, realising how ridiculous it must have sounded to him before explaining the logic - it was smart...but still rather amusing. "There's no one out here" Porthos stated once they had finished searching every inch of the gardens "whoever killed those maids must have fled the Palace after their last kill" he assumed; Kayley wasn't too sure about that as she thought "...what if the killer didn't have to sneak in and out of the Palace?? What is they work here??" she suggested. The two men shared a look "like a servant or a guard??" Athos asked earning a nod "yeah, they would have had easy access to the Palace and they wouldn't have looked suspicious during our search" she reasoned. Porthos agreed with the teenager "that's a possibility" he stated "and most likely the answer" they all thought the same "come on!!" Athos ordered as they began to run back into the Palace and through the hallways "we need to get back to the King and Queen!! Now!!". 

Upon arriving to the throne room, Kayley explained their logical theory "one of our very own!?" the royal couple struggled to believe it but they trusted their musketeers "are you sure??" Anne asked; Athos explained how they weren't a hundred percent sure "but we couldn't find anyone that shouldn't have been here so the killer must have fled the Palace, but to do so, someone must have seen them" they listened "but considering the the time that the last maid was found, I doubt they would have managed to escape so quickly" he was right. There was just one problem. The Palace held well over hundreds of maids, servants and guards, as well as the kitchen staff, the stable boys and the gardeners; there was no telling which out of them was the killer!! "With the King's permission, we could search their rooms?? Look for the murder weapon?? Bloody clothes??" Aramis suggested "anything that could identify them as the killer" they had begun discussing their next course of action. As the four musketeers spoke, Kayley looked up as she heard the door to the throne room open; it revealed....a maid. She was carrying a silver tray of tea; the teenager subtly watched as the woman placed the tray on a table next to the Queen who smiled as she handed the cup to her "thank you Mandy". Anne returned her attention to her husband and the musketeers, turning her back on the maid who....remained where she was?? This coursed Kayley have a bad feeling so she continued to carefully watch and examine what she was seeing, though she also listened in on the plan her brother and friends were making. All of a sudden, the fourteen year old noticed something hidden in the maids dress, though she soon pulled it out to reveal....a dagger?! It appeared no one else was aware of this or the woman - only the teen girl. Kayley's eyes widened as the maid raised her arm up, prepared to strike the Queen down; she refused to let that happen!! Not thinking twice - or at all - Kayley ran from her spot next to the musketeers and towards the Anne, pushing her out of harms way. All confused and startled eyes turned to their young friend, only now noticing the knife wielding maid; the fourteen year old managed to disarm the woman before Porthos and Athos hurried to help. They grabbed the maid as she thrashed around violently, holding her still so that she couldn't cause any harm; everyone in the room stared at her in horror. "Mandy?!" Anne exclaimed in horror and betrayal "how could you?! You were one of my most trusted maids!!" the woman rolled her eyes at the Queen "you don't deserve to be the Queen of France!!" she yelled "and those three maids should have stayed out of my way!!". Furious, Louis ordered for her to be taken away and thrown in a cell before her hanging - her crime was one of the worst; it was treason!! The musketeers handed her over to the Palace guards, making sure they had her secure before they forced her out of the Palace.