“The captain and Esaias want to help you escape and build a new life. Allow them to do that for you here.”
But what if the life she was beginning to envision for herself wasn’t possible? What if she stayed and was caught? A life on the run was no life at all, but trapped in her own house was no different than being the duke’s prisoner. Getting her fix for freedom by risking her safety at work was a different kind of reckless. It was suicidal and one she no longer wanted a part of.
Amaris hugged her legs to her chest, battling the tear ripping a hole in her chest.
Chapter 36
Theo
As Theo stoodguard of the tower steps with his dagger in hand, he waited for Esaias to return with the bags for their journey and his sword. Each second sent a drop of sweat down his back, and not even the coolness of the library could contain the heat building within him. Amaris wanted to stay.
Esaias’s panting breaths came from down the way. He handed Theo his sword, which he promptly tied to his belt before racing up the steps. All thoughts eluded him. Should he embark on the journey with her or beg her to stay and find a way to resolve everything?
Someone tried to poison her!Theo reminded himself. Luana Bay wasn’t safe for her anymore. The walls of his childhood home felt wrong. It was where he’d grown and expected to live his entire life.
He opened the tower door and saw Amaris sitting up on the cot with Pricilla at her side. He didn’t have time, though, to send a prayer of thanks to the gods.
“We need to get her out of here now. Adelaide is waiting for us with the boat,” Esaias announced. He threw Amaris’s bag to her.
She caught it, pausing as she slid her hand over the fabric. With a sigh, she stood and stepped behind the worktable, rummaging through her pack and beginning to get dressed. Theo averted his eyes but caught the subtle shake of her hands.
He turned, and Pricilla was there. She grabbed him by the cuff of his shirt and pulled him to the other side of the room. Her arms folded across her chest, and she pouted. “Are we going to discuss how youtastedthe poison on her lips?”
There was an easy answer for that. “Another time.”
Amaris came back around the worktable. Before Theo could run to her, Pricilla snagged his arm.
“She doesn’t remember,” she whispered, offering a sympathetic look.
His heart plummeted.The Conjugation? Our kiss?
“What do you mean?” Theo asked, struggling to hold himself together.
“She doesn’t know who spiked her drink or even what happened during the Conjugation, whatever happened.” Pricilla raised a brow. “But I think she doesn’t want to leave.”
Theo turned to Amaris, who sniffled as she folded her ruined gown and set it on the bed. She rubbed the tulle between her scarred fingers. “Do you want to go?”
She turned over her shoulder, her lips slightly parted.
“What are you talking about?” Esaias cut in. “Of course, she wants to leave. Your father—”
Theo closed the distance between them. “Amaris, if you want to leave, we’ll take you out to the boat right now. But if you want to stay, I’ll find a way.”
“Are we forgetting—”
“How?” Amaris cut Esaias off.
Theo desperately clawed at his mind, deciphering anything that could work. Amaris was a brilliant mystique and had proven herself ten times over. “I’ll speak to my father.”
“Because that worked so well the first time,” Esaias interjected.
“Not since she stepped in when Bennet whipped me.” Theo straightened up. “If it wasn’t for you, I would still be on that cot, barely able to move. You healed Esaias of scrying fever and brought breath back to my lungs. They only want someone to blame. Luther said my father took convincing. That means there’s still a chance.”
It was a small chance, but one Theo was willing to take. To have Amaris stay and give her the chance to remember what they’d shared sparked hope in him. If she wanted to stay, he’d defend her with his last breath. He would be dead if it wasn’t for her. He owed her his life.
“I…” Her voice was raspy.
He wanted to move, to pull her to his chest and show her what their kiss had meant to him and hopefully to her. But before he could reach out, an explosion shook the tower.
