When I climbed out of the hole, I saw that a letter was already laying around on the floor, so I closed the latch, and opened the letter. The letter said,
Dear Penelope,
use this potion to help your siblings,
Love, Serena Redwood
I unwrapped the gift box attached to the letter, and I got a light-blue liquid inside a heart glass. There was a small hole on the top of the heart glass, so I assumed it must be the hole to pour out the liquid.
I turned the liquid around to read the contents, and it said that it was a potion for illusion. I pondered about giving the potion to my siblings so that they can create illusions. I was very excited until I read,
The potion will only last 24 hours.
I immediately panicked because I have to prove to the police that my siblings were innocent before time runs out. I grabbed the letter, and the bottle, and put them in my backpack, along with my clothes and my overnight essentials.
I was not going to stay at this palace tonight.
When the moon arose, I grabbed my things, and climbed down from the tube. I closed the latch, and started sliding down the tube. A while later, I finally reached the bottom of the palace, and opened the latch. It was pitch black outside, and there were only a few lights out. I quietly ran in the streets, while making little to no noise. I looked around to see if anyone was near me.
Around midnight, I arrived at Serena's apartment, so I went to the back of the apartment, and texted Serena.
Hey Serena. Sorry to disturb you but I was wondering if I can stay the night at your apartment. I am waiting at the back of the apartment.
A few minutes later, I saw a rope ladder drop from up high, and I immediately realized that I was going to climb to Serena's room.
I put on my backpack, and started climbing up the ladder. My hands were tirelessly reaching the ropes so I wouldn't fall down. A moment later, I looked around to see if anyone was watching while my hands were busy reaching the rope.
When I arrived at Serena's room, I was already exhausted from climbing the rope.
"I'm glad you escaped that toxic castle," Serena comforted me, while I was drinking water.
"Yeah, i'm ashamed to live on the same roof as my mom after what happened a few nights ago," I confessed.
"You have a right to be mad at the queen," Serena agreed, "After all the queen is stupid for getting rid of your siblings."
"Also, I spoke with Murphy today," I told Serena, changing the subject.
"How'd it go?" She asked
"Murphy was a big help!" I answered, joyfully, "She could point out things much better than most detectives can."
"See, I told you Murphy can help solve this crime," Serena chuckled.
"Anyways, did you get the potion I sent you?" Serena asked.
"Yes, and I have it with me," I answered, while unzipping my bag.
I took out the heart-shaped potion, and showed it to Serena.
"Make sure to not lose the potion, and to hide the potion from everyone except me," Serena instructed.
"Ok," I responded.
I put the potion in my bag, and walked to my new bedroom.