Rapunzel (Faerie Tale Collection) (10 page)

RAPUNZEL AWOKE THE NEXT morning with her mouth covered in a cloth, and she could not move her legs. They were cramped and near her chest. She was in a small, tight box, possibly one of her traveling trunks. It was dark and frightening. What was happening? She attempted to scream and jerk within the box, panicking and desperate to get out. Her arms were tied behind her back and her racing pulse was causing havoc in her chest. Great heavens, how did she get here?

Get out. Get out. Get out.

HELP!

Her muffled cries and jolting finally alerted someone. She heard the box being opened. The next instant, bright sunlight blinded her.

Lady Vactryne spoke. “So, you have woken up, have you? Well, we cannot have that, now can we?”

Rapunzel felt the gag being removed from her mouth. Her lips were swollen and parched. She squinted and felt the witch grab her jaw. “What is happening?” she managed to get out just before some sort of liquid was poured down her throat. She sputtered and coughed.

“There. It is full strength, so it should not take you too long.”

“Too long to what?” Already, Rapunzel could feel the tug of exhaustion begin to pull upon her. Was that a sleeping potion? Her eyes grew heavy as the witch replaced the gag around her mouth. She could not even find the energy to protest. Within the next minute or so, all went dark again.

AS JONATHAN ARRIVED AT the tower, he slipped from his horse and grabbed the tools he had bought from the blacksmith to remove Rapunzel’s shackles, as well as a few other items he figured he could use in defending them against the witch when she came.

He called up to Rapunzel. “I am here! Let the hair down.”

As it dropped to the ground in front of him, another bout of anger flashed through him. How dare the witch be so cruel to the girl? She deserved to die for all the havoc she had wreaked upon the whole Ellyanian court. Even if the family did steal, to kidnap a daughter and force her into a tower by herself, hidden away from the world, was not a life created by a kind and caring person. This Lady Vactryne had more greed within her than could be accepted. She had already ruined Rapunzel’s parents, but to take their daughter as a prisoner as well? How long would the punishment for the theft last? Who else was to pay for her selfishness?

No, this must end now.

He almost lost the princess once—he would never risk losing her again. It was time.

Tugging on the belts strapped around him to guarantee the tools were secure, he grasped the hair and began to ascend the long rope. However, he climbed a bit slower than before. Something was wrong. Rapunzel was not leaning over the balustrade to greet him. It was too quiet.

He pulled himself up another couple of feet. His stomach clenched. The witch must be here. She must be hiding, waiting for him, and had Rapunzel tied up so as not to be able to speak. All was not right. His climbing stilled altogether. If he battled the witch inside, there was risk for Rapunzel to be hurt and him to fall victim to whatever trap Lady Vactryne had laid.

No. It was best he drew her out into the field with him. He had a much better chance at winning.

Jonathan called up, “I have forgotten something! Forgive me—I will return tomorrow.” With that, he slid down the rope and ran to his horse. Jumping onto the beast, he galloped out of the clearing to one he had found nearby.

LADY VACTRYNE HISSED AS she ran to the balcony from within her hiding spot to see the young man leaving. “The fool!” He must have realized she was waiting for him. Urgh. In a great sweep of agitation, she swiftly descended the tower and chased after him. He would not get away from her this time. She would find and punish the menace. How dare he think to outwit her!

She would have to use a spell to guarantee she found him in time. It would weaken her, yes, but it was a price she must pay to foresee that he did not thwart any more of her plans. In a swoop of blue smoke, she arrived a great length away from where she had been and in a clearing of woods she knew well.

THE WITCH WAS FAST! Unbelievably so. Jonathan had arrived merely a few moments before she did and had just enough time to slip from his horse and grab a large coil of rope as the smoke appeared. As soon as he saw the poof of smoke forming, he lunged at it before the witch was even visible. He collided with her solid form and quickly began to twist rope around and around her body.

The shocked witch lunged and fought with all her might, but he was too quick. Wrapping her up tightly, he forced the woman to the ground. Amidst her grunts and raging shrieks, he managed to hold her secure enough during the surprise attack to bind her legs as well. However, he was not prepared for her feet to break free of his strong grasp and lurch at him quite so forcefully.

Her swift kick hit him squarely in the stomach and sent him careening backwards into some bushes. By the time he had scrambled to his feet, she was already sitting up and loosening the bindings.

“No!” He hurled himself at her once more, allowing his body to slam her to the ground and tightening his arms around her, pinning her hands in place between them.

How she screamed and wailed, but Jonathan paid no attention as the surprisingly strong woman continued to thrash about, rolling him from side to side and attempting any means possible to escape.

Her sharp teeth managed to bite into a portion of his neck, causing him to lose his grip and force her jaw away.

Just as he was about to strike the witch, she hissed at him, “Do what you will to me, but you will never see the princess again!”

He had to kill her now before she destroyed Rapunzel! Just as he slammed his fist into her mouth, his vision went dark. At first he thought his eyes were closed, but after several attempts to open them, it was obvious they already were.

The witch laughed at his confusion. He swung again, but only felt his fist slam into the ground. Then she really cackled, pushing him off her.

“Arrgh!” He got to his knees and dove toward the sound, his arms colliding again with solid ground as she moved easily from his grasp.

“You shall never catch me,” she taunted near his right side.

He continued to reach and lunge for her while she mocked him.

“In fact, my dear sir, you shall now truly understand what it means never to see the one you love again.”

She grasped his jaw, her nails digging painfully into his skin. He brought his hands up to fend her off, but all at once, every part of him became frozen.

“No. You will not attack me again. Instead, you will listen to what I say to you. I do not tolerate someone as dimwitted and underhanded as you appear to be thwarting my plans. In fact, you have truly upset the wrong person. Your punishment for your idiotic notions is to be forever blind. You think her pretty enough to visit as many times as you have, then I shall take that ability from you. She is mine now! No one shall ever take her from me, especially not you! And I dare you to find her!”

She released him, throwing his frozen body to the ground. And then she was gone. It took several moments of darkened panic before he noticed that his form was beginning to move again. He had not been turned to stone! Great mercy. Big, gasping breaths of relief escaped as he truly took into account his situation. The evil beast actually did remove his sight. But what was she going to do with Rapunzel? He had to get back to her. Allow the witch to spend her time harming him—he did not care. But not Rapunzel! She did not deserve any of this.

Once he could fully move, he stood upon his feet, but had no sense of his bearings. He was dreadfully lost, with not even a fraction of hope of knowing which direction was which. Calling for his horse, he stumbled again and again over bushes and into divots and trenches in the grounds beneath his feet. Without a placement of direction, he could not be certain where to go, and the darn creature would not come to him. He must have left during the skirmish with the witch.

Jonathan stumbled into the trunk of a tree and held on. For a moment, he allowed the hopelessness of the situation to hit him. Rapunzel was in danger, waiting for him, and he could not get to her. Sliding down the rough trunk, he turned his back and brought his knees to his chin and wept, not as a child saddened by his own miserable state, but as a man desperate to save the woman he loved and having no notion of how he was to achieve such a thing.

RAPUNZEL AWOKE AGAIN INSIDE the tight, dark box. No! She thrashed around, frantic to escape the confinement. She banged and jerked until sweat poured from her forehead to her gagged mouth. Her heart was racing. It was so hot. And she could not breathe fast enough through the cloth. It hurt. And she was so very frightened and cramped. Finally, she stopped, attempting to catch her breath.

Think. What should she do? How does one escape something like this?

All was silence around her. What had happened? Where was Jonathan? How long had it been? Jonathan! What if the witch had him?

Gah! No! Let me out!

She banged and clanked and rocked the box until something must have unlatched above her, for in the next instant, the lid sprang free and fell open completely. She crouched in case it was the witch who had opened the trunk, but when Lady Vactryne did not appear, Rapunzel carefully climbed out of the box. The place was bathed in light from the sun. In the much larger space of the room, she was able to bounce and jerk and grunt and bring her tied arms out from behind and underneath her legs and skirts and up to her mouth.

She loosened her gag, breathing in fresh gulps of air, and then used her teeth to begin working on loosening the bands around her wrists. Once her hands were free, she would then work on her ankles. One thing was certain—she was not bound by the heavy chains. The witch must have removed them to fit her into the box.

Rapunzel smiled and worked and pulled and attempted all manner of tugging to remove her bands. Finally, she noticed a small, jagged piece of stone that protruded from the tower wall. Scooting over to it, she began to saw through the rope. It took several minutes and her wrists were positively swollen and rubbed raw, but in the end, it was worth it. She was free. After that, it was only a matter of minutes to untie the rope around her ankles.