"Count Volger, are you ready?" Alek quietly knocked on the count's door.
"Yes." Volger said as he emerged from his room. "Next is Hoffman, correct?"
"Yes." Alek started to walk down the corridor until Count Volger stopped him by placing a hand on his shoulder.
"I'm truly sorry your feelings for 'Dylan' were unrequited."
"No you are not, do not lie to me." Alek said through gritted teeth. Volger kept lying to him. Why was he acting sympathetic?
"You're right, your highness." Volger said coldly. "I don't care." Volger walked past Alek down the hall to get the other men. They were escaping into Constantinople tonight.
When Deryn rejected him, Alek felt it was necessary to disappear. Whenever he saw Deryn, he wanted to cry from his heartache. He needed to disappear from the Leviathan. But it wouldn't matter how far he ran, he would never forget her face, her voice, or what she said to him in their final encounter.
"Alek, it's not that I don't like you, it's just that we can't be together. I-" sobs "I CAN'T like you! Do you understand?"
"But…" he started, "but you kissed me back! I thought- I thought- YOU'RE the one who told me to take a chance!"
"I didn't think you meant ME! Who would like ME? Why would YOU, a barking PRINCE, like ME?"
"Deryn, I don't like you. I love you!"
"Aleksandar?" Master Klopp said, "Are you feeling alright?"
With a start Alek realized they'd already been to all of the men's rooms and were ready to get going. All of his men were looking at him now, worried, except Volger. He was the only one that knew what had happened with 'Dylan'.
"I'm fine, Klopp. Let's get out of this godless ship as soon as possible." A chorus of 'yes young master' confirmed his decision. They were all ready to leave.
As they held onto the ropes, ready to propel down, Alek felt something squirm in his jacket. "Hush. Hold still I'll let you out soon." He whispered to the creature, and it stopped. When he was waiting in the egg room, one of the eggs hatched. What else was there to do but take it with him? Though it was an ungodly creature made by Dr. Barlow for some ultimate plan, Alek had to admit to himself that the creature was kind of cute.
He could only imagine what Deryn would say to this. Though he really shouldn't care, right? She can't like him, he can't like her… But he does. Is this how his father felt? No, because the woman he loved, loved him back.
"We're going to the forest to hide." Volger grabbed Alek by his arm and dragged him to the woods. He and his four men ran to the woods as the Darwinist solders chased them. When did they start following? Alek was too distracted to notice.