What Cannot Be Said by Harris C. S
Author:Harris, C. S. [Harris, C. S.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Mystery, Historical, Crime
ISBN: 9780593639184
Amazon: 0593639189
Goodreads: 192724301
Publisher: Berkley
Published: 2024-04-16T07:00:00+00:00
Chapter 32
That afternoon, Sebastian was staring thoughtfully at a map of Richmond Park and the surrounding area when he heard a door slam in the distance, followed by the pounding of running feet and Moreyâs annoyed hiss.
âGovânor! Govânor!â shouted Tom, sliding to a halt as he came through the library door, one hand flying up to catch his cap. âWait till ye âear what I found out about that there fencing master yer interested in!â
* * *
Sebastian found Damion Pitcairn sitting by himself at a quiet table, drinking a tankard of porter in a public house in Soho known as the Cock.
A tidy brick inn dating to the previous century, the Cock was popular with the fading areaâs population of artisans, day laborers, small shop owners, and tradesmen. The atmosphere was thick with the scents of tobacco, roasting meat, spilled beer, and hardworking menâs sweat; the clatter of tankards and heavy ironstone plates punctuated the roar of rough voices and laughter. When Sebastian walked up to him, the fencing master raised his tankard to his lips and took a deep swallow before saying, âI gather youâre here to see me?â
Someone nearby cracked a lewd joke, and the half dozen men grouped around the table with him roared with laughter. Sebastian threw a significant glance toward the door to the street. âIt might be a good idea to go for a walk.â
Pitcairn stared up at him for a moment, then set aside his tankard with a dull thump and rose.
They walked down Dean Street, toward the Haymarket. This was an area of older houses and shops some two and three stories tall, interspersed with blacksmiths and stables and an extraordinary number of pubs. âYou didnât tell me youâre a Spencean,â said Sebastian, dodging a puddle in the broken pavement.
Pitcairnâs eyes narrowed, but he didnât deny it. âWhy the bloody hell would I? What difference could it possibly make to anything?â
âPerhaps none,â said Sebastian. âDid you know Thomas Spence?â
âI did. He was an admirable man. Spent more than twenty years in and out of prison for daring to believeâand sayâthat all men are created equal, slavery is an abomination, all men and women should have the right to vote, and children have a right to live free from abuse and poverty.â
âNot to mention that the aristocracy should be abolished and all land held in common.â
Pitcairn looked over at him and grinned. âThat, too.â
âI assume Sir Ivo was ignorant of your philosophical leanings when he hired you to improve his sonâs fencing?â
The manâs smile faded and he looked away. âI donât exactly go around advertising my beliefs, if thatâs what youâre asking. Iâll be the first to admit I lack Thomas Spenceâs courage.â
âAnd yet you drink at the Cock.â
âSo?â
Sebastian studied the other manâs taut profile. He was brilliant and unbelievably talented and wise beyond his years, but he was still youngâso very, very young. âEver hear of a man named John Stafford?â
Pitcairn shook his head.
âHeâs a nasty, officious little clerk in Bow Street who basically functions as the domestic spymaster for the Home Office.
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