Esther blinked. “What—? How—? Why are you here?”
“No time!” Lucy hissed, yanking her into a narrow alley between two buildings. “Listen carefully. I can’t stay long. And you especially can’t be seen with me. Basil has the eyes of a hawk and the patience of a graveyard.”
“What are you talking about?” Esther whispered frantically.
“We have a search party,” Lucy said, glancing around like a spy in a children’s book. “Basil. Baroness Levon. Sylva—Basil’s secret fox child.”
Esther’s heart flipped. “A search party? For me? And Basil haswhat?”
“Focus!” Lucy snapped. “You vanished from a castle. I performed a masterful act of concern. Basil nearly combusted from stress. The Baroness is absolutely in love with him and keeps pretending she isn’t. It’s unbearable.”
“Lucy, you are saying too many things too fast.”
“No time for pacing!” Lucy grabbed her shoulders. “Meet me tonight. Late. By the north gate. Alone.”
“Lucy, wait—why—”
“No questions!” Lucy hissed. “I have to distract Basil and the Baroness before they wander this way. We’ll discuss whether you’re coming back to the palace or continuing your grand rebellion later. My sanity depends on this.”
Esther stared at her. “…Lucy, why is there a search party? What are you even doing here?”
Lucy backed away, finger pressed to her lips. “Tonight. North gate. Be sneaky.”
“Lucy, wait—why tonight? Why alone?”
Lucy hesitated, just for a heartbeat.
“Because,” she said lightly, already stepping back, “I don’t trust your timing—and I definitely don’t trust mine.”
“Lucy!”
But she was already gone, sprinting off with her cloak flapping wildly, muttering about cover stories and lying creatively.
Esther stood frozen in the alley, arms full of food, heart racing.
Her life had unraveled in ways she never could have predicted. And apparently Lucy—her constant, her anchor—had become a covert operative.
Esther pressed her fingers to her forehead and exhaled slowly.
Tonight.
North gate.
She looked toward the orphanage, then back the way Lucy had gone.
She could tell someone.
She could warn Nythir.
She could explain.
Esther closed her eyes.
And chose not to.
Tonight, then.
She turned back toward the orphanage, her steps steady even as her thoughts raced. Duty pulled her forward. Love tugged behind her.
