“After midnight, sir. I was in on the scouting and heard the big bell at the church ringing the time.”
“Only shortly after our little game with them,” he mused as he leaned forward and clasped his hands together on the table. “What else did you learn about them?”
“The leader is called Durand. The other ones are Swinger and Leech.”
I snorted. “I think I can guess which one of them is Swinger.”
“And this Leach?” Marc inquired.
Henry wrinkled his nose. “He’s the quiet assassin in the group. If they need to make someone sleep forever, he’s the right guy to go sneaking into a bedroom and poisoning the person with a tainted leech.”
Marc smiled. “That gives us the advantage as long as they don’t catch us napping. We need only contend with the other two, and one of them is foolish enough to believe his mallet can break any magic.”
“That’s because his mallet has magic that’s nearly the same as Jaeger’s hand,” Henry informed him. “I heard stories that he’s smashed barriers on houses where people were trying to hide from them. His magic was so strong that the buildings themselves were busted.”
Marc’s eyes rolled over to me. “Crestmoor seems to be going to great expense to capture you.”
I winced. “Lucky me.”
Henry’s eyes lit up, and he furiously dug into his pocket. “Oh, before I forget, here’s the extra something you wanted, sir.” He drew out two slips of paper and stood before he offered them to Marc. “Took some searching since it’s such short notice, but they’re good.”
“How much did these cost?” Marc wondered as he accepted the slips.
Henry grinned. “Nothing I couldn’t give, sir. Besides, the other fellas chipped in something, too.”
“Then that means you gave up those coins I gave you,” Marc guessed as he reached into his pocket.
Henry stepped back toward the doorway and held up his hands in front of him. “Don’t feel you have to pay me back, sir. I wanted to do it as a favor to you and Miss Larkin.”
Marc lifted an eyebrow. “You’ll lose your reputation as tight purses if you start acting like this.”
The young lad grinned as he slipped over to the jam and grasped the wood. “I’ll remember that, sir. If you’ll excuse me, there are some things I have to do.” He bowed his head to us and slipped out of sight. The door soon opened, but there was a pause before his voice floated over to us. “I don’t think I can close the door behind me.”
I laughed, and both Marc and I got up. We found the young lad on the threshold with the open trap door at his feet. The large gap between the stone path and the house would have prevented even his ungainly young arms from reaching the door.
“What’s the matter here?” a voice spoke up, and we turned to watch Eldric stroll down the stairs.
“You almost trapped one of my guests in your toy,” Marc informed him as he used a hand to gesture to the hole. “Mind closing it?”
“Everyone always coming in unannounced. . .” Eldric grumbled as he sauntered over to a picture. The painting was of the mouth of a large canyon with shrubs and sparse grass. He swiped a finger across the canyon, and the trap door snapped shut.
Henry inclined his head as he gingerly stepped backward onto the hatch. “Thanks.”
“Don’t close that door!”
The shout came from outside. I leaned to one side and glimpsed Theo hurry up the path. Henry and he exchanged nods before the apprentice slipped inside, a smile on his face as he noticed us. “Good morning.”
“Too many unannounced people. . .” Eldric grumbled as he shuffled off to the dining room.
“My apologies,” Theo replied, more to us than Marc’s disappeared uncle. “I only wanted to see how you were getting along in the capital, this being Miss Larkin’s first time in our fair city. I hope you at least slept well.”
Marc pocketed the tickets. “Quite well, thanks.”
Theo’s eyes lit up as he closed the door behind himself. “Are those tickets to Miss Dolios’s concert tonight?”
“I wanted to see her perform,” I chimed in as I clasped my hands in front of me. “It isn’t often that I get to enjoy a live singing performance without having to do the work myself.”
“Then might I offer a further treat in meeting the lady herself?” Theo wondered as his eyes flitted between us. “I’m sure Miss Dolios would be very eager to meet a fellow singer, especially one as talented as yourself.”
