Eleven Days Escape Time

Day 10.

September 16. Tomorrow.

Gromit sat in the corner of the cage, tears falling down his nose as he sat and pathetically cried for himself. Who knows what Victor was going to do with Wallace, and Totty- Gromit truly believed she loved Wallace. Why would she betray him and rat him out to Victor like that? She seemed sorry, the way she stood and sobbed as Victor trapped Wallace.... Maybe she was forced? Yeah... that had to be it. That didn't seem to be in her personality, giving Wallace's secret out to the man that was hunting him.

Gromit didn't even know where to begin to look for Wallace if he managed to escape. Victor could've taken him straight to his shack in the woods to finish him off.. or he could've taken him to Tottington Hall.. or he could've taken him to the zoo, or sold him to a freak show circus as a monster, or...Gromit shook his head and sat up, chasing the thoughts from his brain as he began to look for a way to escape the cage.

***

Victor had led them back to Tottington Hall, up into Lady Tottington' giant rooftop garden, filled to the brim with vegetables of all kinds, trees, plants, underbrush, canopies, which felt and looked like a tropical rainforest. Victor walked Wallace to a pole in a spot of the large room, chaining him to it and locking it with a padlock.

"Do you know why I'm doing this, Wallace?" That was the first time Wallace had ever heard him use his name rather than the nickname he'd crudely given him. Wallace shook his head, "No, I don't," he began monotonously, "You hate me for no reason at all," he was cut off. "I hate you because you're a monster. Campanula here hates you because you're a monster, everyone hates you because you're a monster," he snarled as he poked Wallace in the chest, causing him to flinch. Wallace's eyes turned to Tottington, who was watching with wide, sad eyes from the door. "I'm not a monster, it was just an accident, I-" he began, "Why were gardens destroyed then, pesto?" Victor cut him off again, drowning out his argument. "Why were peoples vegetables ruined and their crops destroyed? Don't you think that would be the work of a beast? A mindless beast with no consciousness or right state of mind?" Wallace paused for a minute, opening his mouth, but no words coming out. He knew his argument was toast. His nostrils flared and he let out a huff as he looked at the ground, avoiding eye contact with the questioning Victor. "That's exactly what I thought." He stood up, satisfied with his stronger argument. "You want her to love you, don't you, pesto?" Wallace turned back up to Victor, visually trying to tell him not to go in this direction. "She never will. She loves me. What kind of woman would pick a slobbery, hairy monster over a strong, handsome hunter?," Victor paced in front of Wallace, who had turned away to avoid letting the hunter see the tears he had caused. "Nobody. Nobody will ever love you like this and you know it." He grabbed Wallace by the muzzle and forced him to look up, smirking at the tears in his eyes. He let go roughly, causing Wallace to wince in slight pain. "I am going to propose in front of Campanula tonight, and I want you to have a front row seat," Victor motioned to the large glass window pane in front of them. "Come on, my dear, we have a competition to prepare for." Victor led Totty, who looked over her shoulder at the verbally beaten Wallace, to the Jacob's ladder, pulling the lever and bringing them downstairs.

***

Gromit, out of ideas, exhaustedly leaned back in the corner of the cage, beginning to give up. He sighed as he turned to look at their house. They were beginning to run out out time as the sky grew lighter with the morning. He was suddenly alerted as a familiar purple van pulled into the driveway. Madame Winniebago jumped out from the drivers seat. "Gromit! My crystal ball told me you and Wallace were in trouble." He nodded as she approached to free him. She pulled open the door as he managed to crawl through and escape. "Come on! It's saying they're somewhere at Tottington Hall," she said. He held up a finger to her, telling her to wait a minute. Moments later, he returned with his prize marrow to enter into the competition. Though he was worried to death about Wallace, he hadn't spent months of his life growing this for nothing. He set it on the floor of the van, and he got into the passenger seat. "My crystal ball is not giving me an exact location, but Wallace shouldn't be hard to find."

***

They day of the vegetable competition. Last minute preparations were being made as Lady Tottington stood watching over them on stage, the workers finishing setting up for the night. "Don't get any funny ideas about going up and visiting that oversized rodent," Victor hissed as he passed behind her menacingly. "I'll be watching your every move." She turned as he walked off stage, sighing with sadness.