“Tabitha, you are a genius,” Lily said in delight.“How on earth did you know?”
“Of course I didn’t.I was following my nose.”
James guided the tired horses under the stone arch into a somewhat unwelcoming yard.No one ran to greet them.The house was a decent size, though apart from one downstairs light, it appeared to be in darkness.One side of the yard seemed to be a stable block, judging by the equine snorts and stamps within.The opposite side consisted of indistinct outbuildings.
“House!”James roared and climbed down from his box.
The door of the main house opened abruptly.A skinny lad peered out.“Billy?”
“No,” James growled, opening the coach door and letting down the steps.“But we’ll be requiring accommodation for two ladies, myself, and four horses.Jump to it, boy—the horses are dead on their hooves!”
Abruptly, the skinny boy was shoved aside and a huge barrel of a man with long, curling side whiskers strode out with a lantern.His gaze swept over the new arrivals and, as James deliberately closed the carriage door, the muddied Sark crest.
He did not look pleased.In fact, for a moment, his scowl denoted extreme irritation, but he bowed all the same.“Welcome to the Headless Horseman.I’m Rains, your host.Come in, come in, and my wife will look after you, ladies.Shift yourself, Harry, and let’s see to these horses...”
The innkeeper’s sudden hurry was a relief to Tabitha, who was more than happy to step into the house.There, a plump woman was busy lighting candles in wall sconces around a big, open room which smelled of tallow, tobacco, and stale beer.
“So sorry, ma’am, we wasn’t expecting guests of quality,” the woman babbled.“I’ll take you up directly and Harry will bring your bags.I hope you don’t mind sharing a bedchamber, only with no notice...”
“That will be acceptable,” Tabitha said, looking about her.“Though we would appreciate a private parlour.”
“Alas, ma’am, I cannot help you there!But it is a lovely big bedchamber, and I’ll be more than happy to serve you there myself.A nice bit of mutton stew before you retire?”
“Thank you,” Tabitha said graciously, although the meal did not sound terribly appetizing.
The woman, presumably Mrs.Rains, began to lead them toward the stairs, just as Harry brought in the bags.
“Is that all you’ve got?”she demanded, stopping in her tracks.
Tabitha raised her eyebrows.“It is adequate for tonight.We shan’t be staying longer.”
“The rest of our baggage went ahead to Hawthorn Court,” Lily added, as though made suddenly nervous by the woman’s disapproval, though it did not appear to stem from an excess of respectability.Tabitha suspected the woman had been hoping for large gratuities or even, more worryingly, thieving opportunities.
“We got lost going too far along the coast,” Lily explained.“We were so pleased to come upon your house.”
Mrs.Rains sniffed, swiped up the bags from the floor, since Harry had rushed outside again, and led the way up the dusty staircase.
“Do you have many guests?”Tabitha asked, as they passed several closed doors along a dark passage and around the corner to another, past a half-glass door that seemed to give onto an outside staircase.
Mrs.Rains did not light any of the sconces as she went, relying on her own single candle which cast eerie, flickering shadows up the bare stone walls.Tabitha and Lily stayed close to each other and to their guide’s light.
“It varies,” Mrs.Rains replied vaguely.“And of course we’re refurbishing the old place...”
“Not so as you’d notice,” Lily murmured in Tabitha’s ear, eyeing the cobwebs.
Mrs.Rains threw open the door at the very end of the third passage and beamed with triumph.“There, you see, our most superior bedchamber!”She dropped their bags on the floor at her feet while they followed her inside.
As she moved across the room, lighting the lamp on the table and two wax candles on the walls, they saw that the room was indeed large, containing two huge and ancient four-poster beds, a marble-topped chest of drawers with a washing bowl, and, built into the wall, a large cupboard for hanging clothes which Mrs.Rains showed them with some pride.There was also a table and two upright chairs.
Compared with the rest of the house, the chamber was surprisingly sweet-smelling and airy, which was due no doubt to the wide-open window which Mrs.Rains shut with a slam before closing the curtains.
“Best keep the cold and the rain out.Will you have the fire lit?It might smoke a bit.”
“No, I believe we will be warm enough,” Tabitha said hastily.“This will do very well.”
“Then I’ll go and see about your supper, Mrs...?”She waited hopefully.
“Lady Sark,” Lily supplied.“And I am Lady Lily Lisle.”
