To cast that thought away, she turned to Leonard and held out a cup. “I brought you both water.”
He pushed up to his feet and took the mug, then she shifted to help Levi drink. Behind her, Leonard’s voice gave her pause. “Audrey, I need to run down to my quarters for a minute. Can you stay here with the prisoner? It’s been quietall night. Just keep him tied and the door locked. I’ll leave you a knife in case you need it.”
Leonard looked tense, perhaps as though he needed a chamber pot. Heat flushed her neck at the thought, and she nodded. “Of course. Take as long as you need.”
After handing her his hunting blade, he strode across to the door, and awareness sank through Audrey. She would be alone with Levi Masters. She had the ability to set him free if she chose.
If she dared.
Is this your leading, God?Maybe the idea and opportunity were the direction she’d been praying for. Everyone in Laurent seemed set against the man. If she set him free now, she might even be saving his life.
The moment the bar clanged across the door and Leonard’s footsteps faded, she spun to the prisoner and moved into action. “We have to go quickly.” She dropped to her knees by his feet and sawed through the cord binding his ankles. Leonard kept his knife sharp, which made the task easier.
When she had his legs free, she dared a glance at his face as she rose and strode around behind him. His expression proved hard to read. The line between his brows could be from his focus, yet she found none of the joy there she’d expected. Did he not wish to be set free? Surely he understood what she was doing.
The seconds to cut through the binding at his wrists seemed to take hours. At last, she’d released him. “Get up and follow me.”
She grabbed the inside lever to lift the bar from the door. She cringed at the soft clang it made, then eased the partitionopen. A glance down the hallway showed no one out. The early hour worked to their advantage. As long as Leonard didn’t come back while they were in the corridor...
She motioned Levi to follow, then crept down the corridor as he fell into step behind her. Using long strides, she covered as much ground with each quiet step as she could. She’d learned the art of walking softly from Brielle, but would the large man behind her be able to do the same?
Yes. Maybe they taught that skill during spy training, for she barely heard him behind her.
They would have to pass four doors on the left and one on the right before they reached her own. She dared not chance going all the way down to the short connecting hallway that led outside. They could cut through her apartment. Surely Papa would still be sleeping, and she could gather food and warm gear for Levi to take with him.
Then she would have to make sure none of the hunters were outside before she sent him into the courtyard. This early on a winter morning, when the muddy tones of morning light barely colored the air, no one would likely be out ... she prayed.
But she would address that challenge if it came. For now, they had to make it down the corridor.
The first door they passed belong to the Rochette family. The children were all older, so only a quiet murmur sounded through the door. She glanced back at Levi to make sure he was keeping up. He gave her a nod, only a step behind.
She pushed out a breath and kept moving. The chatter of children’s voices sounded through the second door. A man spoke from behind the third—Monsieur Thayer always thundered when he talked.
At the fourth door, the latch bobbed as she passed. Her heart lurched into her throat, and she reached back for Levi’s hand. She grabbed his wrist and tugged him forward so anyone who saw them from behind would see a pair walking together.
She didn’t dare look back. Maybe someone had only been preparing to open the door and hadn’t actually stepped out. She didn’t breathe, her entire body squeezed tight except for her legs nearly running beneath her.
At last, they reached her door. She tugged the latch string and pushed inside, pulling Levi with her. The moment they cleared the opening, she spun and pressed the door shut.
Her entire body trembled, and she could only draw tiny breaths. Papa’s snores still rumbled from the corner—a small relief.
But Leonard would be striding back down to the storage room any minute. She had to get Levi Masters out of village walls before the guard sounded an alarm.
She spun and ran to the shelf where she kept food, grabbing a satchel and throwing in rolls and pastries, nuts and dried berries, and smoked meat. That would have to be enough.
She motioned him toward the door leading outside as she ran that way herself. Setting the food bundle on the floor, she grabbed Papa’s coat. Her own would never fit on him, and she’d already been working on a new garment for her father. This would have to do.
She thrust the coat into Levi’s hands. “Put this on. Quickly.”
As he obeyed, she donned her own coat. She finished before him, so she grabbed up the food bag, then reached for the door latch.
“Miss Moreau.” This was the first time Levi had spokensince she released him, and his voice rumbled deep enough to stop her short.
She glanced back at him, raising her brows even as her heart thundered in her chest.
His expression looked worried. “Will you be in trouble for helping me?”
A weight pressed in her chest, slowing her ragged pulse. She’d not let herself think about that. She’d only seen an opportunity and grasped it.
