"Sir?" Adam asked when Ronan said that. He wanted to protect Ronan from whatever unpleasant evening he had in mind.
When Ronan had gone, Adam curled up alone in his little bed, hoping to get some sleep. He was exhaustion, but worry and his fixation upon Ronan kept his mind whirling. Sleep was impossible.
He dozed restlessly for hours, worry increasing when Ronan didn't come home. Companionship was all well and good, he told himself, but it was unlikely that Ronan would spend the night with his... companion. And what had he meant when he had said he wouldn't have a pleasant night?
By dawn, Adam was out of his mind with worry. Ronan had gone out alone. What if he'd been hurt? Mugged? Stabbed?
He paced the loft, distraught. Where could Ronan be? Where else would he spend the night? With Gansey, maybe? But why... why say he wouldn't have a pleasant night? What had he intended to do? What had he done?
Worry tearing him apart, Adam tore at his hair. He'd let this happen. He'd let Ronan go out alone and he was hurt somewhere. Or he was simply being absurd and Ronan was fine. Ronan would come home any moment and want to know why his valet was useless with exhaustion.
Mid-morning, he finally thought of a possibility. Ronan had adored his father, and Ronan had always been deeply religious. He would have wanted to visit the crypt. He might still be there, or at least have stopped there on his way home.
It was a glimmer of hope, better than fretting endlessly. Adam seized his tattered coat, jumping down the ladder and hurrying out across the grounds to the old crypt.
He peeped into the chapel but saw nothing. Feeling like an intruder, he took a deep breath, then let himself down into the crypt, finding Ronan fast asleep with a pair of empty flasks on the floor near him.
Relief, dread, anger, and pain flashed through Adam. Hurrying to Ronan's side, he knelt by him, clasping Ronan's cheeks. His beloved--his employer--was cool, but not cold. There was still warmth in his skin, and his breath still stirred the air in shallow puffs. "Ronan," Adam said, beseeching and reprimanding, praying that his friend would awake. "Ronan."
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When Ronan had gone, Adam curled up alone in his little bed, hoping to get some sleep. He was exhaustion, but worry and his fixation upon Ronan kept his mind whirling. Sleep was impossible.
He dozed restlessly for hours, worry increasing when Ronan didn't come home. Companionship was all well and good, he told himself, but it was unlikely that Ronan would spend the night with his... companion. And what had he meant when he had said he wouldn't have a pleasant night?
By dawn, Adam was out of his mind with worry. Ronan had gone out alone. What if he'd been hurt? Mugged? Stabbed?
He paced the loft, distraught. Where could Ronan be? Where else would he spend the night? With Gansey, maybe? But why... why say he wouldn't have a pleasant night? What had he intended to do? What had he done?
Worry tearing him apart, Adam tore at his hair. He'd let this happen. He'd let Ronan go out alone and he was hurt somewhere. Or he was simply being absurd and Ronan was fine. Ronan would come home any moment and want to know why his valet was useless with exhaustion.
Mid-morning, he finally thought of a possibility. Ronan had adored his father, and Ronan had always been deeply religious. He would have wanted to visit the crypt. He might still be there, or at least have stopped there on his way home.
It was a glimmer of hope, better than fretting endlessly. Adam seized his tattered coat, jumping down the ladder and hurrying out across the grounds to the old crypt.
He peeped into the chapel but saw nothing. Feeling like an intruder, he took a deep breath, then let himself down into the crypt, finding Ronan fast asleep with a pair of empty flasks on the floor near him.
Relief, dread, anger, and pain flashed through Adam. Hurrying to Ronan's side, he knelt by him, clasping Ronan's cheeks. His beloved--his employer--was cool, but not cold. There was still warmth in his skin, and his breath still stirred the air in shallow puffs. "Ronan," Adam said, beseeching and reprimanding, praying that his friend would awake. "Ronan."