His head throbbed as though it would split apart.
Fabian woke on the cold stone floor, a hangover-like nausea surging up his throat.
Bracing himself against the wall, he barely managed to stand. His memories of last night were a jumble of fragments.
Frenzy, desire, and... utter shame.
He looked around his room. The wardrobe had been pushed aside, exposing the ugly crawl hole behind it.
His heart sank.
He rushed out of the room. The corridor was a mess.
Philip... Elmsworth... everyone seemed off, yet everyone pretended nothing was wrong.
Especially Connor and the other man. Weren't they walking... a little too close together?
He hurried across the courtyard toward the stables where the servants and orphans lived.
The tool room door stood open. The children inside were unharmed, merely frightened, huddled together and crying softly.
He was about to breathe a sigh of relief when he remembered something else.
The girl named Lina was missing.
Her bed was empty. Fabian stood rooted to the spot, his hands and feet icy cold.
Clearly, someone had set him up. And there was no need to guess who was responsible. It had to be the Baron of the Gray Marsh Fief.
Fabian staggered back to the church and knelt before the Sun Cross Holy Emblem. Clasping his hands, he began to pray with every ounce of strength he had.
He tried to drive away his panic through devotion, but it was no use.
Dusk fell.
Fabian had just finished evening prayers.
All day, he had swung between self-delusion and overwhelming panic.
Order was slowly returning to the church. Everyone remained tight-lipped about last night's disgrace, allowing his hopes of escaping unscathed to gain the upper hand again.
Perhaps this would all just blow over.
*Perhaps the girl had simply fled out