Page 113 of A Fearless Heart
“Wound in my side…why wait to die horribly?”
“That wound can be treated! Listen, you don’t have to die.” Cady reached for her bag. “I have something that may work as an antidote!”
“I won’t. And you try to force it down my throat, I’ll spit it out.” Addison gave her a little smile, and she saw blood at the corner of his mouth. Not a good sign. “Look at you, Arcadia. You’ve discovered a murderer, and your instinct is to save my life, when I’ve taken so many.”
“It’s wrong to take your own life!”
He shrugged. “A matter of debate, and let us be honest. I would be destined for a death sentence anyway.”
“You don’t know that! You might be…”
“Imprisoned for the rest of my life? Behind walls, with no gardens and no sunshine? That’s not a life, Cady. And I am selfish enough to wish to choose my own exit. Though I do hope to make it back to the surface before I go. It’s one thing to rest underground after you die, but you don’t want to start there.”
“Where is Gabe?Tell me and I’ll make sure you get back above ground.”
He sighed. “There’s a small chamber about forty feet ahead. The door is locked, but I have the key.” He used his free hand to wrest it out of a pocket and flung it weakly to the center of the space.
Cady snatched it up and hurried in the direction he pointed.
This passage was practically clear of debris, perhaps because it had never been used, or perhaps Addison cleaned it in preparation for his final act. Cady marched down it, holding the lantern in one hand.
The door loomed up suddenly on her right, and she put the key in the lock. It turned smoothly, and the door opened.
“Gabe?” she called softly, not sure if he’d be able to see her in the doorway, or be aware enough to know she was a friend and not an enemy.
Silence. Oh, God, was she too late? Cady stepped inside the room, glancing behind her down the passage to make sure Addison wasn’t following.
“Gabe, where are—” She stopped talking, because she saw the prone figure of Gabe lying in front of a plain wooden chair, a few chains loose about the legs of it. His clothing was filthy and his shoes were completely gone.
She placed the lantern down gently and knelt beside him. “Gabe?”
He was so still, but she could see his chest moving ever so slightly. She reached out to touch his bare forearm.
He twitched at the contact, and his eyes flew open as he tried to push himself away from her. “Get back,” he choked out.
“Gabe, it’s me! Cady. Oh, my God, I never thought I’d find you. Gabe, look at me. It’s Cady. I’m here.”
“Cady?” he echoed. “What are you doing?”
“I’m rescuing you.”
“He said I’d hallucinate more.” Gabe turned his head away from her. “That’s all you are.”
“No, I’m real.” She squeezed his shoulder, and he winced. “See? Hallucinations don’t feel like anything. Can you stand? Let’s get you out of here.”
“I’m chained.”
She looked at the chains, which were not connected to him at all, only the chair. “I think you used to be, but Addison must have undone them at some point, maybe because you were drugged and couldn’t move much anymore.”
“Cady, I’m dying.”
Her heart went cold.
“He kept adding things to the water, but I had to drink it or I’d die. The last time I drank it, he said he put the fear-stealer in.”
Cady put her hands on his face to force him to look at her. “You won’t die, Gabe. Remember what I told you on the way to London? I have an antidote now.”
“It’s too late.”
