She pressed her palm against her roiling stomach, her thoughts sinking into the undercroft. Lorenz’s leg was healing well, but it still caused him pain when he walked. If these men were to discover his hiding place, he would not survive a second time. The brilliance of his eyes would be forever snuffed out, all because he refused to ignore his conscience.
She blinked and refocused on Kampff. “Your friend in Zurich, then, has dispatched you in the name of the emperor?”
“In the matter of the Anabaptists, both the Holy Father and the heretics are in unity. Verily, it is the reformer Urlich Zwingli who is most adamant in the search for and execution of the Anabaptists.”
Christyne swallowed though her throat was parched. A servant traversed the outskirts of the hall with her head down. “Refreshments for our guests,” Christyne called out, smiling when the girl dipped a curtsy and scampered off. She returned her regard to the duke. “My apologies for not quenching your thirst sooner. I can lay my lack of hospitality at the feet of your most…diverting news.”
The captain leaned his elbow against the mantel and pierced her with an unblinking gaze.
Her knees quivered even as she smiled at the wretched soldier. “And what makes you think this particular rebel is on my father’s lands?”
“A heretic hunter claims to have put an arrow through his leg in the thickest parts of the forest.”
The servant returned with a tray of tankards holding amber liquid. Christyne removed a cup and sipped at the contents, the beer burning a path to her stomach. “Is he certain it was not a deer or another wild animal. We have many creatures in the woods, and the shadows can play tricks on the eyes.”
“He is certain.”
She licked at her lips. “And if I or one of our people stumbles upon this man, then what?”
Both men’s lips curled. “Thence, you may call upon us to give him his eternal reward.”
Chapter Eight
Germany, Present Day
Amber’s fingertips tingled as she made her way back through the rec room, down the corridor of cubicles, and into the reception area. She wanted to blame her jitters on jet lag. Why not, right? She’d blamed everything else that’d happened since she’d woken up on the lack of sleep and the time zone shift that had jarred her body. But this…a sort of involuntary quiver that ran like shock waves across her skin, couldn’t be laid at jet lag’s door.
She had to look elsewhere, and a sinking pit in her stomach pointed a neon arrow. Seth Marshall. The soccer star held all the responsibility. His mere presence, like the invisible hand of a puppet master, manipulated her synapses and conjured up thoughts and feelings she’d never experienced before. Especially for a guy she’d just met.
His footsteps sounded behind her, the light tread of his sneakers causing the pace of her heart to quicken.
This was not part of the plan.Hewas not part of the plan. She’d come to Germany to serve and find direction, not to get distracted by an all-star athlete and his pretty face.
Besides, like she’d told him, she didn’t date. She needed to focus on graduating. Finding a job in a competitive market. Working toward making herself more relatable. And even if she did date, she wouldn’t date him.
Number one, she didn’t even know if he was a Christian. That may sound shallow of her, but she’d learned in her counseling classes the statistics for relationship difficulties when a couple didn’t share common core beliefs. Not to mention the verse in the Bible about being unequally yoked.
And even if he was a Christian, he lived a life that was constantly in the spotlight. She’d already experienced what it was like to have her career choice thrust into that bright beam, and she didn’t think she could withstand that kind of scrutiny in every facet of her daily life. She wanted a quiet existence. One where she could make a difference in individual lives. A world platform did not appeal to her.
But none of that mattered. They were only going to lunch as new friends. Colleagues who needed to get to know each other so they could work together. Not a date.
Yasmin looked up from behind the reception desk, a small smile tipping her lips. “Did Mila leave you with a million questions for me?”
No, but Seth did.Amber grabbed ahold of Yasmin’s hand. Another new friend. It only stood to reason that Amber should invite her along to lunch. The offer had nothing to do with needing a buffer so she could get her head screwed back on straight.Don’t start lying to yourself now.
“My new friend Seth and I were just about to get some lunch. How about you join us, since you’re also a new friend?” Amber held in a groan. If her parents could hear how inane she sounded, they’d wonder where all that money they spent on private school tuition went. If her brothers could hear her, she’d never live it down.
Yasmin’s brows folded over her eyes. Then she looked beyond Amber’s shoulder, seemed to have some sort of unspoken conversation with the person at Amber’s back, and the creases smoothed. She patted Amber’s hand. “I’m sorry, but I usually eat lunch right here in case someone comes in or calls and needs help.” Her grin widened. “Why don’t we have dinner though? I’ll ask Mila to join us. Then you can tell us both how your first day went, getting to know your new coworkers. I’m sure she will be just as interested to hear all about it as I will be.”
Amber could translate passages of scripture written in both original languages—Hebrew and Greek. She didn’t need an interpreter for that little speech. Yasmin and Mila wanted her to spill how her date with Seth went. Except…“It’s not a date.”
Was she fooling herself? She’d never gone out with a guy before, but even she felt this set up was very date-like. She’d seen the interest in Seth’s eyes when he looked at her, and she’d certainly felt that bewildering zinging feeling electrifying her nerve endings when they’d lain side by side on the grass.
Exhaustion pulled on her bones. She was too tired to process and makes sense of anything at this point. She turned to Seth. “I appreciate the offer, but I think I might go back to my room and—”
“Nope.” He gently cupped her elbow and steered her toward the door. “You need food and distraction to stay awake. As your newfriend, I’m taking it upon myself to supply both those things.”
“But…”
