"What about the animals?" Eadgifu asked. It was the first thing she had said that day. "We can't just leave them here!"
"The sheep will survive alone for some days," Audrey said. "But the rest we need to take with us, wherever it is we're going."
"I was just about to ask that," Hild said. "Where are we going?"
"For now, we need all of you to come with us," one of the agents said as he came over. "Via train at first, then later via buses. We have prepared a safe location where you can be free from the media circus that is undoubtedly going to break out once this is made public and where you can stay until we've sorted out your identities. I hope some of you will remember more as the effect of whatever is in that water wears off, and we're away from here."
Audrey nodded gratefully. Then another agent came over with the Lady's large keychain and they spent some time trying various keys to unlock the chains and collars of the different theows. They were all taken as evidence and DNA tests. Apparently, the Lady had several other collars in her room, all used. They suspected they were the collars of some of the ones that had died and maybe those that no longer had the metal collars, like Audrey.
"Do you know the names of any of the leaders?" the agent asked. "They all refuse to speak."
"We only know the names they are called here, and I doubt they are the same as their real ones," Audrey explained. Then she went through the list of the different people she knew about.
"Though I suspect those two," she pointed to the two latest victims that they had found in the dungeon, "know who Morcefres is. Or at least something about him that he doesn't want the rest of us to know."
"You can bet we do!" the man said indignantly. "He's been hiding from us for years, as we're the only ones who know who he is. His name is Philip Olsen and he's unfortunately our cousin."
"I'll be very interested in talking to you later," the agent said with a nod. "I will eventually need to talk to all of you, but that can wait. Let's get you all out of here."
Nora had to run interference between Bryan and Rita again, the latter of whom still whimpered at the sight of him. Audrey hoped getting her away from this place would make it feel more real. Rita still clutched her throat, as if she couldn't believe that there wasn't a collar there. Hers had still been the heavy, metal collar, it must feel so strange for her to have it gone. Audrey didn't know what to say to her, so she ended up saying nothing.
When they got to the train, Audrey and most of the theows automatically went inside the train carriages with the chains. Nora hastened over to them.
"People, we're going in the proper train carriage. That one isn't suitable for humans, not even animals. Let me show you."
None of the theows seemed especially interested in going into the other train carriage though. Rita was especially reluctant. It was the one you were taken to if the Lady had decided to punish you for something. And several FBI agents were already inside it. Audrey managed to whisper the problem to one of the agents nearby, and he hastened to prepare another carriage. On the other side of the one the Lady and her chosen ones had used. The theows were relieved as they climbed into this new carriage. It had been one of the ones where the churls had been in, those who had not driven the trucks. Audrey had been in one of these once, when she had been treated by the scop, but most of the rest of them had never dreamed of being allowed here.
After everyone had settled down, almost afraid to smudge something with their still dirty theow clothes, some of the agents came with food. Food some of them had never seen, and others hadn't seen it in years. Hamburgers from a fast food chain. The agents apologized for not getting something better, without realizing that hamburgers were a feast for them. They also got a bottle of cola each. They all ate silently, still not sure if this was real.
***
Nora eventually made it over to the other wagon, at Bryan's insistence.
"Just because I have to stay away from my wife doesn't mean that you have to stay away from your friend. None of this would be possible without you. Go be with your friend again. I'll be fine." Nora suspected he was far from fine, but she also wanted to see how Audrey was doing, so she held his hand for a moment longer, then left to go find the carriage that they had eventually ended up in. She wondered why they had been so reluctant to get into the first one. Was that the one the Lady had used, and they still felt that it wasn't their place to use it? It would probably take some time for ideas like that to go away. It had been ingrained in them for so long.
As Nora came in, she saw a scene that almost made her laugh, until she remembered why it was like that. Several of the former theows were trying to figure out what all the tastes were. It was most likely years since they had tasted processed food or anything spicy. Not that the burgers had a lot of spice. Most of them ate the pickles though. Nora suspected they had made canned vegetables in the castle.
"What's the orange stuff?" one of them asked.
"Mustard." another replied.
"Isn't that supposed to be more brownish? And lumpy?"
"Not always. You can scrape it off if you don't like it."
"And put it where?"
"Inside the paper we got it in."
"I forgot that sugar tastes so different than honey! And carbonation! Such a strange feeling."
"My body is so unused to it, I'm probably going to regret it later, but I can't stop!"
Conversations like that were happening all over the carriage. Nora didn't know whether to cry or laugh. She found Audrey and sat down next to her. It seemed the others now looked at her with almost a sense of awe. Only Rita sat next to her, but she still didn't seem to be aware of much around her. Audrey seemed relieved when Nora sat down.
"I didn't think I'd ever be so happy to get a cheap hamburger in my life," she said with a smile. All of hers was already gone.
"It was all they could find on the way," Nora said. "I'm sure we can find something better for dinner."
"Try not to make it too spicy, or our tongues might explode from the flavours." Audrey tried to make it a joke, but it felt forced. She had a bit of the same look in her eyes as the others, the haunted look hinting that they didn't quite manage to believe it was real.
"I'm sure they've accounted for that as well. How are you doing Rita?" Nora desperately tried to include the other woman in their conversation. She didn't respond at all. Audrey sighed.
"I don't want to continue calling her what the Lady called her, but if I knew the right words to say afterwards, maybe I could."
"Maybe you can start with a few of the others? Some of them might remember their real names, especially the newest ones."
"Why do I need to ask that?"
"Because they all look to you as their leader?"
"I'm not a leader! I only did what I had to because you made it my responsibility. You ask them."
"Audrey, I don't know these people and they don't know me. You do."
"I know the beaten-down version of them. I don't know their names."
"Then why don't we start with that? Let them all have a chance to introduce themselves properly?"