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3 DECEMBER 1888
“I—I’m so very… I heard noises and, and I thought—I’m dreadfully sorry.” I stuttered over an apology, my gaze traveling from Daciana’s disheveled hair to the woman she’d been kissing, their hands still entwined and their skirts rumpled.
I tore my gaze from their wrinkled clothes, unsure where to look. I was fairly certain the mystery guest wasn’t wearing anything beneath her shirt. Those stone-colored eyes blinked back at me…
“Ileana?”
Shock must have addled my brain for me not to have noticed it was her straightaway.
“I… I didn’t mean to… intrude.” I sank my teeth into my lower lip so hard I nearly drew blood as Ileana cringed back. “I didn’t see… anything.”
Daciana o
pened her mouth, then shut it.
“I…” I searched for something to say—something to break the tension coiled around each of us, choking words away, but hardly knew where to start. Every attempt at apologizing seemed to put Ileana further on edge. I feared if I attempted another apology she might run from this chamber and never come back.
As if recovering from her own surprise at being discovered, Daciana suddenly drew herself up and lifted her chin. “I make no apologies, if that’s what you’re after. Do you take issue with our affection?”
“O of course not.” I blinked, horrified by her conclusion. “I would never.”
I glanced at the two cadavers on nearby tables covered under white shrouds. It was a morbid place to steal kisses, though it should have been the least likely place to be discovered by nosy castle occupants. And it would have been perfect—if I hadn’t shown up. My face burned.
I was frozen with indecision on how to exit the morgue. Both girls stared at me—then at each other—and I wished for the floor to transform into a giant mouth and swallow me whole. Blast that magic didn’t truly exist when one needed a fast escape. My entire body was aflame with mortification after being caught spying.
“I… I hope to see you both tomorrow,” I said, feeling as if I were the most awkward person alive. “Good night.”
Without waiting for a scolding, I burst into the hallway and ran for my chambers. I shut the door and pressed my back against it, covering my burning face with my hands. If Daciana or Ileana wanted to remain acquainted with me now, it would be the closest thing to a miracle the world had ever known. Foolish. I was so ridiculously foolish to be pulled by the lure of curiosity! Of course no intruder was here, killing classmates. Jack the Ripper was dead. The murderer from the train had no interest in hunting academy students.
It was time for me to accept that and move forward with my life.
I worried my bottom lip between my teeth, trying to place myself in their situation. The scandal that would befall an unmarried woman being caught alone in the company of a man would ruin her reputation. Being caught romantically with another young woman—society, vicious beast that it was, would destroy them both and take pleasure in ripping them apart.
I paced the small rug in my room, torn between going back to apologize and locking myself away forever to perish in embarrassment and shame. Finally, I decided to crawl into bed. I did not want to chance interrupting them again if they had picked up from where I’d so rudely found them.
A new wave of fire flickered across my skin when I thought of their kiss. It was so passionate. They appeared to be lost within each other’s souls. I couldn’t help thinking of being in a similar position with Thomas.
Our kiss in the alleyway had been very nice, but danger had corralled us. What would it feel like to have my hair gently knotted in his fist, my back pressed against a wall, him tangled around me like vines wrapped around brick?
I still didn’t know if I wanted forever—or that I would ever be the marrying kind—but certain feelings were becoming… clearer. Part of me longed to trail ungloved fingers across his face, learning each curve of his bone structure in an intimate way. I craved the pressure of his warmth as his cutaway coat dropped to the floor. I wanted to know what his body felt like as our friendship was doused in crude oil and set on fire. Which was completely indecent.
I banished that image from my mind and yanked the covers up.
Aunt Amelia would certainly force me to attend church services on her next visit, muttering never-ending prayers for my crumbling morals. As awful as I felt for being bested by curiosity, a smile slowly spread in the dark. It was one of the first nights in weeks that I was falling asleep to thoughts that didn’t revolve around failed electrical contraptions, dead prostitutes, and disemboweled bodies.
Tonight I’d fall asleep to the image of gold-flecked eyes and a wicked mouth. And all the wonderful ways I might one day explore those lips in dark, empty rooms. Our passion burning brighter than all the stars in the sky.
Saints drag me to Hell.
TOWER CHAMBERS
CAMERE DIN TURN
BRAN CASTLE
3 DECEMBER 1888
I’d been up before the sun deigned to rise, pacing in front of the fireplace in my chambers.
