“You didn’t tell him, did you?”
“Of course not,” she lied.
Relief flooded his expression, erasing half the lines on his face. “Good. Good…”
He turned her away from the carriage house and ushered her into the manor. As the glass doors closed behind her, Melody felt slightly claustrophobic again.
“What happened to you last night?” she asked. “You were supposed to come find me. We were supposed to—”
“I did,” he jumped in. “I went to your room but the door was locked. I figured you were sleeping. Still not feeling well, after being out in the gardens.”
“Eric I was locked in!” she explained. “Someone took my key. They locked the door and I ended up climbing out the window and—”
“What?”
“And I fell…”
His face registered pure shock. As he stood there staring, she seized the opportunity to lock eyes with him.
Images formed almost instantly; places, people, feelings, ideas. All of it, flashing through her mind, running full tilt at what felt like a million miles an hour. Again, the sheer velocity astonished her. The speed and volume at which things came made it almost impossible to focus.
It’s all the same…
/> That’s the first impression she got. That everything she was seeing from Eric was somehow pre-programmed, or looped on re-run. It was all moving too fast to perceive though. She could only get the smallest bits. The tiniest pieces…
Fear. Animosity. Resentment.
Not toward her though. Toward others. Strong, however. A general unease.
Grief. Disheartenment.
There was nothing concrete to grab onto. No particular memory or stream of consciousness Melody could pick apart, to gain any insight. Everything was too fast. Too…
Often.
She blinked, breaking the connection. Eric’s eyes remained crossed for a second, almost comically, and then he rubbed at his head with one hand.
“Wait… what?” he said. He looked utterly confused now.
“I was telling you about how I fell. From the ledge, outside the window of my room.”
He gasped as if hearing it for the first time. “And you’re alright?”
“Yes.”
Eric squinted down at her, as if suddenly suspicious. His dark brows knitted together again. He tilted his head…
Better change the subject.
“What did you do last night?” she asked forcefully. “Did you discover anything on your own?”
“Yes, actually.”
“Anything useful?”
“Well I know where we can find Lady Neveux,” he said quickly.
He backpedals when put on the defense, thought Melody. Good to know.