Map of Fates (The Conspiracy of Us 2)

I’d been in the plush terry-cloth robe for ten minutes, but I hadn’t stopped shivering.

“At first they just said they had to search the boat,” Elodie was explaining. “It wasn’t until we’d talked to them for a while that they told us there had been a vandalism incident at the temple and they’d gotten reports of the suspects being in this area.”

“They were actually police?” My fingernails were a sickly blue, and I tucked my hands under my legs. “It was all because of that brick?”

“It looks that way,” Elodie said. “But we thought they were—”

“So did we,” Stellan said. “And we almost drowned while you asked them which town has the best shellfish.” After they’d gotten us towels and robes, we’d settled in the lower cabin, where we couldn’t be seen through the windows, just in case.

“What happened?” Colette leaned forward, her rosebud mouth a perfect circle of shock. She’d been flitting around the boat like an agitated bird, tucking extra blankets around my legs, trying to get me to eat, making a pot of tea, then another when I said I didn’t like peppermint, even though I really didn’t want anything at all. Now she was sitting next to Stellan, bandaging the scrape on his shoulder.

Stellan met my eyes across the table. I’d felt nothing but numb since we got out of the water, but I suddenly, fiercely wanted to keep what happened between us. I didn’t want Elodie declaring that we’d finally found an excuse to make out. I didn’t want Jack to be jealous and have to pretend he wasn’t. I didn’t want to try to describe what it was like to really, not-exaggerating almost die and have Stellan save my life in a manner so intimate, I actually felt embarrassed looking at him now.

Stellan’s lips parted, and he looked away. “We didn’t drown after all,” he said simply. He took the bandage from Colette and stood up. Her hands dropped to her lap and she started to get up after him, but he turned away without noticing. “And now I’m going to go take a really hot shower. Turns out the Mediterranean is still vraiment cold in June.”

Colette sat back down awkwardly, and I leaned back, only to realize I’d been tucked under Jack’s warm arm the whole time. He wrapped me up in the blanket, pulling me to his chest, and I watched over his shoulder as Stellan disappeared down the hallway.

CHAPTER 16

Elodie and Colette were still sleeping when I woke up the next morning. The last thing I remembered was Colette making me eat soup while I sat in a nest of blankets on her bed. I must have passed out, because I woke up to find the covers tucked around me and Colette and Elodie sharing the next bed over. Two more days, was my first thought. The Saxons had left Beijing yesterday, were passing through London today, then headed to DC. I had two more days until the Circle marriage countdown clock ran out.

I pulled on a sweatshirt and slipped out of the room. Stellan was sitting on one of the bar stools.

He looked up when I came onto the deck, and set a little cup of espresso on the bar. A violent wave of unexpected emotion crashed over me, so strong I stopped still.

I was drowning last night. I was drowning and he saved my life, but all I could think of now was what had happened right after.

We could just have easily have swum straight to the swim ladder. I would have thanked Stellan, then cried on Jack’s shoulder. Stellan would have joked about having to save me and ribbed Elodie and Colette for almost killing the purple-eyed girl.

That would have been what I’d expected. What actually happened wasn’t.

Stellan broke the eye contact I wasn’t able to break and took a sip of his coffee. “I was surprised to see Bishop all alone in his bed. I expected a glad you’re not dead make-out session keeping me awake all night.”

The spell holding me in place broke.

“Good morning to you, too,” I said, my voice still scratchy and throat aching. I leaned on the end of the bar. Obviously any awkwardness was coming from me, and he thought nothing of it. That was a relief.

I gazed out over the bay. It looked so unthreatening this morning, the pinks and yellows of the sunrise glinting off the water.

“The training thing,” I said, but stopped myself. I didn’t realize I was going to say that. It made sense, though. Two days. If we couldn’t solve the clues, maybe I really would have to confront the Order directly. Despite any doubts I might have had yesterday, I wasn’t wrong. No matter how much Jack disapproved, I knew I’d do whatever it took to save my mom, even if it was dangerous. We were getting into last-resort territory.

Stellan’s face shifted into an infuriatingly triumphant smile. “What happened to the thanks but no thanks of twenty-four hours ago?”

I felt my face blaze with annoyance, and maybe a little embarrassment. I turned to go. “Never mind. I’ll practice by myself.”

“Hey.” Stellan reached out, his hand on my upper arm. “I didn’t say no.”

I looked down at his hand, and he removed it. “It’s not that Jack is a bad teacher.” I looked over my shoulder toward the bedrooms, trying not to feel guilty.

Stellan shrugged and looked down at his own bare feet. “Give me a second.”

I barely had time to put on shoes and retrieve my knife before he reappeared. I tucked the knife into the front pocket of my sweatshirt, and Stellan rooted through the fridge.

“Bringing breakfast?” I asked.

He pulled out a paper-wrapped package. “No,” he said simply, cocking his head toward the end of the docks. “There’s a hidden cove down on the beach. Come on.”

At this time of morning, the only people we saw were a couple swimmers far out at sea, bright yellow and white swim caps bobbing along in the turquoise water, and a few early risers having breakfast on their boats’ sundecks. I pulled a baseball cap low over my eyes, anyway.

The cove was tucked away on the far end of the beach, white sand stretching to the foot of a rocky, brush-covered cliff. We had to take our shoes off and wade through the shallow water to slip past a fall of dark boulders, and when we got there, Stellan was right—we were completely hidden from the walkway and the rest of the shoreline. The gentle lapping of the waves echoed off the rocks all around, completing the illusion that we were shut off from the world.