The cart rumbled to a stop in front of arge, weathered house. The evening sun cast long shadows across the crumbling paint, but the neat surroundings suggested care despite the building''s age.
Gustavo leapt down first, his eyes darting around, assessing the area for any potential threats.
Satisfied with the apparent safety, he nodded to ckthorn, who then carefully descended from the cart.
Approaching the door, Gustavo rapped his knuckles against the wood. Silence. He knocked again, more firmly this time.
"Coming!" a female voice called from inside. Footsteps approached, and the door creaked open.
Ady appeared, unmistakably one of Zafron''s stepsister, her eyes widening at the sight of Gustavo''s imposing figure. She had brown hair and brown eyes. On her she wore a white overall robe which she tied at the waist with a rope.
From on objective standpoint, she was beautiful but nothing to go against the world for. Perhaps a few refinements here and there would have done her favours? Then again, that would require substantial amount of money.
Thedy took an instinctive step back, fear flickering across her face.
Gustavo, noticing her reaction, tried to soften his expression. "Good evening, youngdy," he said, his gruff voice at odds with his attempt at politeness. "Is this Zafron''s house?"
Thedy nodded hesitantly. "Yes, it is."
"Is your father home?" Gustavo asked, out of ignorance that Zafron''s father had died years ago.
At this, thedy''s face fell, a shadow of grief passing over her features. "I''m sorry," she said softly, "but our father passed away some time ago." She paused, regaining herposure. "Our mother is inside, though. May I ask who you are and what business you have here?"
As Gustavo opened his mouth to respond, a violent cough took over him. He tried to muffle it but it was fruitless.
ckthorn stepped forward, his voice smooth and reassuring. "Girl, tell your mother that some friends from the city are here to say hello."
The woman nodded, still wary, and disappeared back into the house.
Gustavo quickly regained hisposure and a few momentster, footsteps approached once more.
An older woman emerged, her ck hair framing a face. She was of average height, but her figure was still shapely, hinting at a beauty that age had only refined.
Her dark eyes swept over the two men, curiosity and caution mingling in her gaze.
For a brief moment, hope shed across her features, as if expecting to see Matilda. But as she took in the strangers before her, that hope faded into polite confusion.
"Wee," she said, her voice warm but guarded. "What brings you gentlemen here? I''m afraid I don''t recognize you."
ckthorn stepped forward, a charming smile on his face. "Good evening, ma''am. I''m ckthorn, Matilda''s husband."
At the mention of Matilda''s name, recognition dawned in the woman''s eyes. "Matilda? The one who took Zafron to the city?"
ckthorn nodded, and the woman''s demeanor instantly changed.
Her face lit up with a genuine smile, and she gestured towards the door. "Oh... I''m Mirabel, Zafron''s stepmother. Please, pleasee in! Any friend of Matilda''s is wee here."
The house was no more modest on the inside as it was on the outside. The walls were in bricks without ster on it. The ground as well just that it had been smoothened out. It exined why their feet was dirty when ckthorn looked down. They were offered to sit on a wooden bench, at least that was what they passed for cushion.
ckthorn was guessing this had to be the living room area. Although it wasn''t apparent, he could tell from a few things like the mat spread across the floor on one end where a bunch of te appeared to have been left behind. Three, three people were eating before they came.
As they settled in the house, Mirabel continued, "I''m sorry for the confusion. We don''t get many visitors from the city. Please, make yourselvesfortable. I''m sure you have much to tell us about Zafron and life in the big city."
As they settled into the modest living room, Zafron''s stepmother called out, "Kate, bring some food for our guests!"
ckthorn quickly interjected, "That''s very kind of you, ma''am, but we''re fine. We can''t stay long – we need to get back to the city before it getspletely dark."
The woman nodded, a hint of disappointment crossing her face. "I understand. How is Zafron doing? It''s been so long since we''ve heard from him."
ckthorn exchanged a quick nce with Gustavo before responding smoothly, "Zafron is doing well. I''m sorry we couldn''t bring him along.....this visit was rather unexpected."
"And Matilda?" the woman asked, hope in her voice. "How is she?"
"She''s fine," ckthorn replied, his tone carefully neutral. He paused, then added casually, "It''s been a while since youst spoke with Matilda, hasn''t it?"
The woman nodded, her expression showing no particr concern. "Yes, it has been some time. But you know how it is with city life – I''m sure she''s very busy."
ckthorn noted the genuineck of awareness in her voice regarding Zafron and Matilda''s disappearance.
He decided not to press the issue, realizing that this line of questioning wouldn''t yield any useful information.
Sensing that their visit was yielding no useful information, ckthorn decided to cut it short. "I''m afraid we need to be going now," he said, rising from his seat.
"So soon?" Mirabel asked, surprised by what she heard.
"Yes. We''ve got a long journey back to the city ahead of us."
Zafron''s mother nodded, a mix of disappointment and understanding on her face. She walked them to their cart, the evening air growing cooler as night approached.
Just as ckthorn was about to climb into the cart, she turned to him with a curious expression. "Oh, I almost forgot to ask – did Matilda send anything with you? For us, I mean."
ckthorn paused, his interest piqued. "What sort of thing might that be?" he asked carefully.
"Well," she hesitated, "perhaps a cash payment? Something we had agreed upon earlier."
ckthorn felt irritated, but he kept his expression neutral. "I''m afraid not," he replied smoothly. "But then again, I didn''t tell Matilda I wasing by. Perhaps next time."
The woman nodded, trying to hide her disappointment. "Of course, I understand. Safe travels back to the city." Just then, twodies appeared by her side mumbling some words to her. She snapped at them, causing them both to run back inside. It was clear her guests didn''t leave her in the manner she had hoped.
''Has Matilda not run the test on Zafron?! What is going on?! I need this money or she should bring him back so we could find a better master for him who would be willing to pay!'' Mirabel thought behind clenched jaws.
Meanwhile, as ckthorn and Gustavo drove through the vige and out into the surrounding countryside, ckthorn''s mind was racing.
The mysterious payment, Zafron''s absence, Matilda''s disappearance, a hopeless search - all of it swirled in his thoughts.
A nagging feeling grew stronger, suggesting that Matilda might have fled to some distantnd. But where?
His contemtion was abruptly interrupted when the cart jerked to a sudden stop. He was just about to pour all his frustrations on the driver before he heard the driver''s voice, tinged with rm, calling out, "Sir, there are men ahead!"
ckthorn''s instincts kicked in immediately. "Gustavo, check it out," he ordered calmly.
Gustavo nodded, stepping down from the cart. In the pale moonlight, he could make out a group of figures blocking the road. His trained eyes quickly picked out crude weapons in their hands - clubs, knives, perhaps even a makeshift spear or two.
These weren''t seasoned bandits, but desperate locals looking for an easy score.
Returning to the cart, Gustavo reported tersely, "It''s a group of boys, armed. Looks like we''ve got some would-be robbers on our hands."
ckthorn''s eyes narrowed. He''d seen this scenario y out before. "You know what to do, right?" he asked Gustavo, his voice low and dangerous.
"Of course, my lord,"
Gustavo nodded, a grim smile ying on his lips. He understood perfectly.