Page 161 of Blood and Moonlight

“The prisons in the capital would be a good place to start,” says Remi. “Lutecia is huge.”

Oudin nods. “That’s what I was thinking. If not the gaols, then the beggars’ hospitals should have someone suitable.”

The next three nails are placed without comment. “Was there something else?” I finally ask.

Oudin sighs and stands upright. “You know none of this was your fault, right?”

Part of me will always feel responsible, but I nod.

He tosses the hammer on the lid of the coffin, speaking through gritted teeth. “Father blames you for Lambert’s insanity. He also says people associate you with Simon now, and you’ll always remind them of him. It’s really his own association. Collis will move on.”

I shrug. “I have more important things to worry about than what people think.”

Like magick and my Selenae family and repairing the damage to the Sanctum.

Oudin shakes his head. “He can’t stand the sight of you, Cat. And he’ll always consider you the biggest risk in keeping the truth about Lambert hidden.”

“So I’ll stay away from him. Remi can show him around the Sanctum when necessary.”

“No, Cat.” Oudin finally looks at me. “That was Father’s third condition for releasing the architect. You have to leave Collis.”

I stand in the shadows on the edge of the open area of the Quarter, watching Selenae dance in the light of the full moon. Weavers and dyers sing on the sides as they work looms and stir pots of moonflower essence. Dozens of moonstones glow from the pool in the center, absorbing the light from above. Gregor spins past, his arm linked with a middle-aged woman’s. His cheerfulness probably has a great deal to do with expecting my arrival, but he hasn’t noticed me yet.

Three days. That’s all I have.

Then I’ve lost the magister, Remi, and the Sanctum. Mistress la Fontaine and Marguerite. The family I’d only just begun to know.

Both Oudin and Remi assured me I could come back someday, when the comte was dead. He’s past fifty, so theoretically that might not be very long. Or it could be twenty years. He could outlive Magister Thomas.

“Cat?” calls a soft voice behind me.

I turn to see Simon walking toward me, arms outstretched to feel along the wall in the dark. He trips on the uneven street, and I step back to guide him to a place beside me. The dark Selenae outfit he wears hangs on his lanky frame and exposes his wrists with too-short sleeves. Water drips from his hair onto his shoulders. “I guess you’ve had a bath?” I ask.

He ducks his head. “Your cousin said the dust and bird droppings would choke anyone who came within ten yards.”

“She’s right,” I agree.

Simon looks over the bustling plaza. “Do you want to join them?”

“Not yet. We should probably talk.” I step farther away from the moonlight. “Have you decided where you’ll go?”

He shakes his head. “Mesanus is the only other town I know, but it’s probably the first place they’ll look for me.”

I nod. “We have to decide soon, though.”

“We?” Simon wrinkles his forehead.

I explain the terms of Oudin and the comte’s agreement and my banishment.

Simon exhales slowly. “Oh, Cat, I’m so sorry. I know what it’s like to lose your home and family.” He takes my hand. “Does anyone else know yet?”

“Remi does. He’s probably telling Magister Thomas right now.” As much as I wanted to see him tonight, I know he’ll understand why I’m honoring my promise to Gregor. The first thing the architect will want to do is take a bath and sleep in his own bed anyway. I clear my throat. “I realize we don’t know each other that well, but I was thinking we would be better off together than alone.”

“That’s difficult to argue with,” he says, rubbing his thumb over the back of my hand. “And I’ll be glad for your company. Even if it’s not the way I wanted any of this to happen.”

“Nor I.”

“Catrin.” My uncle stops in the moonlight several feet away. “Are you coming?”