“Where is he?” his voice was strong and unafraid. Unafraid of the guards behind him and the weapons they held. He, unlike the prisoner in front of him, did not have reason to be scared. He was immortal compared to her. If someone were to touch him they would die and chaos would be unleashed.

The prisoner shook violently. Her thought were jumbled and disorganized. She didn’t know how to respond, so instead she stayed silent, knowing she was dead if she talked and dead if she didn’t.

                   I asked you a question now answer it,” Alton yelled with force. This time she knew she didn’t have a choice.

                  “If you ask of me my money I shall give it to you. If you ask of me my forgiveness I shall be willing to grant it to you. But when you ask of me the whereabouts of a man I know to be innocent, I shall deny knowing where,” Ash responded, questioning where the sudden burst of courage had come from. Alton starred at her with such hatred that he could have killed her right then and there.

                  Price Alton didn’t know her, but he could see the pain in her eyes. The longing and the loss. He smiled. Let her feel the pain and the loss, let her be scared of him each second she stared at him with those sad eyes.

                  Suddenly, in one quick motion Alton turned on his heels and marched over to the commander.

                  “Tie her up and put her in the van, she might be of some use to us later,” he said before leaving in the second black van parked in the square. The two guards behind Ash hauled her to her feet. They cuffed her and dragged her towards the van. She stared at the citizens who, like her, had no idea what to think of the whole situation.

Ky hadn’t returned home to see her in a couple of days but that was no reason to accuse him of murder. Ky would never do that, he had always done what was right, always followed the rules. Plus Ky had a good life. He had enough money and a good job. He had always told her that he worked as a farm hand, but Ash wasn’t stupid. She knew that farm hands made less than he did. But she had never questioned him, because it was him that she trusted. Him that she loved.

                  Ash was pushed forward into the car. She barreled into the other guard who was sitting on the far side and was soon squished by the second guard who had squished his way in beside her, so that she was sitting in between both of them.

                  Tears threatened to fall but she blinked them away. Why would they do this? Where was Ky? Her breathing was jagged and panicked.

                  The car zoomed past streets and houses and soon it all began to mix inside of Ash’s mind.

                  Were they really going to bring her to the palace? She had never seen the palace up close but if she climbed the hill she could always see it. She wondered what the inside would look like. Of course there was a difference being a prisoner instead of a guest. She wondered what the prisons would look like. Would she get a bed? A toilet? Had it really come to the point where she had to assume she was getting locked away in a dirty cellar for life.

                  Slowly a tear streamed down her face. She needed Ky. She needed his comfort. He would know what to do. What to expect.

                  Without him she was as good as dead. A soft whimper escaped her mouth as she looked down. Ash stared at her shoes for the longest of times trying to forget about the family she had left behind or of the life she would no longer have.

                  Her head popped up as a shadow passed across her face. On both sides of the car was brilliant gold fence. It swirled up ending in little spikes.

                  Behind the fence were magnificent gardens with fountains and statues placed as décor. The car stopped in front of a gate that matched the golden fence. The driver rolled down his window and mumbled a few words into the small speaker. Ash was too preoccupied with the view that she had not paid any attention to what he had said.

                  Ash was too mesmerized by the set up that she didn’t even notice when they stopped at the palace entrance. She stared up at the palace. It towered above everything, its pale colour a contrast to the lush green grass. She hauled out of the van and dragged up the marble stairs.

                  Prince Alton met them at the entrance. Alton stared at her in disgust.

                  “Welcome, Miss. Tralyn, to my home,” Ash flinched at the sharpness in his words. He sounded like he meant ‘Welcome to your new prison’ which really was an understatement. If rumors were true and Price Alton did kill those unworthy this would be her death. Ash was about to plead but was interrupted.

                  “Guards you may bring her to the prison,” Alton said with hatred. Ash was dragged into the palace down many dark hallways lit only by a light each few feet. Then she saw it. It was not what she expected out of a prison. It was too clean. The door was wide open as if someone had prepared it for her. She stepped inside and gasped at the blinding white colour that surrounded her. It was not cream, nor grey, it was white. A small toilet in the corner and a small table in the middle all of it white. In another corner lay a small white cot. The guards pushed her forward and locked the door after leaving.

She stared a long moment at the pure white walls until her eyes couldn’t take it any longer. She collapsed on the ground. She buried her face in her arms and began to cry. Ash had made herself promise not to show too many weaknesses but now that she was alone there was no one to show. Tears streamed down both cheeks and she could not help herself from sniffling.

                  Ash must have cried herself to sleep, because she couldn’t remember falling to sleep only waking up.