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His face darkened. “No.” He shook his head, refusing to believe it.
It wasn’t hard to pretend to be upset. I crouched in the dirt, holding my head in my hands as I listened to his words. She could’ve died last night. If I hadn’t dragged her out of there, she would’ve burned alive in this damn castle that she hated so much. “She’s gone,” I said. My eyes watered as I imagined her lifeless body. Skin cold. Void eyes and limbs bent at odd angles.
Tears welled up in my eyes at the image. It was an outcome I refused to let happen.
I stood up and Augustus charged toward me, his lips twisted in a snarl. “Why didn’t you save her!?” He shoved my chest, nearly knocking me over. “Why didn’t you make sure she was safe? For all your talk of wanting to be there for her—of loving her—you failed!”
I didn’t fail. Augustus was not willing to do what I did. I got her out of this castle for her own well-being. He would’ve kept her at his side and put her right in harm’s way. But I couldn’t trust him to take care of the woman I loved. At least, not yet. He had too many enemies breathing down his neck for reasons he wasn’t even aware of yet. The secrets about his lineage died with his mother but still lived within me. I didn’t know what Lord Nathan knew, and if word got out, Augustus would have too many enemies to count. I needed time to assess what rumors were flying around and get rid of Lord Nathan.
Augustus grabbed me and, to my shock, collapsed in my arms. “I failed her. I didn’t protect her, Atticus.” I was struck with indecision for a moment, not sure how to handle this, but I surprised myself by patting him on the back before squeezing him for a hug. “She can’t be gone,” he whispered.
I looked over him at the collection of people standing about, watching their king fall to his knees with grief. If we wanted to get back at Lord Nathan, Augustus would need to find his anger and make him pay. That was the only way. We couldn’t let whispers about his weakness bleed through the kingdom.
“What are you all looking at!” I screamed. “Why aren’t you digging?!”
A few men jumped into action and started moving a fallen beam. Leo wiped his eyes and glared at me. I needed to speak with him soon.
“Let’s keep searching,” I said. “We don’t stop until the job is done. We’ll find her.”
Augustus pulled himself up and stumbled over to the rubble. “We’ll find her,” he whispered. “We have to. She can’t be gone. She’s strong, Atticus. If she’s in there, we have to save her.” He ran toward the rubble, ignoring the shouts from his guards yelling at him to stop. He grabbed onto a fallen pillar, pulling it off the ground. It was too heavy for him and he fell to his knees, dropping it. I stood and walked toward him, hovering in solidarity like a good friend should. “This isn’t over,” he exclaimed, screaming into the air. “We have to find her!”
I did this. I caused this mess, but I wasn’t about to let her become a casualty to it. This was the only way.
“We’ll keep looking,” I said. “We’ll keep digging.” I kept my voice strong, even though I felt a surprising wave of guilt. I shook it off and looked back at the men working in the rubble. “Hurry up!” I yelled. “Find her!”
Augustus clawed at the dirt while tears streamed down his cheeks. “We’ll find her,” he murmured until his fingers bled. I watched him for a moment, observing with a sinking heart as he found the strength to stand. I was afraid that the weight of his grief would be too much for him to bear. But she was mine to protect. Not just from our enemies, but from the pain that lay within us. The shadows we couldn’t escape. “Find her,” he whispered, wiping at his tears. “I am going to find her,” he said, as if convincing himself. “She can’t be dead. She’s too damn stubborn to die.”
I nodded without response. I let him believe what he wanted. I watched him as he returned to the wreckage. He continued to dig, heaving blocks of stone off the building.
“Augustus,” I called. He ignored me, continuing with his work. “Augustus,” I said hesitantly. I looked at the debris and then back at him. He stopped for a moment and looked at what remained of the castle. Dusty rubble covered the whole area, soot and ash lingering in the air. The castle that his great-grandfather built was partially destroyed and possibly left a graveyard buried beneath the debris.
“What?” he snapped.
I let out a shaky breath. “I want to find the person responsible for this.” And you should want to find him, too. Get mad, Augustus. Get furious.
He looked at me with teary eyes.
“I want to find her first.”
And with those words, I positioned myself at his side, digging through the dirt, imagining what would have happened to my Little Monster had I not gotten her out in time.
Chapter Two
CHRISTINE
With a hiss of pain in my chest, I slammed my palm against the bedroom door. I had burns on the back of my arm, and my hair smelled like smoke. “Let me out of here!” I shouted, though my tone was hoarse. Every word was like knives against my sore throat.
“Mr. DuPont will be back shortly,” the guard on the other side said, though his voice was muffled.
I let out a huff, then choked on a few sputtering coughs. My lungs felt hot and tight. I couldn’t taste anything. My nose was too full of the acrid smoke and the smell of my own burning flesh.
“Why am I here? Where is everyone?!” I asked, but the man didn’t answer me. Whoever stood watch was under strict instructions to keep quiet.
I took in the large space. There was a king-size bed with a rumpled comforter in a deep shade of burgundy. The closet was full of fashionable, expensive suits, and there was a photo of Atticus and me on the nightstand. It was the blurry photo of us embracing in a twisted kiss. The same photo he’d shown August. My eyes focused on it the moment I woke up and shot out of bed.
What happened after I left the castle last night? Who attacked us?
I stormed over to the tall windows and glared at the city outside. In the far distance, I could see a cloud of smoke lingering where the castle was. My lungs clenched at the sight. Flashes of fire and Isabelle’s body in my mind’s eye made me tremble.
