Lord Day and Lady Night

24. DeLacy's Delivery

Slowly but steadily, the coach rolled up the tallest hill, a forest shielding it from view on both sides of the road. Only when they reached the crest of the hill and the forest split apart in front of them did Amy see what lay beyond.

Down below stretched a sunbathed valley with a charming little town in the centre. The rattle of wagon wheels and ringing of bells rose from the town and echoed back from the slopes of the hills. Somewhere, a church choir was singing about how wonderful the world was. Amy, however, did not pay attention to any of that. Her eyes were fixed on the dark forest beyond, and the towers of the manor house rising from its depths.

"Do ye think dat's it?"

Patrick raised an eyebrow. "Do you think DeLacy would allow another to erect a manor house on his lands?"

"Ye know...is it just me, or do English lords be'ave like London street gang leaders?"

His eyebrow rose another fraction of an inch. "Who do you think were the leaders in the streets of London in 1066?"

Amy blinked. "Ye know...I never really thought about it dat way." Her eyes zeroed in on the distant manor. "But now dat I do...it makes a shit load of sense. Karim?"

"Yes?"

"Let's move."

"I concur."

Once again, the whip cracked and the carriage sped down the hill and through the town, the beauty of which was completely ignored. Leaving the town behind them, they delved into the forest and soon reached a much smaller village, just as beautiful and picturesque as the surrounding landscape. And yet, and yet...

The coach came to a halt next to a blacksmith's shop.

"Pardon me." Leaning out of the window, Patrick cleared his throat, attracting the attention of the smith who was rather forcefully hammering down on a horse shoe. "Is this the way to Lacy Hall?"

The man's head jerked up. He smiled, brightly...or at least tried to. But Amy had been a lady of the night for most of her life. She could tell a fake smile from a real one any day.

"A-aye." He raised the hand with his hammer, pointing. "Just go down da road and ye'll reach da Hall."

"Thank you very much, I—"

Clang!

The hammer came down onto the horse shoe again. Hard. Far too hard. Amy wasn't exactly an expert, but she had never seen a horse with rectangular, dented hoofs

"Don't. Mention. It!" The blacksmith growled.

"Is it just me," Amy whispered darkly, "or is something off about 'im?

"You don't say?" Patrick muttered, low enough for only her to hear, then nodded at the man. "Thank you. We've been looking for the way for quite a while."

The blacksmith gave us a strange look. "Don't thank me too early."

Then, as if he'd said too much, the smile quickly reappeared on his face. "Well...best of luck, My Lord! I've still got work ta do."

Then, leaving the mangled, half-finished horse shoe lying where it was, he turned and vanished into the house.

Everyone exchanged glances.

"Let's move on," Patrick said. "Fast."

Amy couldn't agree more.

All three of them nodded silently. Even Titus didn't say a single word in disagreement. They raced on down the road, reaching for their suitcases and beginning to unpack certain items. Metal clicked as they checked and loaded pistols, unfolded telescopes and, in Amy's case, pocketed lock picks. Then, they came around the last bend in the road, and Karim halted the coach. Close enough so they could peek at the manor house below through the trees, but still behind enough cover so no one down there could see them.