Page 73 of Alone with the Beastly Duke
Frustrated, Jasmine decided that she was done sitting silently in the dark room, waiting for whatever they had planned for her. It was apparent to her that no one could find her where she was, so she would rather take matters into her own hands.
Jasmine banged loudly on the wooden floor of the room she was kept in. It was not until she heard footsteps that she finally stopped the banging. The moment she heard sounds on the doorknob, she sat on the floor and clutched her belly in an exaggerated motion. The door opened, and one of her assailants, who she now knew as Pip, entered.
“Help me!” she groaned out loud.
He moved toward her, and Jasmine eyed the bunch of keys by his side. Fortunately, Jasmine did not see any gun on him.
“I am dying,” she continued as she made a show of clutching her belly.
Pip moved closer to her, and she could see his dirty and discolored skin up close to her. He looked unkempt, shaggy, and slimy. His eyes were sunken.
“What do yew want?” he asked, and as he spoke, Jasmine could see his brown and mismatched set of teeth.
“I think I must have eaten some... something,” Jasmine said before she made a show of retching.
Pip stepped back from her in disgust.
“Don’t yew dare vomit ‘ere? I will not clean up yer vomit,” he uttered.
“Help me!” Jasmine continued, raising her hand towards him, “I am dying.” He moved closer to her this time and pulled her up to sit properly.
“What is the problem?” Toby asked outside the door. Jasmine was terrified. She could try to outsmart Pip, but handling both of them simultaneously would be impossible.
“The chit said she is dying,” Pip explained. “I want to take her out, so she doesn’t vomit in the room.”
“Don’t yew dare do that!” Toby said angrily. “Let her vomit right dere if she wants to,” Pip grumbled something about not wanting to clean up the vomit of some spoilt chit, but he did not say anything to his brother.
Jasmine groaned inwardly. She had been banking on the fact that Pip would take her out of the ship to vomit, so she could try to escape. Seeing that her first plan was not going to work, she stealthily snatched the key from Pip’s side.
“What did yew just do?” Pip asked.
He seemed to have noticed that she had taken something off him.
Jasmine stopped pretending then as she threw a punch to his face. She was not expecting it, but the punch knocked Pip out cold. Jasmine smiled, now confident in her ability to get herself out of her kidnapper’s den.
“What is that commotion?” Toby suddenly asked.
Jasmine gasped and quickly clamped a hand on her mouth. She had to think fast. She has already knocked Pip out, so he cannot give Toby a response. She knew that if Toby did not hear from Pip, he would enter the room to inquire. She decided to do the first thing that came to her mind.
“The chit ‘as slept off,” Jasmine mimicked Pip in a shrill voice that she hoped convinced Toby.
“Then what are you still doing, dere?” Toby asked angrily.
Jasmine smiled. Her imitation of Pip’s voice had worked.
“I’ll be right out,” she continued, imitating Pip’s voice.
With the key in hand, she unlocked the door and slipped out. She was about to lock the door behind her so that Pip would be trapped even if he woke up when she heard Toby’s footsteps. She knew that if she waited to lock Pip in, Toby might catch her, so she left, stealthily walking away.
“Pip, is dat yew?” Toby asked.
“T’is I!” she responded.
“Where are yew going?” Toby asked, his tone a little suspicious.
Jasmine had very little time to think, so she quickly responded.
“I want to get fresh air outside... outside the ship,” she said.
