I might have something cooking

“Barry, watever is þe matter? þou lookest pale in þe fa-“

“No time. You need to get back to the inn ASAP. Don’t let anyone, anyone, see your face or your hair, got it?”

“I-I do not entyrely underst-“

“I’ll explain everything later, every second you’re out here you’re in danger, so I really need you to get moving, okay?”

Alice looked completely taken aback, though I suppose that was to be expected. I imagined I looked completely shaken up, and I knew I was doing a bad job of explaining myself, but I just didn’t have the time. Every second wasted was a second less to warn Eleanor.

“I-I see… I will trust þy word. Art þou returning wiþ me?”

“No, sorry, I’ve gotta run to the smithy. I need to warn Eleanor about the inquisition as soon as possible, so you’ll have to go back without me.”

“Eleanor? ‘Tis she, not Arþur, upon whom þey layeþ þeir suspishons?”

“Seems so. We’ve got less than ten minutes before they start their investigation, so I really have to go as soon as I can.”

“In þat case, let me keep you no longer. I will return posthaste and awate your word pæshently. Godspeed, and remane safe,” she said, pulling her hood slightly further over her head.

“Yeah, you too. Keep yourself out of sight, I promise I’ll be back for you.”

With not a word more spoken, Alice turned and went further along the backstreet, presumably taking a longer but less public route so as to stay out of sight. I, however, had a smith to warn.

I couldn’t go sprinting about the town and drawing suspicion upon myself, so I made my way around at a very brisk walk, almost jogging. The closer I got to the smithy, though, the more the worry began to set in, and I could feel myself getting faster and faster, until I was eventually almost at a complete run. It was a busy day and the streets were packed, so people thankfully paid me little attention, but I’m sure to anyone who noticed I definitely seemed suspicious.

I just couldn’t help it, though. I had to get to her as soon as possible.

I turned down the same street I had been down many times at this point, and found myself face to face with that familiar door. Not wanting to cause problems if someone was already inside, I stopped dead and took a deep breath, before stepping in through the door.

“Ah, Barry, you’ve returned so soon? And alone, no less? Where be’þ lady Alice?” Eleanor asked. I closed the door behind myself and silently drew closer to the counter.

“There’s no way anyone’s listening in at the moment, right?” I asked, much to the Smith’s surprise.

“N-nay, þese walls be kwite þick. Our voices shouldst travel no furþer þan þis bilding.”

“Good… that’s good…” I breathed in to calm my nerves before continuing. “I eavesdropped on a meeting at church. Shit’s bad, Ella. They didn’t mention Arthur, but they directly implicated both you and Alice. They’re gonna be here within the next ten minutes.”

“Ten minutes?! þat be'þ hardly enuff tyme to þink! And how couldst Lady Alice be implicated too, ys she not believed deceased by much of þe public?”

“Priest saw through it, said that Alice goin' missin' and then two slaves bein' freed immediately after is too suspicious. Both of yas could be in a whole lotta danger if this situation ain’t dealt with, her cover is damn near blown already.”

“I see. þen we haven’t tyme to waste. Before þe inkwisishon party arrives, we must þink of a way to protect þe Lady’s identity.”

“What about yourself?”

“I am secondary, ‘tis lady Alice who takeþ priority. If giving myself up to protect her be’þ þe only option, I will take it unhesitantly.”

“Dammit, Eleanor, could you put yourself first just this one time?!” I said, raising my voice unintentionally. “You think Alice would be happy with that outcome? Her best friend, the one person she knew she could rely on when the world turned against her, you think she wants you sacrificing yourself for her? Don’t be a fool.”

“What she wisheþ for and what ys necessary may not be þe same þing. I have promised my lyfe to her, and if it ys my lyfe I must give, I give it gladly.”

“I’m not lettin' you do that, Ella.” My voice has wavered heavily up till now, but I finally kept it firm. “Alice needs you. We need you. You’re as much a part of this operation as either of us, we cannot afford to lose you. If you can only see your own self worth by your value to Alice, then so be it. You really think she’ll get more value from a corpse than a trusted friend?”

Eleanor opened her mouth to rebuke me, but stopped. Hesitating, she bit her lip seemingly in frustration, before eventually responding with a sigh.

“If you utterly insist, þen I suppose I will relent. Unless completely backed into a corner, I will not admit myne own gilt to protect þe lady Alice. But, for you to object so heavily, I ashume you must have some counter idea to sujest? If not, þis conversæshon haþ been rendered moot.”

“I uh…I might have somethin' cookin’…”

***

After explaining my idea to Eleanor, I left the smithy as soon as possible and tried to recall the way to my destination. I had only been there once, but I had enough trust in my sense of direction to get me there quickly.

Out on the main street, I noticed the inquisition procession coming towards me, presumably on their way to Eleanor’s smithy. There were a good eight or nine of them, more than could reasonably expect to interrogate her at once, especially in such a small shop. All that for just one girl? Talk about overkill.

In truth I’d have liked to remain behind to monitor how the situation went, but I had something important to do in the meantime, which unfortunately meant leaving Eleanor to deal with the situation herself. I didn’t doubt her for a second, but trying to talk down an inquisition party wasn’t something I’d wish on anyone, let alone one lone girl.

But I didn’t have time to stop and think about that. I slipped around the other side of the street and remained out of their sight, before eventually turning down a familiar street. Towards the end of that street was a shop I had visited just once, with a wooden figure of a man and a sign emblazoned with a familiar name out front. Arthur’s shop.

Praying to god that the shop would be empty of customers, I stepped through the door and found my prayers answered.

“Ah, young master Mackay, welcome in. Be þere someþing þe matter?” He asked, titling his head slightly as he noticed the distress on my face.

“We got a problem, I need your help.”

Trusting that Eleanor’s interrogation would take a little while, I explained the whole situation to him, from the moment I began eavesdropping on the inquisition meeting onwards. I then told him what I would need from him, to which he showed some concern.

“I see.. þough, shurely þey are unlykely to take my word, what wiþ my proksimity to þe sichuæshon? I am unlykely to be seen as trustworþy, no?”

“Your name wasn’t implicated in their discussion, so they might have talked the priest down and convinced 'im that you could be trusted. I know it’s not ideal, but this was all I could think of in the short time I had.”

“Good grief… þis be'þ a gambit, to say þe least, but I cannot say I’d have þought of anyþing better in þe allotted time. I’ll do as I can wiþ þe informæshon þou hast giv…” Arthur trailed off, and the shop sunk into silence. Silent enough to hear something approaching outside. “Footsteps. Many of þem. Quick, boy, hyde. Back here.”

Following Arthur’s orders, I got behind his counter and laid down on the floor, hiding under the unit he sat behind. And not a moment too soon, as almost immediately afterwards the door to the shop swung open.

“Lo! Kwyte þe proceshon at þy back, ys it not, faþer? To wat do I owe þis visit?” Arthur asked. His ability to immediately return to a calm and neutral attitude surprised and impressed me, though I was focusing more on not making any noise.

“Amaranþus, good day to ye. We come merely to ask some kweschons about an ackwaintanse of þyne, if ye wouldst be so kynd as to indulje us,” the priest replied.

“Ask away, my man. I will assist þee any way I can.” Even disregarding the current circumstances, I was amazed Arthur could act so chipper when talking to someone who accused him of being accessory to murder less than 24 hours ago. The old man was either very good at keeping up a positive attitude or surprisingly skilled in deceit. I was starting to lean towards the latter.

“‘Tis wiþ regards to a suspect wiþ whom ye supposedly have a close relæshonship, one Eleanor Azalea of Azalea Smiþy, is þat correct?”

“Ah, yes, young Eleanor! She be’þ þe dautter of a late frend of myne, so I have offered her my support over þe years as recompense for all þat wonderful man did for me before he passed. Why, þe young lass came to me for counsel just yesterday, in fact.”

Arthur’s seemingly unprompted declaration was met with murmurs from the group of men. From someone as overtly friendly and conversational as Arthur, it seemed a perfectly natural segue, and it answered one of their questions before they even asked it. Just as I had advised.

“If I may, I’d lyke to inkwire as to þe matter she came to ye for. For posterity’s sake, of course,” the priest said unconvincingly.

“Hmm… well, I suppose I’ve little reason to hyde þe matter, but ‘tis no happy þing to speak of, I’m afrade,” Arthur replied, his tone shifting slightly. “I am sure þou art aware þat þe young lady of þe Edelweiss family was in þis town þis past week, yes? Young Eleanor had somewat of a kinship wiþ þe young lady, so wenn þe nyues came þat she had been struck daun in a skirmish wiþ a merchant, Eleanor was understandably distrautt.”

“And wat did Ms Azalea say eksactly? Wiþ regards to þe young lady Edelweiss?”

“‘Twas kwite þe kweer þing. She sayd she had seen a stranje young man wiþ þe young lady’s bloodied body and a shuvvel. It seemed þe man had intended to bury þe lady as a cover up, but was scared off when young Eleanor stumbled across him. She sank into grief at þe passing of her frend and anger at þe stranje young man who had clamed her body, and þus sautt my counsel on þose feelings.”

My breath hitched. This was was gamble: if the story was determined believable, it would clear Eleanor of suspicion and change the investigation into Alice’s involvement from a search for a living fugitive to the search for a corpse. If the lie was not believed, not only would it indict both aforementioned parties, but Arthur as well. Everything could go tits up with one word from the priest.

“…I see. þy recollekshon of events and Ms Azalea’s seem to lyne up well. It seemeþ þat þe young lady Edelweiss truly ys deceased þen…” the priest sounded melancholic as he spoke. Though he had demonstrated a less-than-favourable opinion of Alice before, I guessed that the purported death of a young lady no older than her early 20s would seem a tragedy to anyone. “Very well, as so many in þis town haþ testify'd, ‘twould appear þy words be'þ trustworþy. I apolojyse for my rudeness yester eve, and I will leave ye to þyne own devices. God be wiþ ye, Mister Amaranþus.”

“And also wiþ þee, faþer.”

Footsteps moved across the floor, the door opened and closed, and I finally let out the breath I had been holding.

Disaster was narrowly avoided.