“You yourself are now in imminent personal danger, and must lose no time in getting to a place of safety.”
“Where can we go?”
“To the Palace,” I answered, speaking on the spur of necessity to give some definite answer; and in truth that seemed the best thing to do.
She started and caught her breath.
“You mean——” She was all anxious eagerness now.
I paused a second, and then took the plunge and answered with deliberate significance—
“After what has passed here, your safety is now my concern and your desires are mine.”
She read my words in the way I intended. She turned slightly pale, and in her agitation caught at the back of the chair by which she stood.
“Thank God,” I heard her whisper under her breath.
I felt pretty mean at the trick I was playing, when I saw how she took it; but I had persuaded myself there was no other way, and held firm.