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“Roger that. Green and Blue are in the same boat. Unfinished search, but no sign of Lucas. Eli is wondering if we should bed down in place for the night. What are your thoughts? Over,” Claire replied.
Instead of feeling frustrated that Lucas remained a ghost, Hartley now believed he’d fled. None of the cameras had caught anybody that wasn’t on one of their teams—not even a bird or a squirrel. The cameras around the perimeter of the estate hadn’t been tripped by any motion, either.
“Let me think about that. Over,” Montgomery replied, looking at her. “What do you think?”
“About staying in the Castle?” she asked. She kept her expression thoughtful even as a naughty part of her screamed,Yes! Yes! Yes!
“The guest rooms are on this upper hall, right?” He looked behind her to the dim hallway, then over his shoulder.
The building was shaped like a U, and had an attic only over the north wing. The upper floor was divided into three bedrooms per section, for a total of nine. The main floor had two dining halls, two rooms that held props, and a small yet well-equipped commercial kitchen for events. The basement could be accessed only by one stairwell, but it ran the total of the U-shaped building.
She nodded. “Right. The bedrooms are on this level. So I guess we’ll need to go through these rooms first if we’re going to stay,” she said, proud that her voice sounded neutral.
I’m not going to seduce him, she told that naughty, excited voice.It will just be nice to get to know him outside of our volcanic marriage.
“Okay, let’s do that,” Monty agreed. He tucked the tablet back into the case strapped across his chest as he passed her, then waved for her to follow.
“Do you think it’s possible that Lucas left?” she asked, trailing after him to the end of the hall. They stopped outside the first room.
“I’d be surprised if he’s if he’s gone, but it’s possible,” he whispered. “Now, shhh…”
His form filling the narrow door frame, he pulled out his gun and pushed the door open. He flipped on the overhead light, then stood ready with his gun out, scanning the small room.
She peered around him, letting him stride to the doorless closet to shine his light inside. “Nothing,” she said, her words echoing his look. The only thing that had disturbed the dust on the floor was his feet. His, and now hers, were the only steps visible. “Not even a boot print.”
He followed her gaze, his mouth tightening in acknowledgement. He moved to the window, looking down as much as the thick, wavy glass would let him. “Nothing in this room, anyway,” he allowed.
She followed him outside to the next door. They repeated the process and found nothing. Next was a small bathroom, and then the last bedroom before they came to the bottom part of the U.
“So, what do you think? Is it safe enough to stay the night here?” she probed.
She thought ahead to a night alone in the Castle with Montgomery. Without the baggage of their past, it might be a chance for them to recalibrate.
Montgomery turned, his gaze uncertain. “The only bed in that room was a twin,” he replied. “Plus, we’re covered in dust, and it’s colder than a witch’s teat.”
She shrugged, a smile pulling at her lips. “If it scares you, I guess we could go back to the Manor.”
“The Manor’s locked down,” he said with a shake of his head. “And it doesn’t scare me. I just thought you might not want to…rough it here.”
“One of these has to be an adjoined room,” she suggested, but he was shaking his head.
“No, we sleep in the same room.”
“Fine. We can move two twins into one room, or maybe find a king,” she offered nonchalantly.
He looked at her suspiciously. “All right,” he finally relented, his voice gruff. “Whatever room has the strongest lock and a big-enough bed, we’ll spend the night there. I’m not moving beds around for modesty’s sake.”
She couldn’t hold back a snort. “Modesty? After last night?” she asked.
Monty raised an eyebrow. “Just because we’re sleeping in the same room doesn’t mean…” He trailed off, his eyes hardening. “We’ll keep distance between us so there aren’t any misunderstandings.”
His voice was a whisper, but had an edge. He’d looked away as he said the last part, and she wondered if he was embarrassed.Shit, or embarrassed for me,she thought as she followed him into the next room. Was he thinking she wanted to screw him because she was the first one to refer to last night? And was he already over her? Was that the real reason for his distance today?
They continued clearing rooms until they got to the last one. It was nearest to the stairs and even had an en suite. It also had a queen-sized bed. She examined the mattress, its rough linens mimicking what might have been opulent about 1,600 years ago.
“All clear,” Monty told her, waving her back to the hall. He closed the door and pulled out the tablet. He hit the talk button and said, “Base, the upper floor of the Castle is clear. We’re going to spend the night in place. Not sure what we’ll do for food, though. Over.”
“There’s got to be some canned food in the kitchen,” Hartley said.
