A Bad Man's Song (In The Absence of Light Book 2) by Andy Monk

Author:Andy Monk [Monk, Andy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2013-01-05T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nine

J’entends Ton Coeur

The Babbington Estate, Essex -1688

“How do you feel now?”

Although her face was slightly flushed Henrietta’s breathing was far easier than his; the Duchess had warned Daniel he would need to use a firm hand to show her who was in control, however, it was advice he’d been struggling to follow.

“Sore,” Daniel complained, squirming as he sought a more comfortable position. His mock scowl suddenly dissolved into to a cry of alarm, leaving Henrietta trying to stifle her laughter as he lurched away from her. Martha had spotted a particularly enticing clump of foliage and had decided neither the wailing young man on her back or the steep grassy bank that separated her from it were going to impede her gluttony.

By the time Henrietta had wheeled her own horse around and followed Daniel down the bank, Martha had already buried her face into the grass and was munching happily, despite Daniel’s best efforts to pull her away with the reins.

“You’re not a natural born horseman are you, my dear?” Henrietta giggled, pulling up alongside him and letting her own, apparently far better behaved mount, join in with Martha’s feast.

“Never had much call to ride them in Smithfield; however I’m highly skilled at jumping out of the way of both their hooves and their shit.”

They spent a good long while smiling at each other before she leaned over and kissed him lightly on the lips. For perhaps the hundredth time that day Daniel stopped himself from telling Henrietta that he loved her.

Henrietta pulled away with Martha’s reins in her hand, yanking them forcefully enough to drag the reluctant animal from her meal and leading them both back up the bank.

“A firm hand,” she repeated pointedly, before returning the reins to Daniel.

“I know,” he sighed, patting the back of Martha’s neck, “I just don’t want to hurt her.”

“Strength is required when riding a horse Daniel, ‘tis only a lady that responds to gentleness…”

With that, she headed off along the edge of the woods leaving him with no alternative but to persuade the ever hungry Martha to follow suit. Though the horse was reluctant to leave the vegetation in peace, she eventually waddled after Henrietta and fell in step behind her mount, Blythe.

Despite the natural wariness of horses that most Londoners quickly developed as a means of avoiding being trampled to death on the city’s chaotic streets, coupled with Martha’s natural preference for eating over moving, Daniel found that he was rather enjoying himself. The afternoon sun was warm and although the air was sticky with moist summer heat they were skirting the edge of woodland and mostly rode in the comforting shade.

Daniel had initially found it unnerving to live in a place that lacked the constant noise, stink and random violence of London, however, he found he was slowly adjusting to the countryside, he’d even become accustomed to his spit not being black anymore.

Along with most of the Quality, every year the Duke of Pevansea moved his household out of London before the summer heat made the city air too fetid and heavy with disease-ridden miasmas.

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