“I hoped you would come back.”
“And here I am,” she replied.
His head tilted a fraction as he studied her. “Why?”
“Because if you want to get out of here, you’re going to need my help,” she told him.
He looked around the room before landing his gaze back on her. “There are worse places to be, I suppose. Besides, this is where they send the mentally impaired, so I’m told.”
“I don’t think you’re mentally impaired,” she replied even though she’d told Sam the exact opposite.
“Is that so?” he murmured as he watched her.
“Mr. Beckett...” she began.
“Theo.”
“Theo”—she tried to ignore the flutter in her stomach—“do you want my help or not?”
“I’m supposed to help you,” he answered.
“I guess time will tell,” she replied. “But before this is over, we may just end up helping each other.” Once again, he fell silent. “I know the truth.”
His expression held a sudden wariness. “Truth?”
“About where you’re from. But regardless of what you have been told about me, I don’t want or need to be saved. However, the fact remains that you’re in my world now, and if you want to survive, you are going to need my help.”
She decided to ignore the whole Witchfinder thing for now. Riverside was not the place for them to be arguing over witches and magic unless she wanted to get herself committed too.
“You accept what I told you about where I’m from?” he stared at her, his expression curious. “You believe me?”
“Let’s just say I’m willing to give you the benefit of the doubt.” She shrugged.
“I don’t understand.” He frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I’m willing to suspend my disbelief and extend a tentative trust until will get to know each other better, but if I help you, there are conditions.”
“What sort of conditions?”
“For one, you have to have an open mind. The world we live in now is very different to the one you are from. There will be things you have to accept that may go against everything you’ve been taught.”
He seemed to give my request serious consideration. “Very well,” he agreed. “I will try. What else?”
“Honesty,” she continued. “We have been thrown together for whatever reason, and while we figure it out, there can’t be any lies between us.”
“Honesty?”
She nodded. “Trust will come later,” she added, thinking back to the exact words the mysterious Sam had given her.
For a moment he just stared at her, his dark eyes unreadable. “Agreed.”
“There is something…” She hesitated. “Something I want to ask you.”
“You may ask.” He tilted his head a fraction as he studied her.
“Where you came from, there were two little girls. I believe they were arrested on charges of witchcraft. Their names were Bridget and?—”
“Hester,” he interrupted. “I remember. What is your question?”
