On Rough Seas by Nancy L. Hull

Author:Nancy L. Hull [Hull, Nancy L.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Inside, Aga was surprised to see him so early. "Alec boy. Just in time to help me With these potatoes. Do you mind, lad, peeling and cutting them up for supper? We've only two guests, but we've little meat tonight. They've cut our beef ration to one day a week. So potatoes and turnips will have to carry us for now. Can you help me out a bit?"

"Aye, Aga," Alec agreed. "I've come early to see what I could do. I'll start right now."

Working next to Aga, Alec let the knife slip and drop to the floor.

"Alec lad," Aga asked, "have ye forgotten how to peel potatoes?"

"No, Aga."

"It's early. No need to hurry," Aga assured him.

Alec was still trying to put the pieces of his plan in place. What if the man in the white hat spotted him? If he drank as much as Douglas said, he could get nasty. But if Alec didn't follow him, he might never know the truth. If there was bigger trouble in France, he needed to know.

It was settled. He was going that night. Just like Will, he'd made his decision; he'd see it through.

Later, while the guests finished supper, Alec climbed the rear staircase to prepare their rooms for the evening. Then he scrubbed the floors in the kitchen and stored everything in the larder before excusing himself.

Back in his room, Alec waited for Aga and the others to settle into their quarters. When he didn't hear any more activity in the kitchen, he opened his door just a crack to see that the kitchen was dark. Creeping past the cooker, he leaned over the hearth for a moment to warm his hands and listen for any movement. Then he held the door until it latched, and took off.

He passed the Fifty Shilling Tailor Shoppe and Cooper's Sweets before turning toward Snargate Street and the pubs. He strained to see in the pitch-black streets. Storefronts were dark, and silent flats stretched three floors above him, the buildings standing like sentries on guard.

He was glad that he often used the shortcut through the pub section. In the blackout, he would not have been able to tell one building from another if he had not seen them in daytime. But he was certain of where he was going, so the darkness worked in his favor.

"Hey—you there! Lad! What are you doing?" a voice bellowed. He didn't recognize it, but since the blackouts, people had been warned against robbers roaming the streets.

He took off on a run through the alleys behind the shops. The stranger's steps echoed behind him, but they grew quieter as Alec outran the man, darting around corners and sliding under fences. He slowed to a walk, heard nothing, and covered the next two blocks, ending up kneeling behind a rubbish bin across from the White Horse.

His breathing came in short puffs. He'd been tired before he left, and now the run from the stranger had drained him. He began to think he was wasting his time.

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