Lies and Misdemeanours

She wished now that she knew him a little better. Heaven only knew what must be going through his mind. Being faced with a jailer’s cart, after everything he had been through already must be downright horrifying, yet he had met both with a steely determination she had never seen before. Whatever thoughts, fears, doubts or worries he might have were completely hidden beneath a cold, hard, ruthlessness that was completely alien to her.

She wasn’t sure whether to be frightened by it or not.

CHAPTER TEN

Hetty sighed as she eyed the ramshackle old building Charlie suggested they stay in overnight.

It was worrying just to look at. The moss-coloured stones, sagging walls, and battered door, sat amidst a veritable wilderness of overgrown weeds and bramble bushes that were as imposing as the building they surrounded. While the vegetation assured them that the house hadn’t been lived in for many years¸ it was going to be a challenge for them to get inside.

“It doesn’t look safe,” she whispered. Nevertheless, she picked her way through the dense undergrowth, and eyed the dangerously sagging roof warily.

“I know, but at least it will give us somewhere to get out of this wind for a few hours. The horses need rest, and so do we.”

Charlie looked over at her. He didn’t say as much to her, but her lips had started to turn blue at the edges, and her teeth were clattering together like a pair of castanets. She was frozen, and so was he. It was only a matter of time before she became ill and, given the dangers they were in, that was the last thing either of them needed.

“I am sorry if I sound ungrateful,” she said quietly. “I just don’t like the look of that roof.”

She eyed the sagging tiles a little balefully and, as if to emphasise her point, one of the tiles suddenly broke free and disappeared into the tangle of bushes at their feet.

They shared a look, but remained silent as they forced their way through the thicket and made their way inside.

“Look on the bright side,” Charlie muttered as he waited for her to join him. “It has been standing for at least a hundred years. There is no reason why it should collapse tonight, of all nights.”

Hetty rolled her eyes and inelegantly puffed out her cheeks as she yanked her cloak away from some particularly determined brambles, and turned to study the room before them. She was grateful she had breeches on now because the coarse material protected her legs from being scratched by the cruel spikes of the foliage. Now though, it also had to protect her from the mess on the floor.

Hetty had to admit that it was nice to be out of the wind, but the way it echoed around the hollow walls was disturbing. The low, almost mournful howl, felt strangely sinister. She shivered, and drew her cloak around her a little tighter.

Charlie began to loosen the girths on the saddles. “I won’t take the saddles off, just in case we need to make a quick getaway.”

Hetty stared at him with wide eyes. “Do you really think we might need to?” She glanced around them with a frown. “How do you expect to get out of here in a hurry?”

“We will manage,” Charlie assured her. He patted his horse before he turned to hers.

Aware that Hetty was watching him warily, he sighed. “There is no reason why they would look this far,” he assured her. “If they do, we will deal with it.”

He didn’t want to scare her, but couldn’t hide the truth. Just because they hadn’t seen anyone yet, didn’t mean that they weren’t out there – still looking; still waiting for that golden opportunity to capture their quarry.

“The whole country is going to be on the look-out for us,” Hetty whispered morosely. “You are not just an escaped convict. You are a condemned convict.”

Rather than answer, he nodded toward what appeared to be the old sitting room.

“It’s not too bad,” he said reasonably.

She sighed as she studied the dusty room. Other than a thick layer of dust, and a few determined weeds that had grown through the roof, it was dry and reasonably warm. It would have to do because it was the best they had come across.

“It will be fine for tonight,” she said quietly. She was so tired that she didn’t think she could sit on the horse for another minute, but wasn’t going to point out her intimate discomforts to him right now.

“It’s going to get dark soon,” he declared with a glance outside. “We can’t have a fire, I am afraid. What food do you have left?”

“I have an apple,” Hetty replied, glad for the change of subject. She removed the apple from her pocket and held it while she dug around inside the other pocket of her cloak. “Some cheese, a piece of ham, and some of the bread.”

Charlie dug around in his pockets.

“I have the leftover cheese too, and a bit of pie left. It isn’t a banquet, but it will be enough to last us overnight. We can replenish our supplies in one of the villages we pass through tomorrow if we need to. Hopefully, we should be at Afferley before then.”

Hetty was ravenous, but then didn’t want to eat. She glanced cautiously out of the window, but couldn’t see anything except trees and, of course, the bushes directly outside the window. Above them, she could see darkened sky, which was gloomy now because of the impending storm and encroaching dusk.

“We