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Viola took a sip, reluctantly, but once she started drinking, she didn’t stop until the cup was drained. Then she let out a sigh that telegraphed exhaustion and pain.
“I should have stayed away,” Viola said, staring into the cup without lifting it to her lips. “I had no business there, but… Oh lord, if I hadn’t been there.” She buried her face in her hands. “If Jianyu hadn’t followed to help…”
“What happened?”
Viola only shook her head. “There was an attack at the church.” She looked up at Cela then. “Jack Grew came for them—Theo and Ruby both. He wanted to punish Theo for what happened on the solstice.”
“Where’s Theo now?” Cela asked, already knowing by the grief in Viola’s eyes what the answer was.
“Jack killed him,” Viola said, her voice as hollow as her expression. “There was nothing I could do.” She said the words like an apology.
Cela’s chest felt so tight at the realization that Theo was gone, she could barely draw breath. She reached across the table, to take Viola’s hand. “Viola… Where is Jianyu?”
Viola only stared at their interlocked hands, and Cela had the same twisting, sinking feeling of dread as when she had thought Abel had been killed. No…
Viola looked up and met Cela’s eyes. “I don’t know.”
She told Cela then what had happened in the church, what Jack Grew had done.
“And you left Jianyu to deal with Jack and those creatures on his own?” Cela asked, panic warring with anger.
“He told me to go,” Viola said numbly, as though she couldn’t believe the words she was saying. “Why did I listen to him? I saw what those creatures, what that madman could do, and left him there.”
Cela’s heart felt like it was in a vise. There was an ache in her chest and one behind her eyes as well. She wanted to rail at Viola for leaving Jianyu behind, but she understood immediately that blaming her would do no good. Panicking would do no good.
Jianyu will be fine. He’d slip out of there and be back to them in no time. He has to be.
“I failed them,” Viola murmured, utterly bereft. “I left them both behind.”
Cela wanted to agree, but instead she squeezed Viola’s hand firmly. “You saved that girl’s life, just like Jianyu told you to.”
Later, they sent Joshua out to see if he could gather any news, and then they sat together for a long while after that, not so much talking as just holding a silent vigil until the world outside turned to night. Cela finally stood to light the lamps, so they wouldn’t have to sit around in the dark. She was just finishing when the bride appeared in the doorway to the kitchen.
Cela knew good work when she saw it, and whoever had made the girl’s gown was a talented seamstress. An expensive one too, from the look of it. The frock must have been truly stunning earlier that morning, with all the lace and embroidery still crisply pressed. But now the hem of the white satin was marred with the grime of the city, and the lace flounces hung limp from her shoulders.
Viola stood immediately, but she seemed frozen, like she suddenly didn’t know what to do. Cela took one look at her, the way she was looking at Ruby Reynolds with her heart in her eyes, and suddenly everything became clear.
They stood there for a long stretch, stuck in the moment and unable to shake themselves free. Cela thought that maybe they each understood just exactly what the others were feeling, that mixture of longing and loss that made her throat feel tight. That made her want to scream and cry and tear at her skin all at once.
Jianyu will come back, she told herself, not quite understanding why that point seemed so essential. But Theo Barclay would not, and beyond the tremor of fear that Cela felt in the pit of her stomach, she felt the ache of loss. Still, she knew that it was nothing compared to what this poor girl must feel.
“I see you’re awake, Miss Reynolds.” She paused, regretting her mistake. “Or should I call you Mrs. Barclay?”
The girl stared at her for a long second, like maybe Cela hadn’t spoken the English she was born with.
“Ruby,” she said finally, not answering the unspoken question. “Just Ruby.”
Cela nodded. “Well, Ruby, let’s get you something else to wear.” She went around the table, took the girl by the arm, and guided her up the stairs.
“I’m going out.” Viola was practically vibrating, and Cela knew that she wasn’t thinking straight. She was overwhelmed with grief and anger, and she was likely to do something stupid if she went out alone.
“That’s a bad idea, Vee,” Cela told her. Nothing good could come from running on fury and grief. “Just sit back down and wait with us.”
She was shaking her head. “I can’t.”
“Of course,” Ruby said, her voice tinged with something too close to spite for Cela’s liking. “You pretend to be so strong and powerful, but when you’re up against anything, what do you do? You run. You ran at the gala, and you ran back at that church. You’re a coward, Viola Vaccarelli. It’s your fault Theo’s dead.”
Viola’s expression turned unbearably bleak.
