She was right.
There was no one at the window.The room behind it was still brightly lit.Neil could see that it was empty.
Not only that… but the balustrade was gone.Instead, the ledge simply dropped away—though Neil could pick out a couple of uneven places along its edge where one could see the remnants of old stonework.
Where the balustrade used to be.
He was doing it again, he realized with a sick lurch.Seeing the bloody past.
“Stuffy?”Constance prompted, her tone laced with curiosity.
Neil did not want Constance getting curious about this.
“Ha ha ha.”The laugh rang false even to his own ears.He tried to make up for it by giving Constance a playful nudge with his elbow.“Nearly had you for a minute there, didn’t I?”
Constance narrowed her eyes thoughtfully.“Hmm.”
Neil’s nerves tightened.
He felt a dart of relief as she returned her attention to the Lal Bagh.
“We need to get inside,” she declared.
“Why?”Neil demanded.“Can’t we just wait to see if Borthwick comes by?”
“What if he’s already in there?We could be waiting all night.”
Neil fought for patience.“And what are we supposed to do if we get inside?”
“Confirm Borthwick’s location.”
“That’s all?”Neil pressed.
“Well,” Constance allowed with an air of studied innocence.“We could also get a bit more of the lay of the land.Anything that might help Mr.Chowdhury’s agents get their hands on the book.”
Neil waited.
“And if we should happen to see a way to get hold of the manuscript ourselves…” Constance continued.
“Absolutely not,” Neil retorted.
She lifted her chin stubbornly.“We don’t know how long Borthwick plans to stay here or how quickly he might be able to translate Tulsidas’s secret chapter.He could be gone by the time Mr.Chowdhury gets someone else inside!”
Neil groaned.
“We’ll only try for it if we see a clear opening,” Constance assured him.
“But Mr.Chowdhury said—”
Constance cut him off, suddenly fierce.“I am not walking out of this awful place with nothing, Neil.”
He thought of the quiet cruelty of the club secretary’s office.Constance had never hesitated to stand up to a bully, even if they were twice her size.It was a matter of natural instinct for her.
Neil would never wish for that to change.
“Fine,” he replied.“But only so long as it’s safe!”
“Of course,” Constance agreed—perhaps a little too easily.
