Page 129 of Aurelia

Arthur smiled. “I will stay with Rebecca.”

Roland stared at the other man, and Aurelia could see he was torn—furious and angry and devastated.

“Be good to my daughter, Crewe,” Arthur said.

Roland hesitated, as if he might say something more, but then he turned his back on the man he had once called brother and led Aurelia toward the water.

Chapter 28

Roland could not think about his cousin sitting back there in the cave, holding Rebecca’s long-dead hand. And he could not think about the fact that Celsa was Arthur’s daughter.

He could not think about anything but getting Aurelia out of this wretched death cave.

Roland put a hand on her shoulder and stopped her just before the water swallowed her hips. “You won’t be able to see anything but the slightest glimmer of light,” he warned. “Do you recall the general direction you took on the path?”

“Yes.”

“Good. We’ll walk until it’s too deep for you and then I’ll carry you a bit further. And then we’ll both fill our lungs and go under together. We don’t have long in this water, Aurelia. It is so cold you need to keep moving.” He wished to God it was the time of year when the warm currents swept through, but he was already half-frozen.

She nodded, her features taut, but not hysterical. Oh, his prim, self-possessed little Miss Burton! Roland kissed her once, fiercely, and then nodded. “Go.”

The water was frigid, shockingly so, and the last few inches before he took them both under were the worst.

His eye burned in the salt water, but he kept it open, staring at the small slit of light surrounded by darkness.

Aurelia swam faster than he had dared to hope and he gave her more slack on the chain and let her have room to kick, trying to stay close, but to the side of her.

They reached the cave opening quickly, but she needed to dive a good three feet lower to swim through it.

Roland’s lungs were starting to burn by the time he followed her through the gap. He could see her ahead of him for a few seconds before she disappeared. He was just about to follow her when a swell of water pushed him back up against the rock and the chain went taut in his hand.

God no! I’m holding her back!

He let loose of as much chain as he thought she could carry while he struggled to free himself from the jagged rock that was tearing at his clothing like teeth.

His eye burned so badly that all he could see was a long dull rectangle of lighter gray ahead of him. Another swell hit and slammed him back hard enough that he was momentarily stunned. The links slipped through his fingers faster and he gathered his remaining strength and kicked with all his might to retrieve the heavy chain before it pulled her down.

But the next swell hit him so hard that it spun him heels-over-head and the chain was yanked from his hands.

Roland could not tell up from down when suddenly his left leg jerked and he felt the chain twist tightly around his ankle. He tried to scrape it off with the heel of his other foot, but again there was a tug, this time from above rather than an incoming swell.

His lungs were on fire and his limbs did not seem to be responding to his brain’s commands.

Air.

He needed air.

The rectangle of light darkened alarmingly fast.

And then darkness swallowed him.

***

“Stop pulling on it!” Aurelia shrieked at Sir Gideon. “He must be stuck!” A swell lifted the boat and the chain on her wrist went taut, almost taking her over the side.

“He will pull you under, Aurelia!” the baronet shouted over the wind. He grabbed the chain and yanked. “He needs to come up or he will drown.”

Aurelia realized she was crying because her tears were the only hot part on her body. “I need to go back in,” she said, pushing off Sir Gideon’s coat, which he had wrapped around her the moment after he’d lifted her in the boat.”