Lily should have realized where DeBruzkya would take them. That like the spider he was, he would take them to his lair where he would have complete control and the freedom to do with them as he pleased. But her mind was so cluttered with emotion she wasn’t thinking clearly. She could handle becoming a prisoner. But the thought of DeBruzkya hurting Jack was too much to bear. As the soldiers had marched them through the forest toward the Veisweimar Castle, she decided she would do anything—including giving up her own life—to keep him safe.
The castle was like something out of a medieval movie replete with a moat, gargoyles and a drawbridge. The place was huge and surrounded by high stone walls. It had been built during medieval times, then fell to ruin and was swallowed by the forest. During World War II, the Nazis had transformed it into a prison. After the war, it had once again fallen to ruin. Lily had never imagined DeBruzkya transforming the place into a modern-day fortress.
The soldier behind her snapped something in Rebelian and prodded her between the shoulder blades with the muzzle of his gun. Lily stepped onto the drawbridge, shuddering at the sight of the black water below. Her arms ached from carrying Jack for so long. She was glad her son had been given a sedative; she didn’t know how these hardened men would react to a crying baby. In the back of her mind, she wondered how much longer the drug would last.
The soldiers marched her into a large courtyard. Even though it was afternoon, it had grown dark. Black clouds roiled in the sky to the north, and she knew the storms would arrive soon. Before her, the tall doors of the castle yawned, like a monster with great jaws about to devour them.
“Walk!” the man behind her shouted.
Lily snapped a very American expletive at him. Several of the soldiers laughed, but the word earned her a hard shove.
She hadn’t seen DeBruzkya since the scene in the hospital. Belatedly she realized a man of his stature would never march with his soldiers. He would travel by jeep. Chances were, he was already here.
She thought of Robert and closed her eyes against the jab of pain. She knew he would come for her. Knew he would search for her and Jack—or die trying. She’d told him about the Veisweimar Castle, so he would know where to look. If the soldiers found him, she knew DeBruzkya would have no mercy.
The thought tore her up inside. She loved him. He was kind and gentle and would be the perfect father for Jack. Yet Lily had let him go. She’d chosen the solitary life of an underground rebel leader. And for what? she asked herself.
But Lily knew the answer. She’d spent her entire life alone and unloved. Shuffled from one foster home to another. It had hurt knowing there wasn’t a soul on this earth who’d loved her. But Lily had loved. She’d loved with the purity of heart of the child she’d been. She’d fallen in love with her prospective parents and siblings. Their backyards with swing sets and trees and little black pups. Still, they’d let her go. She was too old. Too strong-willed. And so they’d deserted her, they’d walked away, filling her young heart with the agony of the unwanted.
That night in the pub, when she’d been badly injured and lying amid the debris, she’d felt that same pain. The pain of knowing someone she’d loved had deserted her.
Only he hadn’t.
Lily closed her eyes against the pain that knowledge brought her. Regret squeezed her heart. She’d made so many mistakes, she couldn’t begin to correct them. She wouldn’t even know where to begin. God, she’d been such a fool.
“Stay here,” one of the men ordered her.
Except for the two soldiers who had been assigned to guard her, the men dispersed in the courtyard. The two men accompanied her into the grand foyer. Lily couldn’t believe the opulence of the old castle. Flickering gas lamps mounted on the walls lighted the room. High ceilings lent the place a cavernous feel. The air was cool and slightly damp, but she could smell the crisp scent of eucalyptus in the air.
A young woman with crystal-blue eyes, clad in traditional Rebelian garb, approached them. She couldn’t have been much over twenty years old. Lily stared at her, wondering what role she played and how she fit into DeBruzkya’s game plan.
“General DeBruzkya would like her taken to the guest suite adjacent his,” she said in Rebelian, then glanced at Lily. “The child comes with me.”
“No.” Breaking free of the guard, Lily stepped back, clutching Jack to her chest. “No!”
“Please,” the young woman said softly. “It is General DeBruzkya’s wish. I am only going to bathe him and allow you time to prepare for dinner.”
The words barely registered in Lily’s mind. “He stays with me.”
The young woman looked over at the soldier. “I can assure you, Madame Scott, you and your son have nothing to fear from me.” She glanced quickly over her shoulder, then whispered in English. “You have much to fear from the general. Please, do as I say.”
Lily heard the words. She saw the sincerity in the young woman’s eyes. But she couldn’t bring herself to part with Jack. She would rather they cut off a piece of her flesh than take her child away. “Don’t take him,” she heard herself say.