Night had descended and Walter had been waiting patiently. He had it all planned; he had informed the maid that had come to his residence on Her Ladyship"s orders, that he had information to pa.s.s along. All he needed to do was wait for instructions. Just as he had thought; the maid, Shilla, had returned. She led him through a track by the west garden. There, the lady was waiting for him. She was dressed in a flowing dress that looked grey under moonlight, she had a large fur for a shawl, it draped around her shoulder, while some of it"s length was cupped around her arm allowing the remaining fall to the gra.s.s. She looked positively regal."My lady" he said with a bow.
"You requested to meet? What is this information?" she asked.
"My lady, there were a few loose ends during the acquisition. Lady Steinhouse offered a hand of help. She had put two together about my work, as she had seen myself and the two lords the other day. She asked something in return. She wanted dirt on the minister of finance. She already knows the gold is with us as she had known of the Mclears lost fortune. It makes one suspect her motive as there is the matter of the extra gold. She wanted the minister of finance investigated. Lord Morge looked into it and found that the minister has his hands dirty in the queen"s work." he explained. He wanted to elaborate when she stopped him.
"So, she wants permission whether she should act or not." Lucy commented.
"Yes, my lady, it seems so to me. What ever she is playing at, it seems it is big and may have connections to the extra gold in our possession." Walter said.
"So, the king intends to dispose of the queen." Lucy said softly and Walter paused. How did his few word end up in that deduction?
"My lady?" he asked confused.
"The money in our possession is from the royal treasury." Lucy said and Walter"s eyes visibly shrunk.
"Now, I see the full picture. The queen had taken money without the king"s approval and from what you have described, it must be a lot. Her crime is enough to be executed but that can"t work because of her background." Lucy said.
"How..." Walter started to ask. He was confused. How is she putting this together? Lucy saw his confusion and smiled. This smile made his hair stand.
"Do you know why I sent you to get the information about those names on the list? When you understand people"s relationships with each other and their history, random things look like straight lines." Lucy said and Walter stared. He understood what she meant, but he had not said much, so how did she do it? Seeing that Walter did not understand, Lucy explained.
"You had said she helped you with the loose end and that she is aware we are responsible for the lost gold. That means she had taken this information to the king. She would not have taken it, if it was not an information that could help the king. You also said she asked you to investigate the minister of finance and you found out that the minister is one of the queen"s helpers. If the gold we have with us is a trigger, that means it evidence of the queen"s malpractice. Since this is a financial struggle; there is no better crime to help the king dispose of the queen, than stealing from the kingdom. Do you see the entire picture now? I know that the Lady Steinhouse is only interested in helping the king; the king has always wanted to dispose of the queen but has no means to do so; the Mclears have been receiving aid from the queen to harm me all this while; but, the king is not sure why I have not gotten rid of the queen for him. He has never stopped her from doing her worst, hoping that I will make a move. He must have thought that she was still of use to me, so he asks his niece to confirm that I don"t mind him taking her out. Tell her I don"t mind. Give her what ever she wants." she explained and Walter stared. She deduced that just because she knows of people"s relationships?
"Do you think I would spend my time explaining this to you?" Lucy asked and Walter froze. He had a bad feeling about this.
"You have worked with the Lady Steinhouse once; you may have to work with her for a while." Lucy gave a soft chuckle and Walter frowned. Why did he have a bad premonition?
"You have grown Walter, from the small stable boy to the leader of a household in the country. That farm is no small investment and it is in your name. You must understand, this will come in handy right? There will come a time when this will be to your own good." Lucy smiled.
"Have I done wrong My Lady? You sound like it"s my turn to plotted against." Walter shivered under her smiling gaze. Why did the moon light seem so bright tonight? Why did he feel as though he was stared down by a predator?
"No, you are one of mine. I will not plot against you, I will plot for you. This will probably be your reward for being good at your job." Lucy grinned sweetly.