I rolled out of bed and dressed in the clothes I’d arrived in that first day. If I hurried I could catch Jember before he left church for the day—he worked all night, and if I didn’t catch him before he went to sleep he would be twice as ornery. At least at church there was a chance he would marginally behave in front of the priests.

I took some money from my hiding place behind the wardrobe and tucked it into the hidden pocket in my satchel. Then it was time to pray that Tom or Emma would give me a ride.

The servants’ quarters had none of the wide-open doors like the rest of the house, none of the sun streaming through large windows like gossamer kissing wood. It was a narrow, low-ceilinged hall. Cold, in the figurative sense as well as literal. The doors of vacant rooms locked on either side of me, like tombs. I was thankful that voices drifted from the only open door—part of me had been afraid I’d have to search the whole house for them.

“Why can’t we just go?” Emma said. “We have enough money saved to get back to London, and there are plenty of friends we could stay with while we get settled with new jobs.”

“A few more weeks and we’ll have enough to make a life of our own.”

“At what cost?”

I stood in the doorway, but they weren’t looking in my direction, or else I was just better at blending into the scenery than I thought.

Tom raked his hand through his hair. “Give Andromeda time, I’m sure she’ll—”

“We’re out of time, Tom. Edward has vanished, just like the rest of them. All we have is each other.”

I cleared my throat. The pair turned to me quickly, Emma nearly leaping out of her skin.

“Good morning,” I said.

When I tried to look at Emma she turned away to adjust the blanket on the bed.

Tom sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “What can we do for you, Andromeda?”

“Would you be able to drive me into the city?”

Emma jerked around, her face dropping as if gravity had given up on it. “You’re not leaving us, are you?”

I tried to give her a reassuring smile, but I’m not so sure how convincing it was. I wasn’t looking forward to this trip any more than she was to me leaving the house. “Just have to pick up a few things from the market.”

“Sweet Jesus, yes!” Emma grabbed a small purse from the side table. “I need an escape from this treacherous place.”