of obtaining the queen’s favor, my father has removed all threats from both me and Daciana. He’s even offered me one of our country estates, Blackstone Manor, as a showing of goodwill.”
I stared at him a moment, trying to absorb everything. “How did you manage to solve these issues? I’ve only been gone—”
“For four horrendous days. If the poison wasn’t about to kill me, I swear the thought of losing you was.” He shuddered, then swept me into his arms. “Perhaps we should think of taking a holiday. No murders. No angry families. Just the two of us. And Sir Isaac.”
“Mmm.” I smiled against his lips. “I rather fancy that idea.”
“Where would you like to go next, Miss Wadsworth?”
He placed me back on the ground. The sun gilded the tops of the buildings as it crawled behind them. In the distance I saw the gleaming White City, its magic glittering without darkness at last. If I could go anywhere on earth, there was truly only one place I longed to be in this moment. Somewhere Thomas and I could be alone. Fighting another grin, I turned to him.
“I believe you mentioned something about a country estate. If I recall correctly, you made it sound as if we might send the staff away. Where—”
Thomas swung me into his arms once again before I could finish my sentence. “I was hoping you’d say that, because I cleverly purchased two passages before we left New York. I’d been watching the way you stared at your ring. That determined set to your jaw. You know, that stubborn bit of chin lifting that indicates you’re about to wage war?” Completely unaware of my eye roll, he continued on. “If we hurry, we can make our ship by week’s end.”
“Where, exactly, is the country estate?” I asked, looping my arms around his neck. “England? Romania?”
“That, my dear Wadsworth, is a surprise.”
He’d promised me a lifetime full of them, and it seemed Mr. Thomas Cresswell—the crown fiend and love of my life—delivered on his promises. We’d finally emerged from the darkness that had stalked us all these months. Night no longer held dominion over our souls.
I tipped my head back, closing my eyes against the last rays of the sun, excited for wherever we were headed to next. Like the stars shining madly above, the number of our future adventures was infinite. I had no idea what tomorrow had in store for us, but I knew one thing with utter certainty: no matter what new chapter awaited, Thomas and I would turn that page together.
H. H. Holmes, circa 1880s/Early 1890s
EPILOGUE
CRIME OF THE CENTURY
THOMAS’S FAMILY HOME
BUCHAREST, ROMANIA
ONE YEAR LATER
“H. H. Holmes didn’t confess to the murders in London, though he’s written an account of his crimes at his now-infamous murder castle from prison.” I all but snarled as I read a snippet of his words aloud to Thomas. “‘I was born with the very devil in me. I could not help the fact that I was a murderer, no more than the poet can help the inspiration to song, nor the ambition of an intellectual man to be great. The inclination to murder came to me as naturally as the inspiration to do right comes to the majority of persons.’”
I closed the paper, wishing I could burn it with my fiery gaze. Even after all this time, Holmes still enjoyed the sound of his own voice. No matter that what he was saying was horrid.
“Who allowed him to publish such rubbish?” I tossed the paper on the bed. “He’s earning more now as an inmate than he did with all of his scheming. Don’t they realize they’re giving him everything he’s ever wanted? Fame. Fortune. It’s appalling.”
“His mustache is appalling, or… oh. Am I the only one who loathes the thing?” Thomas dodged the pillow I threw at him. “We could try again to prove his guilt over the Ripper murders, you know. Perhaps he’s not the only one who can write an account of the events that have transpired. Why not publish your own account? Some people might believe it’s fiction, but some people also believe strigoi walk amongst us. Though most know vampires aren’t real, I’m sure a large enough group would believe us. We can keep fighting until we win over the masses.”
The thought was tempting. It was always tempting. However, we’d traveled down that path and no one wanted to hear the truth. I understood, in a way, that without any evidence to support