Apples of Gold (complete)

Part 14 - Escape

Joseph bowed his head in relief as the couple left the cave; he still felt fearful, but exuberant; it was unbelievable! They'd left him alone with Philip. He prayed with thanks and asked God, Help me, please, to get home safe with Philip. Give him the strength to escape with me now... 

Crawling to a rucksack, Joseph felt inside it, hoping to find a flask of some sort. Then his eyes contacted a water skin, behind the candle, and he scurried across to it. Moving back to what Jardie had called 'the heap o' stuff', Joseph felt around the form.

Philip, trussed up with rope like a captive animal, with a chain around his wrists, was gagged and blindfolded as well. Pulling the small sharp dagger from the leather sheath tied to his rope belt, Joseph cut the thin rags, removing both the gag and the blindfold. He found the end links of the chain, tied with rope and cut that, unwinding the chain, rubbing Philips wrists to help the circulation to his hands.

Pouring cool water from the skin over Philip's face, Joseph then pressed his hand across Philip's mouth, preventing his cry sounding out too loudly.

Shaking him, he said, "It's me, Joseph. How badly hurt are you, Philip?"

"Ahh! I... I'm not sure... where are we? It's so dark."

"You must get yourself awake, Philip. You were kidnapped and I've come to get you out of here, but you've got to wake up..."

Philip slumped, relaxing, limp, as if faint. Joseph poured water on the closed eyes, and across his face. Philip gasped, sitting up. Joseph waited, supporting him, dreading the time he knew was passing.

"Sir... it's you. You're... here. Oh, my head! How..."

"Don't waste breath, Philip," Joseph urged, "just do as I say. Can you crawl?"

"I don't know..." Philip reached a trembling hand upward to his forehead, but not touching it. "Uh-they hit me, twice, I remember that; I stayed awake, but kept still. Then they brought me here and after I'd written the ransom note, they hit me again. Oh!" He reached around, feeling the back of his neck, "I've got a headache, like nothing I've had before..."

"Philip, save your breath!" Joseph hissed. "You've got to get yourself ready to crawl. I mean lots of crawling!" Joseph scampered back to the torch, toppling it to lie on the rocky ground, pouring the rest of the water over it, making it die with a hiss. Taking the small candle in its holder, he rejoined Philip saying, "Follow me and stay close on my heels."

Reaching ahead with the candle as he moved on his knees, Joseph ignored the sharpness of the rock beneath him. At least Philip is wearing his breeches and boots; they didn't steal his boots. My feet are killing me... and my knees...

They crawled now, on hard clay, under a ledge Joseph remembered. He lifted the candle ahead to see the way through the low shaft beyond.

Soon they were in a narrow tunnel, with the hard clay beneath their knees. Joseph heard Philip's heavy breathing, right behind him. He pressed on, and on.

The clay was gone and they were on the ragged rock again, moving downward. Shafts of rock imprinted and scraped Joseph's knees and shins but he crawled as fast as he was able, moving the candle ahead to see the way.

He remembered this shaft as being so long that he had once imagined it had no end; then he had emerged on the outer hillside of the valley.

***

After Captain Randell had been told that Joseph had left the castle by way out from the scullery beyond the kitchens, where wood and coal was stored, he decided to confer with his military peers. He believed they should move out as soon as possible. His military mind suggested several options, all with little jeopardy for either Joseph or Philip. He believed the peril for the lads to be close to such murderous felons was greater than that which the king's army would contribute.

The king had explained to him, who Joseph had been, what he was now, and his projected future role. It had taken all the captain's will-power, not to explode! He couldn't believe that the king had allowed the boy whom he had chosen as his son and heir, to go out, practically alone, to face murderous criminals.

Captain Randell would have recalled this prospective prince but it was too late; the lad had found his pauper's disguise from a pile of rags in the cleaners' closets and had left the castle. Karl and two men had accompanied him. The latter two, each towing a horse, would ride across the river-bridge, to wait in the woods, not far from the valley.

For many months now, Joseph had been sheltered in the royal castle, hidden away from 'the mob' —from questioning people and prying eyes —being groomed and educated secretly; and now —thrust back into a world that was cruel and unrelentingly greedy. Criminals considered life to be cheaper than spit!

Striding out of the library, Captain Randell had summoned the other captains to an emergency meeting with himself. There was no superior chief of the army of Justiceburg, but a counsel of a quorum of half the captains, who numbered twenty, made decisions. They were the knights of the kingdom; the military leaders.

Only six captains could be found at such short call, but Captain Randell, with Captain Berman, made eight and they decided to proceed with the meeting, held in the military counseling chamber of the castle. Empty chairs were joined to the circle for others who might yet arrive.

"This is an unprecedented emergency, a matter of life and death; a matter of grave concern as to future kingdom continuance and security," Randell said, and paused whilst a seventh captain joined the group. "What I must tell you, is, at the king's request, a classified matter of confidentiality, which must not leave this chamber," he began, then plunged into explaining the situation.

As he was completing his disclosure about 'Joseph' the orphan-boy whom King Lemuel seriously considered for adoption he said, "Already it's obvious that our king has great affection for this boy; somewhere about thirteen years old now," —the king himself entered the chamber, causing the captains to slip off their chairs to bend a knee in obeisance.

The three advisers, Pippin, Vokoll, and Bradley, followed the king who commanded, "Carry on, captain and be quick about it."

"I believe we should gather as many men-at-arms as possible, Sire, and we should move out, cautiously, of course, before sunset, to apprehend these criminals and rescue the young men..." Captain Randell began.

While the meeting's temperature rose, Joseph had been swimming across the river.