Suzy and Doris strolled along a winding path lined with vibrantly colored flowers. The crisp morning air carried the sweet scent of roses and lilies, a welcome change from the stuffy confines of the room. Suzy tried to take in her surroundings, searching for any clues that might lead her back to the well. But the well from her memories wasn’t anywhere in sight.
Disappointment gnawed at her. Maybe that well wasn’t the answer after all. Perhaps there was another way back, something she just hadn’t stumbled upon yet. She needed a plan, and formulating a plan required some fresh air and clear thinking.
"This is lovely, Doris," Suzy said, taking a deep breath and letting the sunshine warm her face. "It’s amazing how peaceful it is here."
Doris smiled, a hint of pride in her eyes. "The gardens are the heart of the estate, milady. The Count himself takes great care in overseeing their upkeep."
Suzy nodded, but her mind was already racing. The well wasn’t here, but there had to be a way back. Back home, she’d been looking at an old Victorian house before the whole well incident. Maybe, just maybe, there was a similar house here, somewhere on these grounds. An old, forgotten structure that might hold the key to her return.
"Doris," she began casually, "do we have any... abandoned buildings on the property? Like an old house or something?"
Doris tilted her head, considering the question. "Abandoned buildings, milady? Not that I can recall. The Count keeps everything in top condition."
Suzy’s shoulders slumped. A dead end.
Their walk continued, and with each passing minute, Suzy’s frustration mounted. She can’t find the damn well and the house. A devious plan began to form in her mind. Escape!
As they rounded a corner, a flash of movement caught Suzy’s eye. Leaning precariously against the outer wall of the garden was a long wooden ladder, likely used by the gardeners to tend to the fruit trees that bordered the property.
Suzy’s eyes gleamed. This was her chance! An escape route, a path towards the unknown, a possibility of finding that elusive well! Before Doris could question her, Suzy darted towards the ladder.
Doris’s voice screeched after Suzy like a frantic bird. "Milady! What are you doing? Please, don’t do this again! Don’t try to take your life again!"
Suzy, halfway up the ladder, winced. Take her life again? Was this woman stuck on a broken record? "Doris, honey, relax!" she called back, her voice strained as she hauled herself up another rung. "I’m not trying to take my life, I’m trying to leave!"
"Leave? Leave where?" Doris shrieked, her voice cracking with genuine fear. "This is your home, Lady Cassandra! You can’t just abandon your family!"
Suzy rolled her eyes, though Doris couldn’t see it. Family? More like a dysfunctional soap opera with a cast of weirdos! "Yeah, well, newsflash, Doris," she muttered, "this isn’t actually my family. And trust me, I have a very real life to get back to, one that doesn’t involve marrying creepy Grand Dukes."
She winced. "My family is throwing a birthday party for me right now, with cake and balloons, not... whatever this is!" Suzy gestured vaguely at the looming garden walls.
Doris clutched her chest, her face pale. "But the Count! If he finds out you’re gone, or worse, if you... if you..." her voice trailed off, replaced by a terrified gasp. "Oh, dear heavens, not again! Please, Milady, don’t do anything rash! This is your home! Think of me! If the Count finds out you’re not in your room, or worse, if something happens to you... he’ll have my head for sure!"
Suzy stopped, her ascent momentarily halted. This "head" business was starting to get creepy. "Your head?" she asked, a hint of amusement creeping into her voice. "What, like literally have your head chopped off?"
"Well, not exactly chopped off," Doris stammered, "but... dismissed! Discharged! Banished from the mansion forever and I won’t work anywhere else!" Her eyes welled up with tears. "I escaped the last time because you woke up, milady. But if something happens to you this time..."
Suzy couldn’t help but let out a small, humorless laugh. Was this whole situation a giant historical reenactment gone wrong? "Doris," she said, her voice softening slightly, "look, I appreciate your concern, really. But trust me, I’m not going to do anything... well, anything too rash. I just need to find a way back to where I came from."
But Doris was beyond listening. Tears streamed down her face as she wailed, "Please, Milady Cassandra! Don’t leave me here to face the Count’s wrath! I’m just a simple handmaiden, not a human sacrifice!"
Suzy sighed, a pang of annoyance warring with her desperate desire to escape. " Then fucking leave and stop pestering me." She said, sounding a little bit harsh.
Just then, a loud crack echoed through the quiet alleyway. Suzy froze, her heart hammering in her chest. The ladder, old and rickety, had finally decided to give up the ghost. With a sickening groan, it snapped in two, sending Suzy tumbling backwards in slow motion.
One moment she was perched precariously on the ladder, the next she was dangling precariously in mid-air, clinging to the top of the wall with all her might. Below her, the unforgiving cobblestones loomed large.
"AAAH!" Suzy shrieked, a sound that would have made a banshee proud. "Why isn’t anything going well for me in his hellhole?"
Doris, who had been busy lamenting her potential beheading, finally looked up. Her eyes widened with horror at the sight of Suzy dangling like a forgotten marionette.
"Milady!" Doris shrieked, rushing over and grabbing the bottom rungs of the ladder with surprising strength. "Hold on tight! I’ll get the guards."
Doris scurried off towards the castle, her voice trailing behind her as she called for help. Suzy, meanwhile, was left alone to contemplate her next move. Great, just great. Stuck, sweaty, and about to become a human piñata for any passing rogue tomato.
Dangling precariously just a few feet off the ground, she knew brute force wasn’t going to save her. She needed a plan, and fast.
Suddenly, an idea struck her. Spying over the edge of the wall, she spotted a figure approaching the entrance of the house across the alleyway.
A man.
And not just any man, but a man so ridiculously good-looking, probably in his early thirties, with a tall, broad-shouldered build that practically screamed "look at me." Dark hair framed a face that could launch a thousand ships, as they used to say back in her time. Seriously, this guy could have been a model on a billboard.
He moved with a confident ease that screamed "important person." His dark hair was cropped short, and his face, though partially obscured by the shadows, held a hint of brooding intensity. Hooded eyes, she could just make out, and a strong jawline that hinted at a stubborn streak a mile wide.
Was he a guard? A nobleman? Or maybe just a very well-dressed visitor?
Suzy found herself inexplicably distracted. Here she was, dangling precariously off a wall, and her mind had wandered off to daydream about a stranger’s cheekbones. Maybe the lack of oxygen was getting to her.
"Excuse me!" she croaked, her voice embarrassingly weak. "Hello! Cutie! A little help here?"