Edith felt a great deal of satisfaction when she gave the royal crown to a guard. He gave her a small bow. "We will notify Hawthorne immediately."

She grinned as she watched him leave. She hoped Hawthorne's jaw fell off in shock.

When Mr. Darling saw her walking toward him, he straightened up quickly and attempted to brush his suit into order. "Miss Curtis," he sputtered. "Are you all right?"

Edith smiled. "I am. But what about you?" She pointed to his left shoulder, where his suit was torn.

Mr. Darling glanced at it. "Oh, it's fine. I believe the bullet grazed it, but it just got my clothes. My arm is untouched."

Edith looked over at the statue from which he had leapt. "I didn't know what to think when I saw you there," she said. "Relieved, perhaps. You rescued me."

"Of course."

"How did you know?" she asked. "Were you following me?"

He looked embarrassed. "Yes."

Mr. Darling didn't speak beyond that. He was likely remembering the last time they had seen each other.

"You were right," Edith started, her voice lowered in humility. "I shouldn't have trusted him so greatly until I was certain. I was angry at you for suspecting him, and I'm sorry for that. I'm sorry for behaving so foolishly."

Mr. Darling started to protest, but Edith stopped him. "No, I was foolish. I thought he was my friend. And that made me blind to my true friends." Edith took a step closer. "And to one...who is still more than that."

His downcast eyes shifted to look at her face in wonder. She smiled and rested her hand on his arm.

"The ball should nearly be over now," Edith said after a moment's silence. "We should return."

Mr. Darling's other hand went to hers. "If there is another song, would you be opposed to a dance?" he asked.

"At the beginning of this ball, I would have been opposed." She let out a soft laugh. "I thought it was dull without a good partner."

"Do you think me a good partner?" Mr. Darling asked, though he could already see the answer in her eyes.

Edith laughed again. "The best."

As she began to walk back through the gardens, Mr. Darling went alongside her, smiling when she smiled and laughing when she laughed.