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I smiled. Pride commeth before a fall, right?
Well, then let’s make sure Dalgliesh falls hard!
Hurrying to the door, I took a peek outside. Nothing. No one. The snowy landscape was as deserted as Antarctica during penguin holiday season. I was about to dash outside when I suddenly hesitated.
No.
Think, Lilly, think!
It was biting cold outside. Besides, if I just ran away through the snow, I would leave tracks everywhere. When Lord Dalgliesh came back - and he would come back soon, I had no doubt - he would find my tracks and catch up to me easily. That was something I couldn’t let happen.
Squinting, I searched the horizon for something, anything that could be helpful in my escape. A road, smoke from nearby village, a…
Wait a moment.
Was that water I saw sparkling in the distance?
Yes, definitely! There was a stream running through the countryside not too far away from the cabin - one that hadn’t frozen over yet! A plan began to form in my mind. Hm…could it work?
Yes.
Turning, I hurried back into the hut and marched over to my fallen captor. For a moment I just stood there, thinking my plan over. Then I nodded, decision made, and stepped forward.
‘Don’t worry,’ I told the slumbering soldier. ‘I’m not going to make an assault on your maidenly virtue.’
With that, I grabbed his trousers and pulled them down. His jacket was a little bit more difficult, but eventually I managed to get that off, too. Soon I was clad in warm and practical, if slightly smelly, clothes. And as for soldier boy…well, just for fun, I removed his underclothes, too, and chucked them out of the window.
‘Have fun searching,’ I told him with a grin and dashed out of the door.
The snow was deep. It filled my shoes, tugged at my feet and made every step a struggle. But months of trekking through deserts and jungles with Mr Rikkard Ambrose had made me hard in a way I hadn’t fully appreciated until now. Where a year ago I would have collapsed into the snow after a few hundred yards, I now gritted my teeth and sped up, sprinting forward.
I’m an ifrit! What’s a bit of snow to me? Let’s fly on wings of fire!
By the time I reached the river, I was panting, my nose felt frozen and my breath puffed out in thick clouds. But I had done it!
A smile tugged at the corners of my mouth. Now for the interesting part.
Let’s see who’s the smart one, Dalgliesh.
I stepped into the river.
*~*~**~*~*
The sound of hoofbeats woke me from the half-sleep I had fallen into. For a moment I panicked, thinking Oh God, No! They have me!
Then I remembered what I had done. I remembered the plan, and became very, very still.
The hoofbeats came closer and closer until, finally, they were like thunder in my ears. I resisted the urge to cover them.
Don’t move, Lilly. Don’t make a sound.
The thunder cut off.
The horses had come to a stop. I heard men dismounting and orders being shouted. The men were soldiers, that much was clear. Probably from the presidency armies, Lord Dalgliesh’s personal band of merry minions.
‘Jameson?’
At the sound of Lord Dalgliesh’s sleek voice I couldn’t help but drag in a sharp breath.
