TW02 The Timekeeper Conspiracy NEW Read Online Free PDF

demonstrated the power of his science. He said that he saw in her a kindred spirit, a person out of time. He had offered her an equal partnership, on her own terms.
    She had lost her brother to a traitor's sword and Hunter had helped her to avenge his death. Once that was done, there had no longer been a reason for her to remain in England or in the year 1194. She had joined Hunter and left England and her time behind. She became part of the underground.
    Antoinette de la Croix was not her real name, either. She felt less comfortable with it than with her masculine alias. They had only just arrived in the 17th century and it had taken Hunter some time to purchase what he called "necessities." These included their clothes, their horses, their carriage, and the services of liveried footmen. They were on their way to Paris and they had stopped for the night at a small roadhouse.
    Andre had undressed to her undergarments. She didn't like them, but at least they were more comfortable worn alone than with her outer clothing. The silks and ruffles, the lace and the dainty shoes were all impractical and, worse, uncomfortable. She recalled that armor had never been comfortable to wear, but at least it had a function. She could see no purpose to her ornate apparel and she had remarked to Hunter that in this time, at least, the role of women seemed not to have changed at all. They were still dressed as dolls for men to play with, only now they had to dress up more. She had gone along with the clothing, but she had refused to have her hair "arranged." Instead, she had worn a wig that Hunter had bought for her, a wig of tight blonde curls whose color matched her own somewhat shorter, straighter hair. She had ripped it off upon entering their rooms and now she paced back and forth like a caged animal, scratching her head irritably. She much preferred the apparel of the men, though even that seemed senselessly foppish to her.
    She thought that Hunter looked amusing in his scarlet doublet, ornately worked baldrick, and long cloak of dark burgundy velvet. Somehow, she thought he looked more natural in the magician's robe he had been wearing when they met, back in Sherwood Forest. His high boots seemed practical for horseback riding, but the lace collar, cuffs and boot tops seemed out of place, as did the wide black sash he wore around his waist. What puzzled her the most was Hunter's rapier.
    He had laid it down upon the bed when they came into the room and now she picked it up, hefting it experimentally.
    "This
is a sword?" she said, dubiously. She had been curious about it all that day, but she had not wanted to overburden Hunter with too many questions.
    "It's called a rapier," Hunter said, "and yes, it is a sword."
    She swung it once or twice, holding it awkwardly, as though uncertain of its sturdiness.
    "There is no weight to it," she said. "And the blade is far too narrow. It would never penetrate armor and a single stroke with a good sword would break it in an instant." She threw it back down onto the bed disdainfully.
    Hunter picked it up. "To begin with, it isn't meant for use against an armored knight. And no one uses broadswords here. In this period, things are done a little differently. I suppose you'd say that this was a more genteel weapon."
    He made a few passes with the rapier, showing her the wrist action, a beat and riposte against an imaginary opponent, and a lunge.
    "It's used primarily for thrusting, but you can also slash," said Hunter. "It's called fencing."
    She frowned. "So is the enclosure used to keep in goats. I see no connection."
    "There isn't one."
    "So why is it called fencing?"
    "I don't
know
why it's called fencing. It just is, that's all."
    "It's foolish. These clothes are foolish. This is a foolish time. I do not like it. This is nothing like what you told me."
    "Give it a chance, Andre. You've only been here for one day."
    "I see no reason why we have to wear these foolish clothes. I saw other people on the