He stood with hat in hand, enjoying the rain on his face, which ceased even as he did so, though the gusty wind continued. He watched her till the lane’s bend took her. Why, indeed, was he helping her? Was it her eyes, their beauty reaffirmed even in the darkness of a St. Giles street? No. A fool he might be, but a romantic fool he was not. Was it that he wanted something to do while he waited for further word from the Jew as to the value of his gems? More likely. After the gunshot, and the news that one of the thief-takers was that close, the sensible thing would have been to keep to the room in the Aldgate tavern after he’d accomplished his mission for Lucy. Yet he knew his nature; he could not lie low. Though Dickon was surprisingly good at Gleek or Ombre, they were not games that two c
