“Not this particular passage, so far as I know. I only ever see him using …” He let his voice trail off.
I crossed my arms. More secrets. Of course. “Okay. Just tell me this much: Is there a secret way out of the castle?”
Henri’s face darkened and I noticed a muscle twitch in his cheek. “No. Not that I know of.”
“You promise?”
“I promise.”
I nodded, satisfied, then turned and began to walk back up the tunnel. “Thank you for your concern, Henri. I’ll see you at supper.”
Henri grabbed my arm to stop me. “Don’t run. Please. We’ll find another way.”
I shrugged him off. “You’ve already made it clear what that way is, and I’m not interested.”
I stalked away, and this time, Henri didn’t try to stop me.
As Ludovico coaxed the flames in my fireplace that evening, I hovered over him, gazing at the spot where I’d plugged up the peepholes. They were still covered, so at least no one had been watching me as I’d changed before dinner.
“How long have you worked for the family?” I asked the servant.
Ludovico glanced up. “Six years, my lord.”
Six years? He must have started serving the family fairly young.
“Have you been to Udolpho before?”
Ludovico nodded. “Yes. I come at least once a year.”
“And have you heard anything about secret passages?” I asked casually, examining my nails. “Or any hidden rooms?”
Ludovico’s eyes flickered to the second door in my room before he looked away. “No, sir. Why do you ask?”
I narrowed my eyes. “You are a terrible liar, Ludovico. What do you know?”
“Nothing. I swear it.”
“On Annette’s life?”
Ludovico’s eyes flashed. “That’s not fair. I’ve only heard rumors of them. I’ve never seen anything myself.”
I smiled triumphantly, knocking on the second door. “What do you know of this?”
“It leads to a staircase.”
“And a secret tunnel.”
Ludovico frowned. “I don’t know about that. Annette opened the door at the top of the stairs. It leads out onto the ramparts.”
I straightened, examining Ludovico in a new light. “Annette can pick locks?”
“Pick locks, sir? My Annette? Hardly. She has a master key.”
“A master key?”
Ludovico nodded, before looking at me through suspicious eyes. “Why?”
“Because. You’re going to fetch her immediately. But say nothing to her or the family about it.”
