It seemed like she’d been waiting for days when Lucy heard the faint sound of metal on metal.
When it stopped, she went up on her tiptoes and peered out the small window in the door.
“Callan?”
She heard him curse, then the sound of ripping fabric.
“Keep an eye out for the guards, lass.”
The torchlight cast shadows on the stone walls, so she figured she’d see shadows if the men came down the corridor.
“Okay.”
She saw him push what looked like a long strip of linen tied to make a circle. Oh, right, he was trying to grab hold of the handle to pull it up and slide it over.
The mercenaries were getting louder, which was good since Callan was swearing up a storm.
After what she guessed was about an hour, Lucy heard a muffled, “Pòg mo thòin,ye wee bastard.”
“What did you say?”
He made a Scottish noise in the back of his throat. “I was tellin’ the door to kiss my arse.”
A small laugh escaped before Lucy could hold it in. “I’ll have to remember that one.”
“Dinna fash, lass. I’ll have us free in no time.”
But he didn’t. The fabric wasn’t strong enough to lift the heavy bar.
“Hello? Hello? Anybody there?” She called out.
The sounds of laughter died down as one of the men spoke to the others. Over the years, she’d picked up enough Norman French to understand the basics, so she knew they were not pleased to have to deal with her. The scraping of a wooden stool across the stone floor made her grin.
“Lass, give me time.”
Lucy shook her head, tired of her own stench. “Just let me try,” she whispered as the guard with the missing pinky finger stumbled down the corridor.
The man glared at her. “What?”
“You took the chamber pot.” She made a show of hopping from one foot to the other. “I need to go.”
The man belched, showing off one missing tooth. “Wait until morning.” He turned to leave when Lucy stomped her foot.
“Fine.”
She crossed her arms over her chest.
“But one of you will catch hell when Agnes comes back.”
She scowled.
“I bet she’ll make you clean it up.”
With what she thought of as her super sweet fake grin, Lucy added even as her face flamed, “I’ll make sure to leave you several piles of poo, maybe I’ll even write my name on the wall with it, so be careful where you step.”
Quite a few rude curses ensued, along with low laughter from the thief, Callan.
The sound of the metal bar sliding made Lucy flex her knees.
