Page 49 of To Steal the Sun
He bent to kiss the tear off her cheek. “Charlotte, you made a mistake, but it was an understandable one. I forgave you immediately. And look what you’ve managed since! I never thought you could actually find a way to come here. But you’re not only here, you have the whole kingdom in open rebellion.”
Charlotte gave a watery chuckle. “I definitely can’t take credit for that.”
Henry smiled down at her. “Maybe not, but it does seem like we can be of some help. So maybe we’re right where we’re supposed to be?” He sighed, his arm around her tightening. “I’m the one who never properly apologized for involving you in all this to begin with. I married you without telling you the truth, knowing I was caught up in an enchantment worked by a dangerous woman. You were wronged by me more than I ever was by you.”
Charlotte shook her head stubbornly. “Now that I know everything, if I had my choice again, I would still marry you in a heartbeat. You are worth every moment of pain.”
“I had no idea how well my heart picked when I saw you in the woods,” he murmured before lowering his mouth to hers.
Charlotte returned the kiss eagerly. Her husband felt utterly familiar—home in a way no place had ever been—but this part was still new. Feeling his arms around her, his chest firm against hers, his mouth moving on hers was exquisite and wondrous and almost too much.
When he pulled back, she made a soft sound of protest, and he groaned and almost pulled her close again. But he stopped with his mouth a whisper from hers.
“Don’t we have some people to save?” he whispered.
Charlotte squeaked, memory rushing back as her cheeks flushed.
“One day soon,” Henry said with a grin, “I’m going to find a castle in the woods where the two of us can be alone together without any bears. But for now, I think we have a kingdom to help save.”
“I’d like to find Gwen, if we can,” Charlotte said. “But the queen will have to bring her to the ceremony, at least. She’s too important to Celandine’s plans for her to do anything too drastic. So it’s probably more important for us to find the rebels before she decides to start executing people.”
“Do you have any idea where they’re being kept?” he asked, stepping away from her, all business.
She sighed softly at the cold air between them before turning her mind to the job ahead.
“Unfortunately, no,” she said. “But this palace is just like your castle. You spent much more time roaming around it than I did—all those days as a bear before I arrived. Were you able to tell just from the layout and position of the rooms what they were supposed to be for? Could you guess where a large group of people might be kept?”
Henry frowned. “I could guess, but that wouldn’t mean I was right.”
“At this point, an educated guess is better than wandering around blindly and hoping we trip over them.”
Henry winced. “There’s really no one else who could help them?”
“That would lead us back to finding Gwen first. Do you have any idea where she’s being kept?”
“Unfortunately, I don’t know that either. They might even be together.”
Charlotte tried not to let panic overwhelm her. She had been so certain that if she could just find Henry, the solution would be simple. Now she wondered how much of it had been her own emotions talking.
Henry instantly picked up on her mood. “Don’t worry,” he said sounding more confident than he could possibly feel. “We’ll find them. The two of us together can manage anything.”
Even though she knew the words were only meant to bolster her confidence, somehow they worked.
“What about a guard hall or…or barracks or something? Do you remember anywhere that looked like it could have been that?”
His eyes brightened. “Actually, yes! There was a small wing joined to the rest of the building by only a single door. I noticed that some of the rooms had brackets in the walls that looked like they were intended for bunks.”
“We should start there,” Charlotte suggested, grateful to have somewhere to begin. “Even if they’re not there, we might manage to overhear something or follow some guards to their prisoners.”
She didn’t mention the difficulty of getting into the guards’ barracks without being seen. The job already felt overwhelming, so they should tackle one thing at a time.
Henry nodded and took her hand, winding his fingers through hers as he led her toward the door. She looked down at their joined hands, a smile stealing up her face despite the circumstances. Another thing they couldn’t do before.
When Henry stepped out into the corridor, he drew a deep breath as if the air was fresh and clear instead of just like the air inside his chamber. How many hours had he spent staring at that door, wishing he could walk through it?
He pulled her to their left, but she froze, pulling back against him. Tugging her hand free, she whispered, “Wait,” and dashed back to the door.
Pulling the key out of her pocket, she locked the door behind them. Henry watched her, confused.