Fury wells up inside me, shoving my fear aside. Fury for the people he killed. For what he did to my father, my family, to Kit—for what he’s still trying to do to all of us. And when I run, it’s not away from him. Instead, it’s directly toward him.
I barely bother to look as I dart across the street, dodging traffic like a wild animal with no concept of my own mortality. Curiosity flickers across his face, and then, as quickly as he appeared, he’s gone, ducking into a narrow alley. I reach it only seconds later, racing across the damp cobblestones, but when I emerge on the other side, he’s vanished. Almost as if I imaginedhim.
But I know I didn’t. And I keep running, up this busy road and the one beyond, through another side street and down thecrowded pavement, until my clothes are damp with sweat and I’ve lost my way completely. There’s no sign of him anywhere, but I can still feel his burning stare, as if he’s watching me from the shadows and silently laughing. Or maybe, for the first time, he might finally be scared.
“Coward!”I shout, and the insult echoes off the old brick buildings. Several people nearby give me strange looks, but I don’t care. Without glancing back, I shove my hands in my pockets and walk toward the only PPO who’s managed to keep up with me, holding my head a little higher.
I’m done being afraid of him. It’s time for him to be afraid of me.
Chapter Five
Tonight.
You’re sure?
I don’t remember asking you to second-guess me.
We need another few days, at least.
Get creative. I know you have it in you.
—Text message exchange between two prepaid mobiles, 1 February 2024
When I step inside theflat thirty minutes later, after a car ride that took me and my PPOs through half of Oxford trying to shake any possible tail, Singh is perched on the edge of the dining table in his standard charcoal suit, looking annoyingly comfortable as he sips from my favorite pink mug.
“I hear you went on a little adventure,” he says the moment I close the door.
“Nothing gets past MI5,” I say, pulling off my sweaty layers before flopping down on the sofa, painfully aware that my deodorant isn’t holding up its end of our bargain. “Where—”
“What do you mean, an adventure?” Kit steps out of our bedroom in a button-down and dark jeans, a pen tucked behindhis ear and a paper map in hand. It might be the adrenaline still coursing through me, but he has never looked hotter. “Is everything all right? What did Tibby want?”
“My dad’s waking up,” I say as Singh takes a sip of whatever he’s drinking. “She warned me that we don’t have much time left. Why do you have a—”
“It seems Miss Bright believes she had an encounter with the man who calls himself Guy Fawkes,” interrupts Singh, though he’s already reaching for his mobile. “Did Lady Tabitha mention a specific timeline—”
“What?”Kit kneels beside me and cups my cheek. “You saw Guy? Are you all right? Did he say anything? Did he hurt—”
“I’m fine,” I promise, ignoring Singh’s question. “He didn’t do anything. Just tried to look menacing. I have no idea how he found me, though.”
“Your meeting place with Lady Tabitha is close enough to Lord Clarence’s lectures that I expect the ABR is keeping tabs on the location,” says Singh, typing into his phone. “You’re certain it was him?”
I nod. “I recognized his scarf, and he was just…staring at me. I tried to chase him down, but he ran before—”
“You tried to chase him?” says Kit in a strangled voice. “Ev…”
“I had to dosomething,” I say, but now, looking at the fear and distress written plainly on his face, I start to regret it. “My protection officers were nearby. They wouldn’t have let anything happen—”
Kit clasps my hand between his and bows his head. He isn’t religious, as far as I know, beyond the god and pony showrequired of everyone even remotely adjacent to the crown, but it almost looks like he’s praying. “Evan,” he says as he once again meets my gaze, his voice so low that I can barely hear him over thetap-tap-tapof Singh’s phone. “I am begging you.Pleasestop putting yourself in unnecessary danger. Chasing him down…running after him…” He shakes his head, and his eyes shine with unshed tears. “If something happens to you…”
“Nothing’s going to happen to me,” I say gently. “Kit, I swear, I wasn’t in any danger—”
“You don’t know that, Ev. Not for sure,” he says, barely able to force the words out. “Every time something like this happens, all I can think is that this is really it, that I’m about to lose you forever, and I can’t breathe—”
“Miss Bright is safe and sound, for now,” says Singh, in a tone that makes it clear he has no patience for either Kit’s panic or my shenanigans. “And with the timeline moving up, I’m afraid you have no choice but to go tonight, Lord Clarence. There’s simply no way around it.”
I snap my head up, confused. “Go where?”
Kit’s jaw works for a moment before he sighs. “Dylan texted again,” he admits. “He wants to meet me. He didn’t say why, but he did offer to meet at a time and place of my choosing. Hence the map.”
