“I hope you told him you’re not motivated by money.”
“That’s exactly what I said.”
“You are an amazing woman, Quenby.”
She shook her head. “Not so much. Not after you get to know me.”
He reached for her other hand. “I think I know you pretty well.”
“There’s much that is still unbeknownst to you,” she said, trying to make a joke, lighten the intensity in his eyes, but he didn’t laugh.
“You are worth fighting for.” He stepped closer. “You and I both know I’m far from perfect, but I would like the opportunity to love you as you should be loved.”
She swallowed hard, basking in his words. “I—” she started, faltering. If only she could ride on the breeze, travel far away from here. “You’re using your superpowers again.”
“Which power is that?” he asked.
“Manipulation.”
“That’s not a superpower.” He stepped back. “And I’m not trying to manipulate you.”
Disappointment laced his words as if she were accusing him of the worst sort of crime. Now he would surely run.
“I’m being completely honest with you,” he said, still holding her hands though he was losing grip.
Could she do the same? Be completely honest with him?
Daniel had spent his whole life trying to keep his promise to return to Brigitte, and it seemed as if Lucas kept his promises too. He’d certainly kept his word with her. Perhaps she could learn again to trust the people who wanted what was best for her.
Perhaps she could love him in return.
“Lucas,” she started again, taking a deep breath.
“I’m not going to leave you, Quenby.”
Before she replied, Mrs. Hough called out to them from the patio. Quenby stepped away.
Lucas looked at Quenby a moment longer and then called over his shoulder, “We’re out here.”
“Oh, good.” She hurried forward, finding them by the pool. “You said Adler House, didn’t you?”
“That’s correct,” Lucas said.
“The provost at a secondary school in Yorkshire said some of his best students come from there.”
“Students?” Quenby asked, her voice a strange squeak.
Mrs. Hough shrugged. “He didn’t expound, but he gave me the address.”
“Thanks, Mum,” Lucas said.
She glanced between them. “I’ll leave you alone, then,” she said, backing away.
But the magic was already gone.
Adler House was hidden among the dales of North Yorkshire. It was a place, Quenby guessed, where knights triumphed over evil. A place where princesses could fly.
Like Breydon Court, iron gates blocked the lane into the property, but there was no intercom button to press. And a For Sale sign hung crooked from one of the gates. Quenby feared that once again, Brigitte had slipped away.
An unkempt hedgerow, made of yew, extended from the gates, and the limbs of several large trees dangled over it. Quenby eyed the branches. “Should we climb it?”
“You’re not climbing anything,” Lucas said as he stepped out of the rented BMW. He hurried around the car to open her door.
She stood up beside him. “My head feels fine now.”
“Thanks to the ibuprofen.”
Quenby lifted her fingers to her lips, glancing toward one of the trees. “Listen.”
Someone giggled, up under the cover of leaves, and Lucas stepped toward the hedge. “It sounds like a monkey.”
“Hello,” Quenby called out.
A boy somersaulted over the lowest branch like an acrobat and dangled off it from his knees, his head hanging precariously close to the ground. Quenby held her breath as he flipped like the wakeboarder back in Florida. Thankfully, he landed on his feet as well.
“Bravo,” Quenby said with a clap, stepping toward the tree.
He held out his hand to shake hers. “I’m Elias.”
“I’m Quenby, and this is Lucas.”
The boy didn’t acknowledge Lucas.
“Do you live in Adler House?” Quenby asked.
He studied her face as if he was trying to decipher her words.
The curtain of leaves parted again, and a girl with blonde pigtails stuck her head out between them. “He doesn’t know much English.”
Quenby smiled at her. “We’re looking for the woman who owns Adler House.”
“Ms. Hannah?”
Her pulse raced. In her interview with Hannah Dayne, the woman had never mentioned that she actually cared for children in her house. “Yes, is she here?”
“She’s always here.” The girl dropped to the ground and shook her hand like Elias had done. “I’m Maya, from Syria.”
“It’s very nice to meet you, Maya. How long have you been in England?”
“A year and four days. Ms. Hannah said I could stay here as long as I’d like.”
Quenby pointed back toward Lucas. “My friend and I are trying to find a girl who was lost a long time ago.”
The girl said something to Elias in another language. Then he jumped up and grasped the bottom branch of the tree, weighing it down. He pointed at Quenby and then at the tree. “Come.”
“Wait a minute.” Lucas moved forward. “The doctor said—”