AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I shake my head and swallow against the dryness of my parched throat. “No.”
Lawrence releases me with a heavy sigh. “Della and I have been searching for you everywhere since dawn.”
That surprises me. I could understand Cassius or Della, but…him?
“Why? What happened?” Part of me doesn’t want to know what more could have possibly gone so wrong that Mr. Harkstead voluntarily came looking for me. The question is already out there. It’s too late to take it back.
“If you don’t know…” He gives me a look that seems to ask if I’ve completely lost my wits. He takes in our surroundings as if only now noticing the slight scent of mold, cobwebs in every corner, and the complete lack of adornment. He gestures to my training clothes. “Then why are you down here, dressed like that?”
“I-I needed space to think.” I grimace at the pathetic non-answer. Then, to keep him from insisting on more answers I can’t give, I add, “Did something else happen?”
Lawrence’s expression darkens. A muscle jumps along his jaw, and for a moment, I think he will see through my attempts at diversion.
“Somethingelse?” Lawrence snatches my wrist and drags me closer, then lowers his face to within inches of mine. “Why do I get the feeling there is a lot you are not saying?”
I wince at my careless tongue. There is no chance he will accept anything other than the straightforward truth. “I will tell you, but not here. It would be better if we were with the others, then I will explain to everyone in at the same time.”
His nostrils flare. For a moment, I expect Lawrence to argue, but he surprises me when he doesn’t. “Fine,” he says through clenched teeth.
“Will you take me to my room first? Cherno is waiting for me to return.”
Lawrence reaches up and pulls the white and gold demon rat from behind his neck, setting them down with a command to tell Cherno and the others to meet us in Cassius’s rooms. Then he takes my arm in his, supporting me as we walk. By all appearances, we are on a leisurely stroll, as he silently escorts me through the halls.
An unusual number of the gentry are out in the main areas. I keep my chin high and gaze downcast. The last thing I want right now is to draw unwanted attention.
I’m vaguely aware of servants rushing about as they speak in hushed whispers. They fall silent when they near us, but I catch enough words to understand the abrupt end of the Red Hunt has everyone on edge.
With each step, Lawrence’s impatience begins to show. He hurries us the rest of the way, only slowing when I struggle to keep up. I don’t say a thing the entire way. I have a feeling he is one word from throwing me over his shoulder like a sack of grain.
With his help, we soon find ourselves alone in the parlor of Cassius’s quarters. A fire crackles in the hearth, and the heat sends a shiver coursing through me. It’s as if my body didn’t realize how cold I was until I felt the contrast of the warm air.
“You might as well sit while we wait,” Lawrence commands, his tone cutting. “Or better yet, lie down. You look like a demon’s ass.”
I do as he says and stretch out on the couch, propping myself up on the arm.
“I would demand that you explain exactly what the fuck happened, but something tells me you won’t speak a word of it until you’re good and ready,” he says dryly, arching a brow as if daring me to contradict him.
Pressing my lips into a thin line, I don’t speak, which only proves his point. I need to think over what I’m going to say and how… what I need to tell them is not something I want to repeat more than once.
Now that I’m not forced to run or fight, unease finds me, creeping in under my skin and settling along every nerve ending. It’s the stillness of waiting, of doing nothing, that gets to me.
Even I know I cannot do everything I need to in a single day. I must rest, or I will be useless to Alaric.
Lawrence helps himself to a drink from an ornate liquor cabinet set against the wall. He throws the first glass back in a single gulp, then pours another, sipping this one as he paces the room.
His restlessness burrows beneath my skin until I can’t stand it. I straighten up.
“Where is Cassius?”
Lawrence stops in the middle of the room. The crimson rings around his irises, flaring bright. “He sent us to find you because he is being watched.” His eyes narrow. “Where isAlaric?”
I peer at my hands clasped in my lap and brush my thumb over the healed skin of my palm. Was it only last night that we irrevocably bound ourselves together? So much has changed since then, and the few moments we shared feel like a distant dream.
Slowly, I lift my head and find Lawrence studying me, his expression utterly unreadable. “I ruined everything,” I blurt, my voice strangled by emotion. “If I’d done things differently…”
He reaches into his pocket, pulling out a handkerchief, and begins wiping my face.
I hadn’t even noticed when I started crying.
