Chapter 29
When a royal guard came searching for August, Lottie offered her prepared excuse, and the guard accepted it. She didn’t give it any further thought until the next afternoon, when her mother shoved into her bedchambers, a crease carved across her usually flawless brow.
“Where is your brother?”
Lottie set her book aside, annoyed at the forceful entrance. She leaned back in her chair and folded her arms.
“Have you checked his chambers?”
August was a late sleeper, especially after a long night out.
“The guards have been searching the castle since last night to no avail. Where is he?”
Lottie’s stomach plummeted. August was always home before sunrise. He wouldn’t stay out and risk being caught.
Her gaze flicked briefly to the guard by the door—Sebastian, of course.
“I don’t know,” Lottie answered.
Her mother’s face darkened. “I have waited two months for this to be ready. I let all your little lies slide, let Augustus hide wherever he’s found refuge in the castle. But this is too important. I will only ask one more time. Where is he?”
“I’m telling you the truth. I don’t know where he is.”
Something must have happened. It was the only explanation. The thought sent a flutter of panic through her. She’d almost lost him once. She watched a stranger wrench him away from their guards, drag him further and further from her while she cried out helplessly for someone to help him.
They had been lucky that night. Why had she been so eager to take him out of the safety of the castle again? He hadn’t wanted to, but she pushed. It was her job to keep him safe.
She was already on her feet, wrapping a shawl around her shoulders when her mother said, “Find him.”
Lottie assumed the order was meant for her. But Sebastian responded.
“Yes, Mo Aesran.”
He stepped forward and purposefully removed one of his gloves, which was strange, but Lottie didn’t wait around to see why. She had to find August.
She bolted past the guard, her skirt billowing behind her as she hurried down the staircase and out into the gardens. It wasn’t until she was outside the castle walls that Lottie realized she didn’t know where he spent his nights out. He didn’t offer many details, and she didn’t press him on it.
She should’ve.
How was she supposed to find him?
She lingered for a moment, thinking through her options. She could go to the City Watch. Order them to help her track him down.
No, that was a terrible idea. Her mother would be livid if word got out that he was missing.
She wrung her hands and searched the street. The sun was low in the sky, and the grand townhomes of the Crestwell District were alive, the nobility buzzing with the energy of the impending evening.
The night market vendors would be setting up soon.
Lottie may not know where August spent his time, but she knew with whom he spent it. And Felix Connolly didn’t seem like the type of boy who went unnoticed.
She could ask around. Someone would know where to find him.