“Then we need to get there as soon as possible.”
“But with the full-moon restriction that gives us only a month at best.”
“I fear our time is much more limited,” Amon said after glancing briefly at the sky. “By my calculations we have approximately one week.” He took hold of my hand again and guided me expertly out of the park.
The honking of horns grew louder and we were soon surrounded by people. If I was going to escape it would have to be now. The thing was, I wasn’t sure I wanted to. Yes, my emotions were erratic. Yes, Amon was using me like an energy bar. Yes, he was an Egyptian mummy come to life. But I couldn’t deny that I’d never felt more…alive in all of my seventeen years than I had in the past twenty-four hours.
Amon stopped in front of the horse-drawn carriages, smiled widely, and raised his eyebrows.
“Sorry, Spartacus, they only travel around inside the park,” I explained.
He sighed. “It is probably for the best anyway. Those horses look fat and lazy. It is likely they do not have the stamina for the speed I wish.”
“Hey!” an eavesdropping coachman protested. Ignoring the carriage driver, Amon spotted a cab and stepped boldly in front of it, holding his hands up in a commanding gesture, despite the fact that the off-duty light was on. “Stop, golden chariot!” he shouted.
Amon headed around to the driver’s side and spoke with him for a moment, ignoring the honking and rude gestures coming from the other drivers. Then he indicated I should come forward.
The driver shot out of the taxi and opened the door for me. “Please make yourself comfortable, miss. I’ll have you two to the airport in record time.” Amon handed my bag to the driver.
I hesitated by the open door. Lifting my eyes, I found Amon holding out his hand as he watched me and I wondered if he was using his power to read my mind.
“Will you come with me, Lily?”
Not “You will come,” or “Come with me,” but “Will you come?”
Amon was giving me a choice. Which I wasn’t sure was exactly the case, but it was a nice gesture. This was the moment. I had, if not all the facts, enough details to make an informed decision. Amon still had the power to control me and he was desperate enough to force me to do his bidding, but at the same time, he was offering me a precious taste of free agency.
I knew I was a coward—a privileged, self-deluded, spineless coward who preferred sitting in her pretty little mansion, in her prim little room, placating her preppy fake friends, and all the while fooling herself into believing that she was as free-spirited as the people she drew in her notebook.
But, I wasn’t. And right now, looking into Amon’s eyes, I was panicked. Not only because what he was asking me to do was way, way beyond my comfort zone, but also because I was deathly frightened that this adventure might be my one and only opportunity to break out. To choose something different. To be someone different. It was all too easy to picture my life five years in the future.
A gritty determination filled me. I wasn’t sure if it was Amon’s influence or if a switch in my mind had finally been flipped, but suddenly I wanted to go. I wanted to jump off a cliff. Leap from a plane. Grab the opportunity, as crazy as it was, to do and see things nobody else could.
Though my hand shook, I slid it into Amon’s and said, “Let’s go.” Taking a deep breath, I released all my reservations, feeling a sense of pride that I’d had the courage to say yes. Now I just had to get into the cab before my second thoughts became overwhelming.
Gifting me with a sunshine smile, Amon pulled me close and whispered in my ear, “You are braver than you think. Truly, you do have the heart of a sphinx.”