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I protested, “Balthazar, we don’t want to take all your money.”
To my surprise, he laughed. “This is hardly all my money.” When I frowned in confusion, Balthazar leaned against the headboard and smiled. “I invested in sugar in the eighteenth century. Coal in the nineteenth century. In the early twentieth century, I bought some stock in Ford Motor Company. In the late twentieth century, I sold that stock and sank the proceeds into computers. Money is not one of my problems.” He sighed. “If you could remain in New York another week or so, by then I’d be able to go to the bank, get some real cash for you.”
“That’s okay, Moneybags,” Lucas said. “This will get us out of town.”
“If this is about pride, please, stop and think.” Balthazar looked stern. “Keeping Bianca safe matters more than scoring points.”
Lucas glared at him. “This doesn’t have jack to do with pride. We can’t even spend one more day in New York. They’ll be watching the train and bus stations by this afternoon if they aren’t already.”
Balthazar held up one hand. “No time even to rest, huh?”
“Guess not,” I said. Regretfully I pushed myself up from the soft bed. “Will we be able to reach you here?”
“It’s going to be another week or two before I’m back on my feet. I’ll be staying here.”
“But, later than that—could the people downstairs forward a letter to you? Or do they have a phone number we could use?” A lump had begun to form in my throat. “There has to be some way we can talk to you again someday. This can’t be good-bye forever. Right?”
Balthazar and Lucas shared a look. I knew they both thought it would be safer if this really were good-bye forever. I also could tell that Balthazar didn’t want this to be the ending for us either, and that Lucas didn’t exactly approve. Looking Lucas very squarely in the eye, Balthazar said, “Take one of the cards at the cash register downstairs. That phone number will work for me while I’m here, and I will check in for messages every so often after that. You might ask them about transport out of town, too—there’s a way to get out of New York without coming near a bus or train station.” The pause was slightly awkward, so Balthazar quickly added, “And ask them for some blood before you go. They picked some up from the hospital for me yesterday, and you could probably do with a couple of pints.”
“There’s something else you have to know before we go.” I felt weird about discussing this with Balthazar, but I knew he’d probably find out sooner or later. He needed to be on his guard.
“Charity is in New York.”
“What?” Balthazar pushed himself upright in bed. “Is she trying to find me? Does she need my help?”
“She needs help,” Lucas deadpanned, “but not yours.”
I shot Lucas a glare. “Charity’s fine. She was worried about you, that’s all.” I wondered whether to tell him about her attack, but I decided against it. Balthazar was injured and in no shape to deal with that kind of news.
“One more thing,” Lucas interjected. At first I thought that he was going to talk about Charity’s attack, but he was thinking more constructively. “Black Cross suspects we might’ve let you go. They’ll be looking for you, too. So I wouldn’t hang out in Manhattan any longer than you’ve got to.”
“I understand.”
I crawled forward and put my arms around Balthazar’s neck. Because of the wound on his chest, I couldn’t really hug him, not like I wanted to, but this would do. He rested his head against my shoulder. “Thank you,” I whispered.
“Thank you,” he said. “Both of you.” Now that I had stood in the center of a ring of Black Cross hunters and feared for my life, the same way Balthazar had, I could understand the depth of gratitude he felt.
Right when the embrace threatened to last too long, I let go and backed off the bed without another word. That was the end of our farewells, except for my smiling over my shoulder at Balthazar as we went out the door. He held up his hand in a wave, visible in the narrowing crack of the door as Lucas pulled it shut.
Lucas paused, the two of us standing together on the cramped stairwell, and said, his voice low, “If you want to stay here, tell me now.”
I kissed him, and it was all the answer he needed.
Chapter Thirteen
BALTHAZAR’S FRIENDS DIRECTED US TO A CHINATOWN bus, a cheap mode of transportation that usually shuffled new immigrants from Asia between different Chinese-restaurant jobs up and down the East Coast. However, it was a mixed lot on the next bus to Philadelphia—a few older people and a lot of college students typing on laptops they balanced on their knees.
The bus was late, and it ran slow. Heavy rains up north, the driver said. Flooding on the highways. We didn’t care. Our money was rolled up in the front pocket of my jeans; though it dug into my flesh, I found the pressure of it reassuring.
I rested my head upon Lucas’s shoulder as we leaned back in the seats. Maybe the bus was really comfortable, or maybe we were so tired that anything would’ve felt good. Both of us drifted in and out of sleep. Sometimes I felt as though dreams and wakefulness were bleeding together like watercolors, soft-edged and pale. All that was real was the reassuring scent of Lucas’s skin and the knowledge that, for now at least, we were safe.
At one point, while the bus rumbled down the road, Lucas reached up to stroke my hair. I realized that he thought I was asleep—really, I nearly was—and somehow that made it even sweeter.
Mostly, though, we finally got some rest.
“Isn’t it beautiful?” I pulled Lucas into the great hall of Evernight, which was decorated for the Autumn Ball. Candlelight softened the room into shadows, and the dancers moved easily through the steps of the waltz the orchestra was playing.
Lucas shook his head and tugged at the tie of his evening suit. “This is so not my scene. But seeing you like this—it’s worth it.”
