“I can assure you, I did not come here of my own volition.”
“One could always hope.”
He was trying to lighten her mood. She appreciated the effort, but she could not bring herself to laugh.
His expression turned serious. “Your volition, as you call it, does not seem to count for much. They are remarkably careless about it. If it were not absurd, I would say they seem determined to bring us together.”
Whoevertheywere. She could no longer tell the difference between an enemy and a friend. At this moment, the only person who seemed to care what happened to her was de Riquer.
She slid down to the floor and wrapped her arms around her knees. And Darcy.Hecared about her, even if he was too stubborn for his own good.
“My husband is going to die.”
She was overcome with a feeling of hopelessness.
“Your husband is not going to die, Mrs. Darcy. Do you seriously think they will stand by and allow one of England’s most powerful mages to be killed in a duel? If that is the case, then they deserve to lose the war to Napoleon.”
She wished she could take comfort in his statement. “They are too embroiled in their own petty squabbles to care about the bigger picture.”
“You have no idea how disappointing that is to me.”
“I would have thought you would be delighted. You are the enemy. Your goal is to inflict as much damage as possible. You have spied on us and discovered our weaknesses. Why would you be disappointed?”
“Because, Mrs. Darcy, I wish to switch sides. I wish to fight with you against Napoleon.”
She stared at him in disbelief, distracted from her own agitation. “But why?”
“I did not choose to join Napoleon’s mages. Quite the opposite. I joined the uprising against Napoleon after Bonaparte’s brother Joseph was appointed king instead of King Fernando VII. I commanded a group ofmiquelets, a resistance band that mounted attacks during the sieges of Rosas and Girona. After the siege of Girona ended, many of my fellowmiqueletswere captured and killed. I was given a choice. Either I worked for Napoleon, or my whole family would be put to death. I come from a noble family that goes back many generations. My uncle is a Marquis. I agreed so I could save their lives and a long family history. Since then, Joseph Bonaparte has been defeated, but the threat to my family has continued. I refuse to serve that usurper any longer.”
Elizabeth did not know what to say. She could not doubt his sincerity. His anger swirled around the room. But she had to be honest with him.
“I doubt anyone will believe you.”
“I am hoping you can convince them.”
She was set adrift. Everything was topsy-turvy. She did not know what to believe anymore. Outside, in the rose garden, Darcy might be drawing his last breath while she was talking to a French mage. By even listening to him, was she conspiring with the enemy?
“I see that I have shocked you.”
“You have. I did not anticipate anything like this. I would be staking my life – and that of many people— by trusting you.”
“Yes.”
They fell into a silence. She was too numb to see anything clearly. She wrapped her hands against her knees and gazed at the ground. All she could think of was getting out and helping Darcy.
“Please do not sit on the stone floor, Mrs. Darcy. It is – how do you say – watery? At least sit on the carpet. Or better still, sit in the armchair.”
“Damp. The word is damp.”
He extended a hand to help her up and she took it. However miserable she may be, she would be better off in an armchair than on the damp stone of the cellar.
But she could not sit in the armchair, not until she knew what had happened to Darcy. She paced back and forth, looking towards the mirror, wondering if there was something she could do.
Then she thought of something. Surely if he was wounded, they would take him to the Healer’s Hall. She would know.
“Can you show me the Healer’s Hall?”
De Riquer rose and went over to the mirror. “I cannot show you the Healer’s Hall. I have never been there. But you can direct the mirror, once I set up the spell.”
