Morning all and I hope you had a fabulous Juneteeth. I am so glad that is now a Federal Holiday. But today it is back to our regularly scheduled work week. So are you ready for the morning prompt? The coffee is brewing and a cup is waiting as soon as you finish. Or at least it is for me. If you need encouragement, maybe you’d better put the pot on before setting the timer. So ready? Then off we go.
I like this character. I also like the mistaken identity kidnapping for blackmail scenario. This could be a fun and fast paced story. The quest to escape and preemptively rescue the unknown Carline before she can really be kidnapped. Kind of fun.
Tuesday, June 21st: It is a classic for a reason.
“It is a classic for a reason,” he said. “The damsel in distress. But don’t distress too much, I know Harold will come for you.”
He smiled and then patted my head condescendingly before turning to leave me in the small room. There was not much I could say. The rage currently gagging my mouth was tied too tightly to allow much in the way of speech. My Hands were bound to each other behind my back and my ankles were tied together. I was sitting on the floor, the wooden floorboards already making my rear end numb.
A part of me was affronted that I could be taken as a damsel in distress. Another part of me was surprised that he thought the people he informed of my capture would indeed care. While I’m sure in their own way they were noble and caring people, I also knew they had no idea who I was. The thought of rescuing me would merely bring confusion to their faces.
There was a mix up somewhere. Who made it, I didn’t know. The end result was that they had captured the wrong woman. I was not the bargaining chip they thought I was. At some point they would realize this. I doubt they would simply untie me and apologize.
I could feel the dear waiting below the surface, ready to bubble out and consume me. I squashed it down as well as I was able and tried to think of a way out of this situation. In addition to not being the woman they thought I was, in the past few years I had grown somewhat accustomed to perilous situations. I knew controlling my fear was the first step to survival. I also knew I needed to sit down and take a good hard look at my life so that in the future I could avoid becoming entangled by more perilous situations.
The thought was an irritating one. This misadventure was hardly my fault. I was simply sitting there in the train compartment minding my own business. Through my window I saw a woman running for the train. She was far enough away that it was doubtful she would make it. And in fact she didn’t. I remembered thinking she was wearing a similar coat to mine and was wondering if it had come back into fashion or if I was seeing someone else who simply didn’t feel the need to keep pace with current fashions. I wished her luck because of the coat, but in the end she missed the train.
It was the coat that was my undoing I expected. I tried tugging my wrists and felt a little give in the rope. Whoever tied them didn’t do a great job and they were a bit loose. I maneuvered the knot around to where my fingers could work on it and began to unpick the knot. The strangers entered the compartment sun after we were underway. One of them looked surprised to see me.
“Why Caroline, I didn’t realize you were traveling today? I thought you had another few days before you left.”
I opened my mouth to protest that I was not in fact Caroline, but he talked over me saying how good it was to see me and wondering if I even remembered him after so long. He left little room for explanations and I let him chatter on. I didn’t notice the man with the hypodermic needle until it was too late.
Ten til Midnight 