Widow of Jerusalem: A Medieval Mystery Read Online Free PDF Page B

hours.”
    “That ruins the direct approach,” I mused, looking up at the center tower. Its sandstone blocks were too smoothly joined to permit scaling from the outside.
    “Did that little bastard tell you why he needed us?” asked Blondel. “He says he has a plan. Want to know it?”
    “I have a feeling that I don’t,” sighed Blondel. “Let’s go.”
----
    S carlet was already waiting for us at the tavern, three cups, a pitcher of wine, and a small repast on the table before him. He waved us to a pair of stools, and we sat meekly before him like schoolchildren. Blondel filled him in on the signet ring and its protectors.
    “That’s about what I figured,” said Scarlet. “Getting the ring will be hard enough, but returning it before anyone discovers the theft is the part that may be truly impossible.”
    “May be,” I said. “But not definitely, I take it.”
    “The way I see it, there are three levels and three of us. One in the tower, one on the roof of the castellum, and one on the ground.”
    “To do what?” asked Blondel.
    Scarlet reached into his cloak.
    “Tau asked me about rope earlier,” he said to me. “I, of course, prefer smaller things.” He pulled out two balls of twine and handed one to each of us.
    “You told me yesterday that you could have Richard anytime you wanted,” said Scarlet.
    “I may have been exaggerating,” Blondel said quickly.
    “Let’s find out,” said Scarlet. “Get into his room. Get him drunk enough to fall asleep, then lower the casket from the window to the roof. Theo, you’ll take it from there.”
    “The roof is patrolled,” I pointed out.
    “But not heavily,” said Scarlet. “Not with the bulk of the army still camped outside the walls. So, you get the casket from Blondel, carry it over to the side overlooking the wall, and lower it down to me. There’s a trench where a sapper’s tunnel caved in just to the left of the center tower. That will give me enough cover to have a candle lit and still be hidden from anyone on the ground. I’ll pick the lock, use the seal, then send it back up to you, Theo.”
    “And I tie it back on the string,” I continued. “Then Blondel brings it back up, and goes to sleep.”
    “Fat chance of that happening,” he said. “I’ll be a disaster in the morning.”
    “We only need you to be beautiful tonight,” said Scarlet. “In the morning, the two of us will be long gone.”
    “A pity you’ll miss my beheading,” sighed Blondel. “I can think of a hundred ways this can go wrong.”
    “And I can think of twenty-seven hundred reasons why you have to do this,” I said.
    “Yes,” he said, looking down. “So can I. Look, we can keep this simple. Give me the document, and let me do the sealing in the room. Then I can just give it to you in the morning.”
    “There are two reasons that won’t work,” said Scarlet. “First, we need to be out of the city and at the supply ship before dawn breaks. Second, if you’re caught tinkering with the casket, that will be awkward, but if you’re caught tinkering with the basket and have the document as well, that would be fatal. I don’t want Richard to know what we’re doing.”
    “But you’ll have both,” objected Blondel.
    “Yes,” replied Scarlet. “So I’ll be the one taking the brunt of the punishment. In fact, if they catch me, the two of you should have enough warning to get out.”
    “Oh, good,” said Blondel. “On the run in hostile territory with
    Theophilos. A dream come true. Well. See you at the party.”
    He stood, swallowed his wine in a gulp, and left.
    “Do we trust him?” asked Scarlet.
    “He’s still one of us,” I said. “He’s young. The Guild training is still fresh in him, so he’s game for anything, You have to survive to my advanced age to become disillusioned.”
    “And yet, aged one, you persist,” he observed, smiling. “Why?”
    I shrugged.
    “Survive a little longer, and you get past the disillusionment,” I