“Something along those lines.”
I turn my attention to the rest of the table and encounter a scorching glare from Meri. Oops. My eyes search for other friendly faces instead but come up empty.
“Did Tiff and Edgar leave already?”
Baxter’s mouth thins as he spears a tomato wedge on his fork. “Yes. They couldn’t wait to go once they decided this wasn’t a suitable place to raise a child.”
There’s a harshness to his voice, but it sounds more like he’s chastising himself than them. “Sophia seems to love it here.”
“What about you? Are you still eager to leave at the first opportunity?”
The tightness in his voice makes my stomach lodge somewhere high in my throat. “Not me. You must be thinking of some other prisoner.” I bite into a slice of artichoke, then follow it up with a speared trio of chicken, tomato, and a crispy crouton.
When I finish chewing, it takes a mouthful of water before I can swallow. “I’m perfectly happy sitting here.” I leave a slight pause and drop my voice lower as I add, “Doing everything I’m told.”
The rest of the room fades into a background murmur as I wait for Baxter to respond.
He lays his knife and fork side by side on his plate, dabbing at his mouth with a napkin. “I have a mountain of work still to do today,” he says to the table at large. “Please excuse me.”
A throb of regret pulses through me and I stare at my plate, trying to remember why I’d taken so much food when I’m not the slightest bit hungry.
Then Baxter taps on the back of my hand. “Could I see you in my office this afternoon? Say”—he glances at his watch—“two-thirty?”
My body floods with so much relief that I might come across a little eager. “Yes, Sir.”
Yuri’s head snaps up, and he stares at me, then just as abruptly moves his attention back to his food. Way to make a girl feel awkward for obeying her master, big guy.
Once Baxter leaves the room, I elbow the guard in his side. “If you’re going to eavesdrop, you should learn to keep a better poker face than that.”
“None of my business.”
“Exactly.” I toss my napkin on top of my plate and scan the room for a clock. “Any chance you know the time?”
“It’s one-thirty.”
An hour to fill in. My body starts a war with itself; half wanting the time to fly by, the other half wanting it to slow to a crawl.
I retrieve my napkin and replace it on my lap, deciding the rest of my lunch will be a nice way to use up some minutes. Then I’ll need to leave a good half hour early, in case I get lost in this massive house.
“You could help Nora with clearing up after lunch and I’ll take you to his office when I’m finished,” Yuri suggests.
The napkin gets thrown down again. “Sounds like a fantastic plan. I don’t know what took you so long to think of it.”
If Nora is surprised that she once again has a spare pair of hands to help her separate, store, scrape, rinse, stow, and deal with anything that needs handwashing, she schools her face well enough not to show it. By the time we’re done clearing away the mass of dishes and detritus, there’s only twenty minutes left.
When I enter the dining room, Yuri stands chatting with another two team members. Guards too, judging solely by their size.
He waves me over when I hesitate and jerks his head at me when I reach his side. “This here’s Isabelle,” he tells the men before turning to me. “This is Christer and Elias.”
“Hey. Nice to meet you.” I smile and nod, relaxing a little when Yuri twists his wrist to show me, we’ve still got time. “Have you worked here for long? Are you part of the permanent team or have you just dropped in to bolster numbers?”
“Even if they don’t live here, they’re still permanent,” Yuri says while his companions look like they’ve never met a woman who speaks before. “Nobody is ‘bolstering’ numbers.”
“I’m glad to hear it.” My eyes travel around the room, seeking anything to stir a conversation. “Lovely lunch, wasn’t it? Nora is such a fantastic cook.” Their response is lukewarm. “Any hobbies you enjoy around here? The less exercise based, the better.”
As their faces twist with confusion, Yuri rescues all of us. “Okay. I’ll escort you now and meet you two back here in a few minutes.”
I wave goodbye but don’t feel like I’ve made new friends. “Am I doing something wrong?”
