Inside the Beast's Castle

Chapter 5--The Beast's Castle

"Never dreamed that a home could be dark and cold."
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Reaching back, I scratched my shoulder fiercely. The dress they put me in was itchy. When I first saw it, I was excited that I was going to be allowed to wear something so delicate. It was crimson silk with a gold trim around the neckline, sleeves, and waistline. The neckline sat just underneath my collarbone; the sleeves were three-quartered and it had a high waistline. My hair was pinned up into a messy bun, with several of my brown curls falling out. The only shoes they could manage to get me to put on were flat ones matching the color of my dress.

I felt like I needed to roll around in mud or something because they bathed me. I hadn't been that clean in years and had actually gotten used to the feel of dirt. Nervously, I fingered my necklace. They wanted to take it away at first, but I threatened to fight if they tried, so they decided I could keep it as long as I hid it underneath my dress in the presence of the beast.

Suddenly, the carriage stopped. I tucked my necklace in and stuck my head out the window.

"Are we there yet?" I asked. I was not very good at sitting still for a long time. I had wanted to ride a horse up to the castle, but the king decided that I should be escorted. It was probably so I wouldn't run away. The driver looked back at me tiredly.

"No miss, we are not."

"Why have we stopped then?"

Worry was etched into the driver's face. He kept looking around frantically like he was trying to find someone. Finally, I realized who he was looking for. The guard that had come with us to show the way to the castle was missing. Catching the driver's eye, I stepped out of the carriage and onto the muddy ground. The driver stepped down from his horse. We both searched around the buggy, looking for the guard that came along.

"When did you last see him?" I inquired. How can someone vanish so quickly?

"Only a few minutes ago, Miss." The driver's voice was quivering. His fear had started to rub off on me. A shiver ran down my spine as I ran my eyes around the area again, the trees blocking my view. In the distance, a wolf howled. The forest suddenly appeared to grow much darker. I looked at the driver in alarm, making sure he noticed it too. By the way his eyes had grown to the size of plates, I would say yes.

"Let's get back on our way," I suggested.

He seemed more than happy to oblige. Then, as we walked to the carriage, the thing that howled appeared out of the brush. My throat constricted in fear. In front of me was the biggest wolf I had ever seen, if it could even called a wolf. Its black eyes searched the driver and me hungrily, as if deciding on which of us to eat first. Saliva came off of its pointy teeth as it opened its mouth and licked its lips. The black tail on the thing swished back and forth, daring us to move first.

Very slowly, my hand moved to the dagger the king had given me, hidden in the folds of my dress. I found its hilt and grasped it firmly, pulling it slowly from my skirt.

"When I say so," I started whispering to the driver, "move very slowly toward the carriage. I have a knife in my hand in case that thing pounces."

The driver didn't seem to catch my words. He stood very still, almost as if he was paralyzed. I whispered to him again. Finally, he nodded, still not taking his eyes off the wolf. At first, my plan of moving slowly worked perfectly. Then, I heard a snap under my foot.