Page 57 of Goldrage
My fingers itch to grab the book he left, but patience is survival here. I force myself to read another chapter, to yawn and stretch like someone genuinely tired. Only then do I stand and start browsing the shelves. I gather several books, including the one he left, and drift toward the gardens.
I move to a blind spot among the rose trellises. I settle on a stone bench and crack open Valentine’s book.
There’s a note just inside the cover:
Midnight. His room. Cameras cut 11:58-12:13. Guards called to east wing. 15 minutes maximum.
The note trembles in my fingers. Fifteen minutes. After days of nothing, I’ll have fifteen precious minutes with the man who holds my heart.
Thank you, Valentine.
It’s not enough. It’ll never be enough. But I’ll take whatever scraps I can steal.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
AURELIA
At 11:53 p.m, I slip from my room like a ghost made of bad decisions. Bare feet on marble, breath held tight in my chest. The hallway is quiet, sconces casting dim light.
Every instinct screams this is a trap. That Valentine has sold me out again, that guards are waiting to ambush me. But the need to see Adrian, to touch him and know he’s real, overrides all sense.
The journey to his room feels like it takes forever, but it’s only a few minutes. Each doorway could hide disaster. Each shadow might conceal betrayal. My heart hammers so loud I’m certain the entire estate can hear it.
When I round the corner to his room, I hold my breath. As promised, the guards who usually stand outside Adrian’s wing are gone. The absence of their hulking forms makes the hallway feel wrong, like a mouth missing teeth. I send silent gratitude to Valentine as I approach Adrian’s door, my hand trembling as it reaches for the handle.
The metal is cold against my palm. One turn, one push, and I’ll see him. Or I’ll find guards waiting inside, Lady Harrow’s smile sharp as broken glass as she catches me in her web.
I slip inside before my courage abandons me.
Adrian sits in the wingback chair by his window, still and composed as a marble saint. Moonlight paints him in silver and shadow, highlighting the sharp angles of his face, the careful way he holds his torso. He’s not chained but invisible bonds still hold him. When he turns at the soft click of the door, his eyes widen with shock that quickly dissolves into moisture that rims his lids.
“Valentine,” is all I manage, and understanding floods his features.
For a heartbeat that stretches into eternity, we simply stare at each other across the room. I’m afraid to move, afraid that reaching for him will ruin this impossible moment. My eyes devour him—the hollows beneath his cheekbones, the way his shirt hangs looser than before, the careful stillness that shows he’s still healing. But he’s alive. Breathing. Real.
Here.
“I wasn’t sure…” I clear my throat, trying not to cry. “I didn’t know if you still… if your feelings had changed…”
Adrian doesn’t speak, but he rises slowly from the chair. Then he opens his arms.
The invitation destroys my last shred of control. I sprint across the room and crash into his chest, feeling his arms close around me. He’s solid and warm and here, and I can finally breathe again.
A sigh escapes him that seems to comefrom the depths of his soul, his face buried in my hair like he’s trying to memorize my scent. “I thought I’d lost you,” he whispers against my ear. The words are broken with emotion I’ve never heard from him before. “When Lady Harrow said you were dead, I thought… God, Aurelia, I thought I’d lost everything. But then… in my grief… I just knew. I could feel you in my soul and knew you were out there somewhere, alive. All I needed was to get back to you.”
The dam breaks. Tears spill down my cheeks in rivers as I press closer, my fingers clutching his shirt. Weeks of terror and rage and desperate hope pour out of me in silent sobs that shake my entire body. His hands stroke my back, my hair, holding me together as I fall apart.
But the clock ticks in my head, each second precious. I want to stay in his arms like this and just cry everything out, but I can’t.
I force myself to pull back, swiping at my face with hands that won’t stop shaking. “We, um… We only have about twelve minutes now before the cameras come back on.” I try to gather the scattered pieces of my composure. “I need to tell you some things.”
Adrian nods, his hands rising to frame my face with gentleness. His thumbs brush away the last of my tears as those piercing blue eyes search mine. “Tell me.”
The words spill out. “Lorenzo and Eleanora… they’ve been working on plans. Getting us out. But this place is a fortress. We can’t find a way. And we need to get out as soon as possible.”
He strokes my hair. “We have time. At least until thebaby is born. My strength is slowly coming back, but in a few months?—”
“No. No, we have to get out before then.” I can see the confusion on his face but I can’t tell him the truth. So I look away and try to come up with a reason that makes sense.
