Page 106 of Merciless Prince

“Nice to meet you, Hayley. Are you lost?”

She nodded and sniffed.

“Hey, it’s okay,” I said in a soothing tone, patting her little arm through the bars. “Just stay right here with me. I’m sure your parents are looking for you everywhere, and they’ll have to check over here eventually, won’t they?”

Hayley nodded. “Okay,” she said in a tremulous tone.

I heard a faint feminine voice carrying over the breeze a few seconds later. “Hayley! Where are you?”

Hayley’s face brightened at the sound. “There’s Mommy!” she said, pointing toward a harried-looking brunette woman who was marching down the game alley.

“Wait, before you go, I have to ask you something,” I said. “Do either of your parents have a cell phone with them?”

Hayley nodded. “They both have one.”

“In that case, would you be able to do me a huge favor?” I said, giving her an encouraging smile. “I don’t have a phone with me, but I really need to make a call. Could you ask your mom if I can borrow her phone?”

She nodded. “Okay.”

“Tell her it’s an emergency,” I added. “I really,reallyneed a phone.”

“Okay. I’ll tell Mommy.” Hayley smiled before skipping away toward the brunette woman, who had been joined by a tall, slim man with reddish hair. Both adults hugged her tightly. After that, one of them adopted a stern expression and stooped to her level, presumably to give her a lecture about running off on her own.

Hayley pointed over to me a few seconds later, head bobbing up and down as she enthusiastically chattered. Her parents glanced over at me. Then they smiled and strolled toward my cell.

“Her name is Shay,” Hayley said, waving at me. “She said she needs our help.”

Her mother frowned and tilted her head. “No, sweetie, it says right here that her name is Mary Sermon,” she said, pointing to something outside the cell. “She was born and raised in London, and she was arrested and imprisoned for six months for stealing a loaf of bread in 1304. That was a long time ago, wasn’t it?”

Hayley’s eyes widened. “They put her in jail because of bread?”

“Yes. Punishments in medieval Europe were a lot harsher than they are now. But I bet Mary learned her lesson, huh?”

“Please,” I cut in, eyes wide and imploring. “I need your help. I’m not a reenactment actor. I’m a real prisoner here.”

Both adults gave me awkward, thin-lipped smiles. Beyond that, they ignored me. “Do you want us to take a photo of you with Mary?” Hayley’s father asked, ruffling her hair.

She nodded. “Yes!”

“Please listen to me,” I said, voice thick with urgency. “I’m not acting! One of the owners of this castle brought me here against my will and put me in this cell. I have to get out of here!”

“Mommy, can we help her escape?” Hayley asked.

Her mother smiled as she aimed a small black camera at me. “That’s not how it works, sweetie. She has to stay here,” she said. She waved a hand at her daughter. “Quick, step to your left a little bit so we can get this photo.”

“I swear, this is real!” I said, gripping the bars. “I need to call the police, so could you please let me borrow your phone?”

“I thought they didn’t have phones back then,” Hayley said, looking up at her parents again.

“They didn’t. I think Mary is just testing you to see how smart you are,” her father replied. He looked at me. “Isn’t that right?”

I shook my head. “No. My name isn’t Mary Sermon. It’s Shay Sinclair, and I’m a prisoner here,” I said. “You have to believe me. I need your help!”

Hayley’s bottom lip began to wobble, and her father quickly led her away. Her mother remained behind, arms folded. “Look,” she said in a low voice, eyes narrowing. “I understand that it’s your job to act like a real prisoner, but you’ve taken it way too far, and you’ve really upset my daughter. See?”

She gestured toward Hayley, who was crying in her father’s arms and begging him to release me from the cell.

“I’m sorry,” I said. “I didn’t mean to upset her. But I’m not lying. I’m not an actor like everyone else here. I’ve been put in this cell against my will, and I really need you to call the police for me.”