Saving Juliet (21 page)

"Good riddance," Troy hissed.

"Benvolio speaks the truth. You must all leave before dawn's light," Friar Laurence advised.

There seemed to be no way around it. Troy could no longer argue that the story had to get back on course. Staying meant certain death for Romeo and me. Troy wouldn't be welcome back at Montague House, not with Benvolio running the show. I was filled with fear and uncertainty. Leaving Verona was now our
only
option, but what did leaving mean? Would that bring an end to this crazy adventure or were we doomed to stay in this world for the rest of our lives? My mother and aunt were probably sick with worry. How many days had passed? I couldn't remember.

"Where will we go?" I asked the friar.

Friar Laurence stuck his hands into the sleeves of his brown robe. "Do not go east toward Venice. There are too many Capulets there. Avoid the
papal states
as well, for the Capulets have loyal allies. You could go to England, but the journey would be long."

"Juliet would hate England," I said. "Women weren't allowed to be actors in England. I mean,
aren't
allowed."

The friar scratched his bald spot. "Since Troy's wound may slow you down, I suggest you venture west to Milan and possibly hire a carriage there, or buy passage on a merchant's wagon. Or you could travel south to Genoa,
then
take a boat to Spain. I know not which way is less dangerous."

"This just totally sucks," Troy said, sitting on one of the benches. "How are we supposed to get home? Running for our lives across Europe can't be the way."

"I know of no roads to Manhattan," Friar Laurence said. "And God has not provided you with another charm."

A conundrum that we couldn't wrap our brains around, the way home eluded us. We had gone back to the cobbler's shop but had found no magic portal. Verona's only quill merchant had never heard of William Shakespeare. Even if I had wanted to, events had strayed so far from the original story line that there was no way of putting them back on course. Neither of us said what we were thinking
--
that there might not be a way home.
Ever.
Plague, giant rats, bad shoes, and sleeping in barns were about to replace leading roles and number one hits. My old, faraway life, the one that had tormented my heart and soul, seemed so benign. At least no one in Manhattan was trying to execute me!

An image of Lady Capulet's face, with that creepy plucked forehead, loomed in my mind. "We'd better get going," I said. "They'll look here for sure." Romeo continued to stare at the church wall. His feelings had consumed him, again. I tucked the coin purse into my boot. "Romeo, come on," I urged. "We still have to get Juliet. She's relying on us." Troy started to say something but I didn't want to hear his objections. "It's Romeo and Juliet, Troy. Remember?"

For the zillionth time since our arrival, Troy totally surprised me. "I think you're right. We shouldn't leave her behind." He shrugged. "She's a nice girl."

"We can't wait for tomorrow's wedding," I decided. "Juliet has to take the potion tonight. Romeo, are you with us?"

The friar took one of Romeo's delicate hands, clutching it between his own. "My son," he said gently, looking into the vacant eyes. "Today you took a life and that is a great sin, even if it was a murderer's life." A single tear rolled down Romeo's soft cheek. "But God, in His wisdom, has given you an opportunity to redeem your soul by helping to save another's life. Juliet needs you, my child. Go, and God will watch over you."

"Redeem my soul?" Romeo lifted the friar's silver cross and kissed it. Then he turned and looked into my eyes. "If I am to be banished, then I welcome any and all refugees of this feud who wish to join me." He picked up Mercutio's sword. "Let us go and rescue Juliet."

The friar hurried to his room, stuffing a bag full of things he said we'd need. "Your letter!" he exclaimed, stumbling back down the stairs. "I could not find it. Tybalt's men must have taken it when they searched."

"If the Capulets read that letter, they'll know I lied about being a Capulet."

Friar Laurence swung open the front door.
"All the more reason for haste."

We slunk along the back roads like the criminals that we were. Romeo carried the friar's bag. Despite Troy's limp and the friar's short steps, we made good time. I could have run a marathon with all the adrenaline that pumped through me. Fortunately, we didn't encounter anyone, just more of those delightful, well-fed rodents. As we hurried, I filled Romeo in on the sleeping potion plan. He didn't say a word, and appeared to be deep in thought. I could only hope that he had been listening.

Like Montague House, Capulet House was a frenzy of activity. The Capulet guards had gathered at the front and were brandishing their weapons and cursing the enemy. They weren't actually beating their chests but were close to it. "The Montagues must die!" one of them shouted as a jug was passed around.

"Romeo murdered Tybalt. Romeo must die!" A rousing cheer followed. A shiver ran through me when I realized that they were getting ready for a good old-fashioned lynching.

"The girl who disobeyed her exile must also die."

"Mimi of Manhattan must die!"

Imagine hearing a group of drunken warriors shouting your name and following it with a must
die.
Suddenly I missed my superspecial tagline:
Great-granddaughter of Adelaide Wallingford.
The tagline Must Die totally sucked.

Staying out of view, we crept around to the side of the house. Stone walls muffled the guards' ruckus. The errand boy's crate sat empty and the little courtyard beneath Juliet's balcony was awash in moonlight. Juliet stood on the balcony, her frizzy hair tumbling over the shoulders of her white nightgown. I was about to call up to her when Romeo touched my arm. "Who is that?"

"That's Juliet," I whispered.

"Juliet," he repeated. He dropped the bag and took a cautious step forward. Right then and there I knew, as sure as I knew my heart was beating, as sure as I knew my lungs were expanding, that once again, something amazing was about to happen. And it did.

Sweet, sad Romeo, severed from his family and from Rosaline, grieving the murder of a friend and his own act of murder, took a deep breath and came to life. It seemed as if the air in that courtyard contained a higher concentration of oxygen. As his lungs filled he began to glow. It looked like someone had painted him with liquid moonlight. The dull eyes that had imprisoned sorrow ignited, as if backlit by a Wallingford lighting technician. Moonbeams danced through his brown hair. Troy and the friar were breathing the same air, yet neither of them glowed. It had nothing to do with oxygen. Romeo had fallen in love.

"Hello," he said.

Juliet gasped and leaned over the railing. "Are you an angel?" she asked, squinting from his glow. Okay, so she might have squinted because of the glare bouncing off his sword, but believe me, the guy glowed.

"I am Romeo," he said.

Even if you haven't read
Romeo and Juliet,
you're probably familiar with the balcony scene
--
the most famous scene in the entire play. Troy and I had acted this scene countless times. The lines played out in my mind.
Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name, and I'll no longer be a Capulet.

"Go on," Troy whispered to Romeo. "Say it." He was playing out the scene just as I was, expecting Romeo to begin reciting Shakespeare's line,
What
light through yonder window breaks?

But Romeo did not recite Shakespeare's line. In fact, he didn't say anything for a full minute
--
an uncomfortable span of silence. Neither did Juliet, who gazed down from her perch with a shy smile.

William Shakespeare might have given his young lovers all sorts of sophisticated things to say, but in this version,
my
crazy version, they were just a couple of kids. Romeo, still in shock from the night's horrors, and Juliet, terrified by what the next day would bring,
were
as surprised by their sudden attraction as any two people would be. They stood mesmerized, floating in the moment of knowing that they were more attracted to each other than to any other person on Earth.

Finally, Juliet broke the silence. "Why have you come?"

Romeo moved into the courtyard. Troy, Friar Laurence, and I stayed in the shadows, shameless eavesdroppers. "I have come to escort you out of Verona."

"Where would you take me?"

"I would take you wherever you should like to go." He rested his hands on his hips. "You do not wish to go to a nunnery, do you?"

"Never."
She smiled and leaned farther over the railing. Her nightgown rustled in the faint breeze. "I wish to become an actor. I might even write a play."

He broke into a huge grin. Wow! That was the first time I saw him smile. "That is a great wish." He didn't take his eyes off of her. I don't think he even blinked.

Suddenly, Juliet became self-conscious. She straightened up and tried to flatten her hyperactive hair. "If you have heard any rumors that I have boils on my bottom or that I have onion breath, they are not true."

"I would never believe such rumors."

"Does it bother you that I am a Capulet?"

"No. Does it bother you that I am a Montague?"

"No." She draped herself over the balcony again, resting her chin in her hands. "My mother once loved a Montague. Have you ever been in love?"

"Not until this very moment." He gazed and gazed and gazed some more. Like Copernicus staring at the sun, realizing that he had discovered the center of the universe.

Troy took my hand and whispered his
line,
"Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight.
For I ne'er saw true beauty till this night."
I didn't pull away, but I felt very confused. I wanted to curl into his arms, but was it because he had saved my life? Was it because I was scared? Was it because I had never really gotten over him? Or was it because of this place, electrified by Romeo and Juliet's mutual attraction?

They could have stared at each other all night but time was of the essence. I slipped from Troy's grasp and stepped out of the shadows.
"Hi, Juliet."
Troy and the friar followed.

"Mimi? Is that you? Why are you dressed like a boy?"

"It's a long story. There's been a change of plans."

And that is when the balcony door burst open.

***

"
To sleep, perchance to dream
...
"

F
riar Laurence, Romeo, Troy, and I darted into a thicket of vines directly beneath Juliet's balcony. Lady Capulet's sinister voice shattered the romantic atmosphere and squeezed my stomach into a knot. To this day her voice occasionally comes back to me, permanently stuck in my head like shrapnel.

"Tybalt is dead!" she announced.
"Murdered by Romeo, son of Montague.
Oh, the horror.
Such terrible tidings on the eve of your wedding."
Wooden shoes paced above our heads. "The guards have gathered and will seek revenge at dawn's light. They have orders to kill the boy on sight."

"On sight?"
Juliet asked.

"I hope they kill every Montague they find.
Even that little liar who pretended to be one of us.
She made me look like a fool." She had read the letter. Juliet said nothing. The pacing ceased. "My daughter, I know you were fond of your cousin Tybalt, but do not allow these circumstances to weigh heavy on your mind. We shall proceed with the wedding tomorrow, as planned. Then Paris's men will be added to our own to avenge Tybalt's murder. I must go comfort your father. Tybalt was his favorite nephew."

"Yes, Mother."

"Come inside and sleep. You must be beautiful and fresh for your wedding."

The balcony door closed. We waited for Juliet to reemerge but she didn't. "Do you think the coast is clear?" Romeo asked. "I shall go to her."

"No," I decided. "I think I'd better do it." It was totally crazy of me to volunteer to put myself back in the viper's den. But someone had to. Romeo would slow things down with all his gawking and gazing. "I've been inside her room and the house. I know where to hide if I need to."

"Mimi," Troy objected.

"I'll be fine."

I started to climb the vine. I had never climbed anything in my life. It wasn't like I had spent my summers at camp, mastering the obstacle course and rope ladder. To my surprise, the climb was fairly easy since the vine had grown on a wooden trellis. I swung my legs over the railing and lowered myself onto the balcony without a sound. If Lady Capulet found me, I'd be slain, my body left in the gutter to be eaten by sixteenth-century, troll-sized rats. I listened at the door,
then
cautiously cracked it open.

Nurse stood at the table, folding laundry. "It's her ladyship's orders. Get yourself into bed."

Juliet cast a quick glance my way. She jumped into her bed and pulled the covers to her chin. "I'm in bed. Now be gone, Nurse. I cannot sleep with you fussing about."

"Such a beastie," Nurse said. She lifted a dress from the laundry basket
--
my costume from the play. "Don't know why you wanted me to clean this. Her ladyship will have a fit if she sees it."