Mara removed a metal pin from the hem of her gown.
Lucian watched her.
“You carry lock picks in formal clothing?”
“I carry whatever Sofia sews into it.”
“You knew?”
“I check dresses before wearing them.”
The lock opened.
They stepped onto the walkway.
Halfway across, lights appeared behind them.
Three armed men entered the cave.
Lucian pushed Mara behind a stone column.
Gunfire struck the railing.
Lucian returned two shots.
One attacker fell.
The others advanced.
Mara saw a control wheel mounted beside the wall.
A sign above it read:
EMERGENCY FLOOD GATE.
She ran toward it.
Lucian shouted her name.
Mara turned the wheel.
A gate opened beneath the cave entrance.
Seawater exploded through the lower tunnel.
The surge knocked the two men from the walkway.
One disappeared into the darkness.
The other caught the railing and shouted.
Mara stared at his hand.
Lucian aimed at him.
“Don’t,” she said.
“He tried to kill you.”
“He’s unarmed.”
The man’s weapon had vanished into the water.
Lucian lowered his gun.
Mara found a rescue rope and threw it.
The attacker looked confused.
“Take it,” she ordered.
He grabbed the rope.
Lucian helped pull him onto the stone ledge.
The man lay coughing.
Mara knelt.
“Who is with Celestine?”
He looked at Lucian, then at the cylinder.
“Everyone,” he whispered.
“That is not an answer.”
“Judge Shaw. Commissioner Dane. Police Commander Voss. Half the harbor board.”
“How many are inside?”
“Eleven now.”
“Where is Celestine?”
“The lantern room.”
“Why?”
“She brought a transmitter. She plans to destroy the cylinder after confirming what is inside.”
Lucian leaned against the wall.
“She wants the recordings.”
The man nodded.
“She has controlled the Circle for thirty years. If those voices become public, every surviving member will turn against her.”
Sirens sounded faintly beyond the storm.
Mara listened.
Marine patrol.
Her signal had been heard.
The wounded attacker heard it too.
“Celestine has police units on her payroll,” he said. “You don’t know which boats are hers.”
Lucian removed his phone.
“No signal beneath the tower.”
Mara looked at the brass cylinder.
“What is actually inside?”
“Probably film or magnetic wire,” Lucian said. “My father used both.”
“Can Celestine play it here?”
“There is an old maritime transmitter in the lantern room.”
Mara understood.
“If we connect the recording to the transmitter, we could broadcast it.”
“Across the emergency channel.”
“To every boat answering the distress signal.”
Lucian shook his head.
“You would have to return through the tower.”
“Yes.”
“No.”
“You can barely stand.”
“That does not make your plan intelligent.”
“It makes it necessary.”
Mara took his face between her hands.
The gesture silenced him.
“For twenty-seven years, my mother protected this secret because she believed one day someone would have the courage to use it. Your father died trying to expose the Circle. We are not carrying his evidence into another hiding place.”
Lucian’s gaze searched hers.
“You may die.”
“So may you.”
“That is different.”
“Only to you.”
He closed his eyes briefly.
When he opened them, the cold ruler of Greyhaven was gone.
There was only a wounded man who had spent his life believing love was another name for vulnerability.
“Mara,” he said, “the first time I kissed you, it was a lie.”
“I know.”
“If we leave this island—”
“When.”
“When we leave this island, I would like the chance to correct that.”
Her heartbeat stumbled.
“You choose terrible moments for honesty.”
“I have limited experience.”
“That is obvious.”
She pressed her forehead against his.
“Stay alive long enough to learn.”
CHAPTER SIX
They returned to the underground chamber through a drainage corridor.
Adrian was gone.
A trail of blood led toward the ladder.
Lucian reloaded his weapon.
“He warned them.”
“Or he changed his mind.”
“You do not know him.”
“You didn’t know he was betraying you.”
The words were harsh, but Lucian did not deny them.
They climbed into the tower.
The lower floor was empty.
Mara hid the brass cylinder beneath the remains of her gown’s outer skirt. Lucian leaned on the wall, breathing through pain.
“We need a distraction,” he said.
Mara looked at the bell mechanism.
“Can the main weight be released?”
“Yes.”
“What happens?”
“The bell rings continuously until the weight reaches the lower shaft.”
“How loud?”
Lucian understood.
“Loud enough.”
They released the brake.
The enormous bell began to strike.
The tower shook.
The sound was violent inside the enclosed stone walls.
Men shouted above.
Lucian and Mara moved upward as the bell continued.
On the second level, they found one of Lucian’s guards unconscious but alive.