Page 50 of Sinful

I stiffened at the reminder of that horrible evening. The screams… the cries… the blur of light and rain, followed by smashing glass and darkness.

“You saw me that night?” I asked, looking back at him.

“Yes. Through the window.”

“Why didn’t you say anything until now?”

“I guess I only just realized it was you,” he said softly. “Our lives have been entwined all these years. It has to mean something, right? Another sign from the Entity, perhaps.”

I swallowed thickly. “Well… that night was different. I was just a child, and I was very sick. Papa didn’t trust anyone else to take care of me, and he had to leave Alderwood on urgent business, so he took me with him. It was only for an hour or two, and I was with him the whole time.”

Sebastian took a step closer. “You deserve the chance to experience all your dreams, Rose. Not just the bodily urges. The rest too.”

“I don’t know about that,” I said softly, looking down at the floor.

“One night. Think of everything we could do in that time. Montreal is only an hour’s drive across the border. It’s a huge city, just like the cities you’ve always painted. There’s so much to see. So many new foods to experience. There’s art and music, too. We could make a night of it. Fit in everything we can.”

The tip of my tongue darted out to wet my lips. “That all sounds tempting. Very tempting. But really, Sebastian, I can’t,” I replied. “If I was caught leaving here with you… well, it would be bad for both of us. I would face punishment, and you would be banished from the community forever. Then you wouldn’t be able to complete your mother’s notes. And I know how important that is to you.”

A glimmer appeared in his eyes. “If the only thing stopping you from saying yes is the fear of being caught, then you really don’t need to stop yourself. I have a plan. Ialwayshave a plan.”

“What do you mean?” I asked, forehead creasing.

“That’s why I asked you about the tunnels,” he said. “We’d leave separately, through different exits. After Rite of Communion, I can tell your father that I need to return to Pinecrest Falls for a day to take care of some business there. Then I’ll exit through the front gate and return tomorrow the same way. That way, the watchmen will see me leave and return totally alone.”

“And I would go through the tunnel?”

“Yes. You can sneak out tonight, and I’ll meet you on the other side of the fence, right near that tree where you saw me in your vision,” he said. He paused and rubbed his chin. “You know… that could be why the Entity showed me standing there. It may have been a sign that this would happen.”

I bit my bottom lip, brows knitting. It hadn’t even occurred to me that there might be a reason my vision occurred in that specific spot beyond the boundary fence.

“You won’t get caught or punished, Rose,” Sebastian went on. “We’ll spend the whole night together, exploring and experiencing everything the outside world has to offer, and then I’ll bring you back to the tunnel entrance at dawn. Then you can sneak back home. Even if your father happens to notice you were gone all those hours, you can just say you couldn’t sleep and decided to take a walk in the woods.”

I nodded slowly. “That would work. I often go for long walks.”

“Exactly. And no one will suspect I had anything to do with it, because as I explained, I’ll leave and return separately at totally different times. So I won’t get into any trouble, and my research won’t be disturbed.”

I still felt nervous and unsure, but Sebastian hadn’t steered me wrong yet. His presence in my life had been nothing but a gift so far, so it would be rash and ignorant of me to reproach him now. It would be like slapping the Entity right in the face, mere weeks before I met him.

Oh, no.I couldn’t do that.

I drew in a deep breath, lifted my chin, and locked eyes with Sebastian. “One night outside,” I said. “Just one.”

“Of course.” He smiled reassuringly, warmth and affection flickering in his eyes. “Just one.”

13

Rose

“Rosamund, is everything all right?”My father peered at me across the table, one brow quizzically raised. “You’ve barely touched your dinner. You hardly ate anything at the communion feast earlier, either.”

I looked him right in the eyes, hoping the guilt wasn’t written all over my face. “I’m okay, Papa. Just tired. I haven’t been sleeping well lately.”

“You’ve been tired a lot lately.” His eyes narrowed ever-so-slightly. “What’s been keeping you up all these nights?”

I could hardly say it was Sebastian, so I swallowed hard and lied. “It’s the Tetrad.”

He put his spoon down and nodded slowly. “Ah. Of course. I should’ve known. It’s coming up fast, isn’t it? Your ritual date?”

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