Page 66 of Wynter's Bite

“Why not?” she replied, sighing in relief as she found the right key. “You saved me. I am simply returning the favor.”

When she unlocked the shackles, Justus yanked his wrists from the restraints and pulled her into his arms. “I thought I’d never see you again. But it’s still daylight. I’m trapped here. You should leave before Ridley comes down.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Bethany said, running a hand through his hair. “I’ve brought a trunk for you to hide in and a wagon to carry you.”

“A trunk?” Justus laughed as they walked out of the cell. “Well, that will have to do, I suppose.”

When they left the cell, the vampire Bethany had shot glared at them, his chest wound already healing. “You’ll never make it to Cornwall,” he snarled between gasps of pain. “And His Lordship will have you begging for death long before he grants your wish.”

Bethany and Justus ignored him and headed to the trunk, quickly removing the stones before Justus climbed in and she secured the clasps. Ames tried to protest helping her carry Justus, but Bethany convinced him with the blunderbuss.

“I’ll have to report this to the constable,” he huffed.

Justus knocked on the lid of the trunk, so Bethany opened it. “Your master would not appreciate the involvement of the law in his affairs. Of this, I swear. You would do better to give notice and find a master with less dangerous proclivities. And speaking of...” He fixed the elderly footman with his gaze. “You will help her carry this trunk and you will not tell anyone what happened down here. In fact, you will forget this whole ordeal as soon as your task is finished.”

“I will forget,” Ames repeated dully.

“Very good,” Justus said and closed himself back in the trunk.

With Bethany’s thin arms and Ames’s palsy, their progress with the trunk was slow and cumbersome. The vampire guard cursed behind them and Bethany breathed a sigh of relief as they closed the door to the hidden dungeon, silencing that vengeful voice and entering the safety of a shaft of sunlight bathing the cellar stairs. She hoped the crate was sealed tight and would not let any light in to burn Justus.

The servants gave them wide-eyed looks when they emerged, but at Ames’s quick shake of his head, they went back to their duties.

Once the trunk was loaded onto the cart, Bethany turned to Ames. “I truly am sorry I had to put you through such a disagreeable ordeal, but please believe me when I tell you that the man you helped me save was innocent of any crime.”

The old footman regarded her with a skeptical frown. “I do hope so, Miss, but either way, I’ll be glad to see the back of you.” With that he shambled back to the manor.

At first, the mule refused to move, but with some agitated coaxing, they were at last on their way.

After five long plodding miles, Bethany’s neck ached from craning around to look for pursuers. A deep ache throbbed in her throat, spreading to her chest, a maddening need for something, but aside from freedom, she didn’t know what.

She didn’t breathe again until they arrived in the next county.

Chapter Twenty-six

Justus sucked in a gulp of air as Bethany opened the trunk. Her face, illuminated by a sliver of moonlight, was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. “My dashing rescuer.” He took her hand. “I owe you my life. How far have we gone?”

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