scream must have been from Hannah. What could have happened to her? His mind raced with possibilities, of the moat, of the forest beyond — until he realized that he was headed in the direction of the ruins.
He shouted a curse as he realized that she must have gone to explore them herself. He was a fool, allowing his pride to get in the way of his promise to her. He hadn’t thought to warn her of the ruin’s crumbling walls and roof, of flooring that was liable to give away at any moment. Hell, he hardly ventured within them himself. A woman as slight as her had no business going in there. If he had been with her, he would have ensured she stayed on the outskirts. Now… but there was no time for additional self-recrimination, he told himself as he rounded the corner of the thick brush of trees and came to a skidding halt.
There was dust in the air, swirling around Hannah as she stood there in the midst of the ruined guesthouse. At first glance, it appeared that she was unharmed, and he breathed a sigh of relief as he slowed to a halt, his hands coming to the tops of his thighs.
“Hannah!” he called, and she whirled around toward him, her unbound golden-brown hair flying around her as she did so. He walked toward her, stopping at the edge of the ruin, not wanting to cause any more damage.
“What are you doing here alone?” he called out, more recrimination in his voice than he had meant – recrimination that should be reserved for himself. Why had he not thought to warn her? He had never imagined she would be curious enough to come here alone.
But she was too good to note his unjust reproach, her wide brown eyes shining as she stared at him.
“Edmund, come here. I must show you something,” she said, waving him over, and he gingerly began stepping toward her, hoping that he wouldn’t disturb anything further.
“Are you all right?” he asked, his breath still coming faster than usual. He wasn’t pleased at the panic that had risen within him at the fear of her in danger. Edmund was happy with the way things were. He didn’t want to be worried about someone else all of the time, didn’t want to care about what happened. For if he cared, then he could lose again, and he didn’t think he had anything left within him to break any further.
“I’m fine,” she said, wonder in her voice. “I was exploring the ruins of the guest house, and slightly tripped. I put my hand out upon the wall, and it began to give away. The roof above me fell down. It all happened so quickly, but Edmund… something, or someone pushed me out of the way.”
“What are you talking about?” he asked, narrowing his eyes at her. “There’s no one else around. The village is miles away.”
“I know,” she said with a nod, “it’s ridiculous. I can’t explain it. I only know what I felt.”
Edmund looked around the ruins, though in search of what, he wasn’t entirely sure. He hadn’t been here in ages. He hadn’t seen any reason to. From time to time he walked by it to survey the land, and he supposed that he should have cleaned it up and been rid of it altogether. But something had always stopped him from doing so.
“What’s in here?” Hannah asked, stepping deeper into the recess where the wall had fallen away, and Edmund had to surge toward her as he reached out to take hold of her arm.
“Hannah, be careful,” he said, the fear leaping up within his throat once more.
“I am,” she answered without looking back. “I won’t touch anything again, I promise.”
He sighed, accepting that she was going to explore this with or without him, so he might as well be there to help her.
It was a small room that seemed to have been preserved despite the fire. He had no idea what it had been – a garderoom perhaps? But before he could give it added consideration, his attention was captured by Hannah’s startled gasp.
“Edmund,” she said, her voice just above a whisper. “There’s something here. It looks like… a music box, perhaps?”
Edmund followed her into the small space, on alert for potential crumbling plaster or uneven footing. He placed a hand on Hannah’s waist in order to help her keep her balance. She didn’t seem to notice, so intent was