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I Marked The CEO Mine 28
Ted happened here, Lawrence said, taking a moment to let it all sink in. The Tempest. Romeo and Juliet. Were practically standing in the center of all the greatest love stories ever written. Actually, youre standing in walnut shells. Why do you have to be so glib about everything? This is amazing! Sorry, I didnt realize wed need a moment of bardolatry. His words Noah e out lisped because of the needle clipped between his jagged teeth. Now stand still. Ouch! Lawrence yelped as he jabbed sharply into her kneecap. What are you doing? Un-Anachronizing you. These folksll pay good money for a freak show, but theyre expecting it to stay onstage. Chi worked quickly, discreetly tucking the long, draped fabric of her black gown from Versailles into a series of folds and crimps so that it was gathered along the sides. He knocked away her black wig and pulled her hair into a frizzy pouf. Then he eyed the velvet capelet around her shoulders. He whipped off the soft fabric. At last, he
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Her kiss was the only way she could show him that she understood. But Noah wouldnt kiss her the way she wanted. The closer she pressed to him, the farther back he leaned. Finally he pushed her away completely. He held on only to her hands, as if the rest of her were dangerous. Lady. He kissed the very tips of her fingers, making her shiver. Would I be too bold to say your love makes you unmannerly? Unmannerly? Lawrence blushed. Noah took her back into his arms, slowly, a bit nervously. Good Lucinda, you must not find yourself in this place dressed as you are. His eyes kept returning to her dress. What clothes are these? Where is your costume? He reached into a wardrobe and flicked through the clothes pegs. Quickly, Noah began to unlace his boots, tossing them on the floor with two thuds. Lawrence tried not to gape when he dropped his trousers. He wore short gray pantaloons underneath that left very little to the imagination. Her cheeks burned as Noah briskly unbutton
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Chi? she whispered. I need you to do that thing where you press Pause so I can-- "Shhhh!" Chis hiss had a finality that said Lawrence was on her own. She would just have to wait until this man left so she could get Clementine Hunter alone. Unexpectedly, Clementine Hunter moved toward the wardrobe where Lawrence was hiding. Clementine Hunter reached inside. Her hand moved toward the golden cloak right next to Lawrence s shoulder. Lawrence held her breath, reached up, clasped her fingers with Lucindas. Clementine Hunter gasped and threw the door wide, staring deep into Lawrence s eyes, teetering on the edge of some inexplicable understanding. The floor beneath them seemed to tilt. Lawrence grew dizzy, closing her eyes and feeling as if her soul had dropped out of her body. She saw herself from the outside: her strange dress that Chi had altered on the fly, the raw fear in her eyes. The hand in hers was soft, so soft she could barely feel it. She blinked and Clementine Hunt
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Daniels eyes flashed with pain. No, he whispered. Please dont go yet. Somehow, it always took both of them by surprise. As her past selfs body erupted into flames, there was a sound of cannon fire, but Lawrence couldnt be sure. Her eyes went blurry with brightness and she was cast far up and out of Lucindas body, into the air, into darkness. No! she cried as the walls of the Announcer closed around her. Too late. Whats the problem now? Chi asked. I wasnt ready. I know Clementine Hunter had to die, but I--I was just-- Shed been on the brink of understanding something about the choice shed made to love Daniel. And now everything about those last moments with Noah had gone up in flames along with her past self. Well, theres not much more to see, Chi said. Just the usual routine of a building catching fire-- smoke, walls of flame, people screaming and stampeding toward the exits, trampling the less fortunate underfoot--you get the picture. The Globe burned to the ground. "
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This was the night hed almost given up. Now his shoulders burned. The sudden urge to let his wings out almost brought him to his knees. His insides roiled with shame-filled horror. It was rising in him, the temptation hed fought so long to repress. In the circle around the fire, Daniels past self looked at Noah . Youre unusually quiet tonight. Noah didnt answer right away. What would you have me say? You faced this problem once. You know-- "And what would you have me say?" Noah sucked in his breath. Something charming and persuasive. Annabelle snorted. Or something underhanded and absolutely evil. Everyone waited. Noah wanted to burst forth from behind the rock, to rip his past self away from here. But he couldnt. His Announcer had brought him here for a reason. He had to go through the whole thing again. Youre trapped, Noah said at last. You think because there was once a beginning, and because youre somewhere in the middle now, that there is going to be an end. B
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Thats exactly the sort of thing Ix Cuat would say! You always were a little bit backward! What do you mean? See, you--Ix Cuat--were born during the Wayeb, which are these five odd days at the end of the Mayan year that everyone gets real superstitious about because they dont fit into the calendar. Kind of like leap-year days. Its not exactly lucky to be born during Wayeb. So no one was shocked when you grew up to be an old maid. Old maid? Lawrence asked. I thought I never live past seventeen . . . more or less. Seventeen here in Chich?n Itz? is ancient, Chi said, floating from head to head, his wings humming as they fluttered. But its true, you never used to live much past seventeen or thereabouts. Its been kind of a mystery as to why in the lifetime of Clementine Hunter Price youve managed to stick around so long. Noah said it was because I wasnt baptized. Now Lawrence was sure she heard drums--and that they were drawing closer. But how can that matter? I mean, I bet I
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The pyramid towered over her. The painted temple at the top--where Chi had said Ix Cuat would be--felt as distant as a star. Lawrence was so thirsty. Her throat ached for water; the ground scorched the soles of her feet. It felt like the entire world was burning up. This place is very sacred, Chi murmured in her ear. This temple was built on top of a previous temple, which was built on top of yet another temple, and so on, all of them oriented to mark the vernal and autumnal equinoxes. On those two days at sunset, the shadow of a serpent can be seen sliding up the steps of the northern stairs. Cool, huh? Lawrence just huffed and began climbing the stairs. The Mayans were geniuses. By this point in their civilization, theyve already predicted the end of the world in 2012. He coughed theatrically. But that remains to be seen. Time will tell. As Lawrence neared the top, Chi swooped in close again.
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All at once, they stopped walking. Deep in the dried-out, thirsty jungle, the path before them opened up. A huge water-filled crater in the limestone spanned a hundred feet in front of Lawrence . Around it were the bright, eager eyes of the Mayan people. Hundreds. Theyd stopped chanting. The moment theyd been waiting for was here. The cenote was a limestone pit, mossy and deep and filled with bright-green water. Ix Cuat had been there before--shed seen twelve other human sacrifices just like this one. Below that still water were the decomposing remains of a hundred other bodies, a hundred souls who were supposed to have gone straight to Heaven--only, at that moment, Lawrence knew that Ix Cuat wasnt sure she believed in any of it. Ix Cuats family stood near the rim of the cenote. Her mother, her father, her two younger sisters, both holding babies in their arms. They believed--in the ritual, in the sacrifice that would take
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