Escape - Chapter 6.1
Chapter 6
Luce was saying that the serpiente, understanding exactly how traps worked, had used one to capture a clever human. A chill slowly spread through Adeline’s body.
‘And the tobacco didn’t work either?’
The hope that had burned in her chest flickered and died. If they hadn’t found a body, she’d clung to the belief he was alive. Now, that belief shattered.
“D*mn it, I’ll have to report that to headquarters as well. Anyway, Damian… he fought to the very end. So cowards like me could escape.”
“…Is there any chance he’s alive?”
“Huh?”
Yes. From the moment she saw Luce, this was the only question that mattered. Whether the serpiente was intelligent, whether it was immune to tobacco… all of it was meaningless in the face of this single question.
“You didn’t actually see Damian die, did you? What are the chances he’s alive?”
Luce flinched at her sharp tone and closed his mouth, simply staring at her. Adeline felt a surge of frustration.
“Tell me.”
“…Adeline, I’m so sorry, but…”
“Just tell me.”
“There’s no chance.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“It’s true. You don’t understand. It was complete chaos out there. A living hell.”
“Luce Gradel, we’re talking about Damian. We’re talking about the Damian who killed a serpiente at fourteen.”
“I know. I’m so sorry to have to say this. But I’m telling the truth. And…”
Luce took a deep breath, as if steeling himself to continue.
“Damian… he asked me to give you a message. That’s actually why I’m here. Even though I’m officially on duty, I slipped away after my initial report.”
“…A message?”
“He said he was sorry he couldn’t keep his promise. Yes, that’s exactly what he said.”
“….”
Several seconds of silence hung heavy in the air, filled only with an unreal buzzing in Adeline’s ears. She stared at Luce, not because she had nothing to say, but because she couldn’t think.
The only thought that surfaced was how utterly like Damian that message was.
‘That idiot, even in that moment, he was thinking about our conversation this morning.’
Or maybe the vows they made when they were fourteen, or nineteen.
“I’ll never leave you first.”
His familiar voice echoed in her mind. Even though he knew he wouldn’t be coming back. The man she loved… he was that kind of man. A man who, even knowing he was going to die, knowing he couldn’t keep his promise, still upheld his responsibilities and beliefs. But she wasn’t that strong. Tears threatened again. Her heart ached, pounded, felt like it would burst from her chest.
But Luce’s worried gaze was on her, so Adeline bit her lip, struggling to maintain her composure. She forced the words out, broken and fragmented.
“…Thank you… for telling me.”
“Hey, have you eaten anything?”
“I’m sorry, but would you leave now? I suddenly want to be alone.”
“Adeline.”
“Please. Please just go. Right now.”
Adeline’s face crumpled. Luce recoiled, a troubled expression on her face. He raised his hand as if to hug Adeline, then let it fall limp.
‘He must have sensed the waves of rejection radiating off me.’
“If anything happens, call me right away. Well, of course, I’m not supposed to have contact with civilians for a while, but…”
“I’ll manage. Thank you for coming all this way, Luce.”
At Adeline’s cold reply, Luce reluctantly retreated. Adeline deliberately avoided eye contact until he was gone. She couldn’t maintain her expression any longer. She was afraid she would crumble.
Thud. Creak. Slam.
The moment Luce was gone, Adeline slid down the door, her body slumping against it. The thought of eating flickered through her mind, but she had no energy, no will. She didn’t want to think. Just like last night, she wanted to lose consciousness and sleep. All she could manage was to drag herself to her bedroom.
And then she thought, ‘The bed feels…excessively large.’
She lay down, lights still on, and closed her eyes, but her mind only grew sharper.
The words she’d heard since yesterday kept circling in her head. ‘Only his left arm,’ ‘his wedding ring,’ ‘he asked me to tell you…’
Everyone was saying Damian was dead. Maybe she knew it too. What were all those tears for yesterday? Didn’t she already know?
She opened her eyes blankly and turned her head. Damian’s side of the bed seemed particularly empty. And beyond it, the nightstand. On top of it, a book.
[Escape]
The book he read every night. Unconsciously, she reached for it.
It looked like a novel. A very old one. An antique, probably published when they still lived on the surface. On the cover, a woman with long brown hair stared straight ahead.
Without thinking, she opened it to the ribbon bookmark. There was an underlined passage on the aged page.
[The lion said, ‘This cage is too small for me. I want to run free in the grasslands…’
And I replied, “But the thirteenth cage is the safest, dear. There are venomous snakes outside.”]
‘Would you please tell Damian to bring me a book?’
Kyle’s strange expression flashed before her eyes.
‘The book.’
Certainty bloomed in her chest. This was the book he hadn’t even named. Adeline continued reading, numbly. The story was simple: a lion, trapped in a zoo, escapes its cage in search of freedom.
But something else caught her attention. The fact that the lion’s cage was the thirteenth cage. The snakes roaming the zoo. And the passage, underlined twice.
“At the fork in the road, always follow the left wall. After eight traps, you’ll reach the twelfth cage.”
A lightning bolt of realization flashed through her mind. ‘Oh my god. Why didn’t I think of this before?’
“…District 12.”
If Damian were alive. And if he hadn’t returned to the District 13… As the thought took hold, her body moved before she could even process it. Damian read this book every night. She knew the theory that had just sprung into her mind was outrageous. It might all be a delusion.
But there was no time to think. She quickly tied her hair back, grabbed whatever clothes were closest, snatched her ID and the book, and practically ran out of the house. Her destination: the third floor, the research department.
***
“You’re here to see Dr. Kyle?”
“Yes. I don’t have an appointment, but please tell him it’s urgent.”
The woman at the desk looked troubled at the mention of a missing appointment. “I’m sorry, but without a prior appointment, it’s difficult to arrange a meeting. You can leave a note for the doctor and schedule a time to come back.”
“It will only take a moment. It’s really urgent.”
“I apologize. He’s very strict about the rules.”
“It’ll be over in a minute. Just ask him for me, please? Think of it as saving a life. It’s up to the doctor whether he sees me or not.”
Her desperation seemed to work; the woman hesitated. Her slightly parted lips moved as if she were considering Kyle’s likely reaction. The deliberation was short-lived. Just as she opened her mouth to deliver what was sure to be a rejection—
“She just wants you to ask. Surely that’s not too much trouble?”
“Oh, Dr. Susan.” A tall, slender researcher with dark skin walked over and smiled at Adeline. She had a sharp bob and an air of elegance about her.
“You know how sensitive Dr. Kyle is about interruptions to his research.”
“True, he’ll probably be furious. What’s your name? I’ll tell him on my way.”
The researcher’s easy smile put Adeline’s mind at ease. Whether Kyle agreed to see her or not, at least she’d tried.
“Thank you. Tell him my name is Adeline. He’ll know. Tell him I’ve brought back the book he lent my husband.”
Susan’s eyes flickered with curiosity towards the book Adeline was holding.
‘She’s probably wondering what’s so urgent,’ Adeline thought.
“Adeline, got it. Wait here; he’ll be out soon.” Susan didn’t ask any more questions. She exchanged a few words with the woman at the desk, winked at Adeline, and walked away with the same clicking heels she’d arrived with.
Adeline couldn’t stand still. She paced anxiously. If her theory was correct, this novel was about District 13. No, not just District 13, but possibly the entire underground world.
‘The thirteenth cage,’ the story of a lion trapped inside, was a metaphor. So was the mention of snakes roaming outside the cage. Easy to miss if you weren’t reading carefully. A clue to ‘escape.’
In the elevator, she checked the table of contents. The book had thirteen chapters, from the thirteenth cage to the first. Meaning, from the District 13 to the first. The novel detailed the lion’s journey, explaining how to reach the next cage, how to open the bars, and where to hide from the snakes in the maze-like outside world.
The snakes undoubtedly referred to the Serpiente. The outside must be the corridor beyond the door. If Adeline’s fantasy was reality, the book in her hand was a map detailing the route from District 13 all the way to the first. The thought sent a thrill of excitement through her.
In the final chapter, the lion escaped the zoo entirely. Which meant getting beyond the District 1 must lead to…
“The exit to the surface…” The dizzying realization made her whisper and glance around, swallowing hard. Her throat was parched, and no amount of swallowing could quench her thirst.
Of course, it could all be a delusion. The shock of Damian’s disappearance might have clouded her judgment.
But the basis of her conviction lay in the description of the ‘bars.’ In the novel, the thirteenth cage had three sets of bars, which never opened simultaneously. If the snakes waiting outside were to get in, it would be the end. The first gate opened from the inside, the second through blood, and the third manually. Reading this, she had cursed.
The description was far too similar to the ‘doors’ of District 13.
