Charles Jacob Sigismund Thiel had encountered a reversal of fortune. He had served as a doctor of medicine in the royal court of Catherine the Great in the mid 1700's. Now he found himself in a dark, damp, musty, prison cell in St. Petersburg, Russia. Fortunately, his youth and academic life at Halle University exposed him to live "outside the comfort zone" experiences that enabled him to survive his present situation inside a Russian cell.
The royal court had confiscated his gem collection; mostly diamonds, emeralds, and rubies. His prized possession, an eighteen carat diamond that was scheduled to be purchased for Catherine the Great had been confiscated during the coup. It was easier for the palace police just to take the collection which included thirty-seven diamonds totaling two hundred eighty-five carats. He wanted his collection back.
Riddles were more prevalent in Charles' day of the mid 1700's. The royal court gave Charles a riddle and if solved, he could use it to gain his freedom, collection, and a new life. If he failed; death. There were three keys to unlock the safe were the Halle diamond was kept. Charles nicknamed the diamond after his Alma mater, Halle University. Could he do it?
As he sat in his jail cell, he noticed a human skeleton in the corner of the dimly lit room, and when he paced the floor he heard rattling sounds appeared, but from where? He was let outside in the afternoon three times a week. After weeks of this routine and thinking about his surroundings and controlled timed schedules, he thought more about the riddle and how the dead body was a sign from the cell. The human carcass would be the first key to unlocking the safe. After an entire season of cold winter blahs, a guard inadvertently showed Charles a mouse that he kept in his pocket during the winter months. The mouse would become the second key to unlocking the safe. All of this information was in Charles's head, but he made no connections until the sunlight poured in from the window up above the south wall. The sun position had to go through an entire season before he could begin to put the pieces of the puzzle together. By this time, Charles had lost many pounds and lost strength in his left arm. On a Thursday afternoon, rays of light beamed close to the skeleton and he noticed the wall had a slight bump in it. Charles moved the bones away from the wall. Fresh foot-marks were on the floor. All this had become obvious because of the sunlight. He was stooped. Charles picked away at the wall and instead of peeling away and peeling downward, he picked at the wall and pulled towards him. After many turns, this repeated motion revealed a horizontal wooden panel that was painted black. This explained why it blended into the darkness. Over time, the moisture had warped the wood to expose the box. As he pulled the horizontal panel towards him, a lever pulled a box down to the ground. The box had a black hole on top of it and a clear panel in which you could peer into it. A rattlesnake coiled dead center stared at Charles. From his observations, he could see that the coiled mesh on top of the box served as a mechanism. It became clear to him after awhile that if you place your hand in the coiled mesh from above and tried to remove your hand quickly, the mesh would tighten and the hand would stay suspended long enough for the rattlesnake to strike a deadly, poisonous bite. Charles assumed this is what had happened to the dead gentleman that shared his prison cell. He knew he had to be careful. He slowly pushed the horizontal wooden box back into the wall and the snake filled box disappeared.
I have an appointment. I will resume The Escape again.
Andrew C. Allen 4/15/13
513.638.7140
pewabic34@gmail.com
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