at Rampton and Marek, and nodded towards them.
'Ladies,' he said.
The men bowed their heads, trying to keep the man's eyes from their faces. Rampton felt sure that the guard’s eyes were boring into his rear as he walked in front of the guard. Lord alone knew what he must be thinking, he thought.
Father Maikel led them a into the small sunlit courtyard beyond and then stopped, waiting for a moment. The door into the courtyard slammed behind them and the large, heavy iron bolts were forced across. Rampton tensed, waiting for the heavy hands of the guard to grab him and pull back his hood, revealing him as an imposter, but nothing came.
The guard led the way as he stomped past them and with a wave bade them follow him into the Palace. The three of them followed, through the inner door and along corridor after corridor, down staircase after staircase, each level darker and more bleak than the one before it. Torches blazed in their holders at the lower levels and at the very lowest, water dripped down the walls from some higher level up above.
'How much farther?' Marek whispered.
Father Maikel raised his finger to his lips to tell Marek to be silent, but then after a few more yards they turned a corner. The guard that had led them down from the front gates disappeared into a side room and for a moment, at least, the three of them were alone in the the dark corridor.
'We're there,' Father Maikel said, lowering his voice to try to keep the sound of his voice as quiet as he could. 'Around this bend,' he said, 'is the gaoler's office, and at the end of the corridor is the cell where the Queen is held.'
Footsteps approached, the first guard was returning. He nodded at Father Maikel as he passed him but kept walking, back the way that they had all come, his task for now apparently completed.
'Here we go, then,' Rampton whispered, pulling down the habit so that he felt more comfortable. He looked at the faces of the two men. 'Remember, quiet and quick.'
Father Maikel nodded and set off around the bend, followed first by Marek and then by Rampton. Maikel stopped at the door to the office. It was open, and the gaoler sat at his desk, side on to the door. There was a large bunch of keys laying on the tabletop, the heavy iron objects threaded through a thick ring. The man looked up, and smiled.
'Good morning, Father,' the man said, rising from his seat and picking up the keys as he stood. They jangled as they rattled together.
'How are you this morning, my son.'
'Very well, thank you, although my back is still giving me pain, so nothing new there. Have you come to give the last rites to our special guest?'
'So soon?' Maikel asked.
The gaoler nodded. 'They're taking her at midday, so you'll need not bother coming tomorrow.'
Rampton and Marek glanced at each other as they heard the news.
The gaoler searched for the specific key. 'Aha!' he said, holding up the bunch, now hanging from the point of his search.
A viewing hatch had been cut in the door, at eye-level, and he slapped the hatch to one side, peering through. Then, when he was satisfied, he pulled the small door back across. He stepped forward, pushing the key into the lock. It clunked loudly as he turned it, and then he pushed the door open, entering the cell. Father Maikel followed closely.
Rampton stepped past Marek and entered. The chamber was dark and smelled of human habitation; he didn't want to think of what the odour actually consisted of, although he could guess. Water dripped down the walls from above, streaking the stonework and the floor at the base with browns and mouldy yellows. A single torch burned in a holder on the wall to their left throwing some light at least into the chamber. A low shelf had been built in the corner of the cell at waist height and rough straw had been laid on top of it. A blanket had been thrown across the straw, clearly in an effort to make the bed as comfortable as possible. Ysabel sat in a chair to the left, reading. She looked up as the men entered the room.
'Good morning, Father,' Ysabel said.
'You have fifteen minutes only,' the gaoler's said, the tone of his voice changing. He was clearly not in the mood to be helpful.
The priest looked across at Rampton and nodded. Rampton stepped in front of the man blocking the exit to the cell and pushed the door closed.
'What are you doing?' the gaoler asked.
Maikel stepped across to the man, who turned to face him. The priest signed the air in front of the man's confused face.
'Be at peace my son,' Maikel said, smiling, as he withdrew a cosh from the arm of his habit, slamming it down on the man's head. The gaoler's eyes crossed and he slumped to the floor. Maikel raised his eyes to the heavens. 'May God forgive me,' he said.
Ysabel jumped up from her seat. 'What in heaven's name just happened here?'
Rampton walked across to Ysabel and pulled down the hood of his habit. 'We're here to save you, Your Majesty.'
'Save me? Thank the Lord for that,' she said, 'I had truly thought that Father Maikel had lost his mind.'
Marek reached inside the basket that he carried on his arm, pulling out the spare garment and offering it out for Ysabel to take. 'Please, Your Majesty,' he said, 'put this on. Quickly. But you'll need to take off your dress.'
Father Maikel blushed as Ysabel began to untie the stays that pulled the dress tightly around her. Rampton and Marek turned their back.
'Oh, please,' Ysabel said, 'this is not the time for false modesty.' She pointed towards Marek. 'You. Keep a watch on the corridor.'
Before too long Ysabel had removed the dress and was inside the nun's clothing and pulling on the headgear. 'What are we going to do with this,' she said pushing the discarded dress with her foot.
Rampton thought for a moment, and said, 'Put the gaoler in it and then gag and tie him. We can put him on the shelf and cover him in the blanket. If anyone looks through the bars in the door they might think you asleep. At least for a while.'
Minutes later, the priest and his three Sisters crossed the inner courtyard, approaching the guard post, the sunshine broken with shadows cast from the walls above. None of them moved quickly, not wanting to attract undue attention to themselves, but Rampton's heart raced nonetheless. Up ahead, the main gates out of the Palace were closed tight but they were already calling to them, beckoning them closer; they were so close to being free that he could almost touch freedom.
The guard frowned as the group approached.
'Bless you my son,' Maikel said, signing in front of the man. 'May God thank you for your help again today.'
Rampton looked down at his feet. His heart pounded. I've never believed in you before, God, he thought to himself, but if you are there, just look on us favourably this once. He held his breath and gripped onto his empty basket pulling it close for some semblance of support. Please? For the Queen's sake, and for the sake of these people, not for me.
The guard looked down their line, his head on one side.
'Wait a moment,' he said, raising his finger to his lip and tapping it several times. He seemed to be puzzling out a problem, and wagged his finger several times. 'Something's not right here,' he said.
The man walked slowly down their line, his hands now behind his back, staring at each of them in turn as they looked down at the floor.
'Is there a problem, my son?' Father Maikel asked.
'I think that there is, Father,' the guard said. He stopped as he reached Ysabel. 'You,' he said, pointing at her. 'I could have sworn on my mother's life that you all had baskets when you entered.'
Father Maikel looked back at the guard, and his eyes widened. 'Oh, dear, Sister Alice,' he said, directing his words towards Ysabel, 'you'll forget your own head one of these days. You've left your basket in the cells.'
The guard frowned and in that moment Rampton felt sure that the man had realised that something more was going on.
Then, the guard's face lightened. 'I knew it,' he said. 'I'm observant you see, my old nose can spy out something not right from a mile away. All the men say so. Never mind,' he added, 'collect it tomorrow. I'll ma
ke sure that it is put to one side so that you don't forget it.'
'Thank you, my child,' Maikel replied, as the guard walked across to the door, turning his back on the group.
Rampton's eyes lifted and met Maikel's for a second, a silent expression of relief passed between them.
The bolts clunked across, and bright light fell through as the man pushed open the door. One at a time they passed out of the gateway, stepping onto the flagstones of the square. As soon as they were outside the door it was slammed shut behind them.
'Move!' Father Maikel said. 'Now!'
oOo
Ysabel slumped into the large padded chair, the nun's head gear now gone.
'Well that certainly explains why Kaitlynn couldn't look me in the eye.' She shook her head. 'I'd wager she's been out of her mind, the poor woman.' She looked around the faces in the room. 'And you say you know where the children are?'
Rampton nodded. 'There's a villa, in the north of the city, they've been taken there.'
'I bet I know it,' Ysabel replied. 'Courtenay is renting a place from the Palace estates.' She raised her finger to her lips, deep in thought. 'How well guarded is it?' she asked.
'He's employed a group of mercenaries to act as his enforcers,' Rampton said. 'They seem to answer only to gold, and I cannot say how loyal they would be if push came to shove, but I'm told that Courtenay trusts their leader more than anyone else.'
'I believe that I have already met him.' Ysabel gripped the arms of her chair. 'And a nasty piece of work he