“But it’s night,” counters Scar.
“A light will indicate a room where someone is,” he explains. “That’s also likely to be where James is being held.”
“Good thought,” he says. As they move along, he periodically closes the shutter so they can better tell where light may be coming in from. When the ten minutes is about up, they spot a sliver of light coming from a crack in the wall. Excited, they move closer to it and discover a small sliding panel set into the wall.
Ever so slowly, Scar slides it open and they look through the opening into what appears to be a bedroom, an open doorway leads from the bedroom out into another room. A lit candle sits on a small table next to a bed. Scar sees night clothes for a lady laid out upon the bed. Suddenly from the outer room, a woman walks into the bedroom, naked as the day she was born. She comes to the bed and begins putting on the nightclothes.
Scar watches for a moment before sliding the panel closed. Whispering very quietly, he says, “Let’s go back to the others.” When he gets a nod from Miko, he leads them back.
“What did you see?” asks Miko when they’ve moved further away from the spy panel.
“It was a bedroom,” he replies with a grin. “Nothing of interest.”
“Oh.”
They’re the first ones back at the meeting spot and wait several anxious minutes before Fifer and Shorty return. “Anything?” asks Scar.
In the dim light of the lantern, they see Fifer shake his head, “No. We found one room with a candle burning, but no one was around.”
“Us too,” he says.
“Now what?” asks Shorty. “We’re running out of time.”
Just then, they hear footsteps approaching from the direction Shorty and Fifer had just investigated. Closing the shutter quickly, they stand there in silence as the footsteps approach. Whoever it is, they’re walking in darkness so must know this way well.
Fifer is standing closest to the approaching footsteps, and when they’re almost upon him he strikes out with his fist, trying to connect with the person’s chin. Instead, he catches the person a glancing blow to the side of the head, causing the man to cry out in shock.
Light suddenly fills the hidden corridor as Scar throws open the shutter. The man sees them standing there, blood running down the side of his face from where Fifer had struck him. He quickly turns and begins running down the corridor away from them when Fifer tackles him and they both crash to the floor.
The man starts to call for help and Fifer knees him in the stomach, silencing his cry as the wind is knocked out of him. Before he has a chance to recover, a knife is being held to his throat and Fifer says in a quiet voice, “Make a sound and I’ll cut your throat. Understand?”
Gasping, trying to get his lungs working again, the man nods. “Who are you?” Scar asks from behind Fifer.
When the man finally gets his breath back, he says, “Gregory, servant to Lord Colerain.” He looks from one face to another with fear in his eyes.
“Is he here?” Fifer asks.
Shaking his head, Gregory replies, “No, he left a half hour ago.”
Fifer glances to Scar and then returns his attention to Gregory and asks, “Where did he go?”
“What are you going to do?” he asks fearfully.
“Just answer the question!” Fifer says, pressing the knife more firmly against his throat.
“I don’t know,” he says.
“We’re looking for a friend of ours who may be held captive here,” Miko says to him. “Is he here?”
Gregory gives them a blank look as he replies, “No. As far as I know, there is no one here but those who work for Lord Colerain.”
“Is there anyone here who would know where he went?” Scar asks.
“Your friend?” Gregory asks, confused.
“No, Lord Colerain,” clarifies Scar.
“Maybe Tillon,” he answers.
“Who’s he?” asks Shorty. “And where can he be found?”
“He’s Lord Colerain’s administer,” he explains. “He takes care of the estate and any business the lord has within Bearn.”
“Where is he?” asks Fifer.
When he hesitates, Scar says, “If he’s not going to be of help, just kill him. We don’t have much time.”
Eyes going wide he says quickly, “He’s here. I think he’s still in the office.”
“Is that the room with the large picture on one wall?” asks Miko.
Surprised at him for having known that, Gregory replies, “Yes it is.”
Fifer glances to Miko, who says, “That’s where James and I came out of this secret passage.”
Yanking Gregory to his feet, Fifer says, “Take us there.”
When the man hesitates, he puts the point of his knife under his chin.
Defeated, the man says, “This way.” He then turns and begins leading them down the passage. Fifer keeps a firm grip upon him and the knife hovers around his throat to prevent him from doing anything stupid.
As they approach the hidden entrance behind the large picture, light begins to be visible around the hidden door behind the picture frame.
“Miko, come here,” Fifer whispers as he pauses. When Miko nears, he hands Gregory to him. “If he makes a sound, kill him.”
Taking out his knife, Miko takes hold of the man and places it against his throat. “No problem,” he tells him. He looks intently in Gregory’s eyes, who swallows nervously when he sees the threat there.
Fifer, Shorty and Scar move over to where the hidden doorway lies. “Let’s move fast before he has a chance to alert the whole house,” Fifer says.
“You needn’t state the obvious,” replies Scar.
Flashing him a grin in the dark, Fifer asks, “Ready?”
“Yeah,” Scar and Shorty both say at the same time.
Finding the latch to open it, Fifer releases it and thrusts the hidden door open as he bursts into the room. He sees a man getting up from the large desk dominating the room. Looking shocked at seeing them come out he freezes a moment in surprise. Quickly overcoming his paralysis, he makes a dash for the only door in the room.
Fifer runs to head him off when a knife flies from behind him and strikes the man in the leg. Crying out, the man falls to the floor just as Fifer reaches his side. Staring up at the tip of Fifer’s sword which is scant inches from his face, the man becomes motionless as he holds his thigh in which Shorty’s knife is embedded.
“Who are you?” he asks frantically, pain making his voice rasp.
To Scar, Fifer says, “Check the door.”
Nodding, he goes over and opens the door a crack and looks out. Closing it, he turns back to the others and says, “Nothing.”
Turning back to Tillon, Fifer says, “That’s not what you should be worrying about. But whether you’re going to live through this.” Pausing to let that sink in, he catches a glimpse of Miko and Gregory coming out from behind the picture.
When Tillon sees Gregory with them, he gets a dark look.
Gregory takes in the look Tillon is giving him and cries out, “I didn’t help them. I SWEAR!”
“Quiet!” Miko says to him.
“Now,” Fifer begins, “just where might we find Lord Colerain?”
Tillon stares back at him defiantly while remaining quiet. “I see,” Fifer says to him when he sees him being uncooperative. “Unfortunately, we do not have the time to play games.” Motioning to Scar and Shorty, he asks, “If you wouldn’t mind holding him down while I cut off a finger.”
“Sure,” says Shorty as he comes over and pulls his dagger out of Tillon’s thigh, eliciting a cry from the injured man. Wiping it off on Tillon’s clothes, he replaces it in his belt.
Scar places one knee on his chest and takes a firm hold of his right arm, holding the hand up so Fifer can get to it.
Fifer removes a dagger from the sheath on his belt and takes hold of the hand. He spreads the man’s pinky finger wide and rests the side of his knife against it. Looking back down at Tillon, he says, “Now, where is Lord Colerain?”
Sweating, fear in his eyes, Tillon stares at the knife threatening his finger.