The next day he spent at his little cottage. The afternoon heat had sweat moistening down the plane's and muscles of his body as he stood shirtless in the field an axe in his hand. He wiped an arm over his face and tossed the last of the wood onto the covered pile. The pile was easily a head taller than him, and winter was still some time off. He plunged the axe into a piece of stray wood and carried it under the pavillion. He wouldn't want the metal to rust if it rained. He walked to the stream a few miles down and washed the sweat from his body with a soft little sponge he left by the riverbed. Tomorrow he would kidnap Nadine.
It was a thought on a endless loop in his head disturbing him. It drove him to keep his hands busy. As he strolled back to the cottage the shadows in the trees made him think of her long glistening black hair. He wanted to run his hands through it when he saw her next.
He halted in his path and pulled on his own hair in frustration. He felt rediculous. He had barely spoken to her. He had danced with her for less than a half hour and he had kissed her.
He moaned as he began walking again. He was infatuated by her appearance. Lured by her body. He had to shove that all aside.
Tomorrow he would have to execute his plan to kidnap her.
×××
At the Ravenglass estate on the second level in the largest bedroom a elegant woman with violet grey eyes paced back and forth.
How could she be thinking about going to meet a middleclass man when she was the only daughter of a nobleman like her father. Speaking of her father, she was suprised he had not summoned her as it was afternoon already.
She chalked it up to him having much too much to drink and went back to pacing the large room.
The way Edward had kissed her flashed through her head like lightening. She had been kissed before but never with such confidence. Never with such unbridled passion. She flushed and opened a window for some cool air. She smiled at the picture of him in her head. Their was somthing mischievous in him and a deep sadness. She wanted to uncover him and then decide where to go from there. It was unfathomable to meet with him and yet she had been thinking none stop about how she would wear her hair. She had been in and out of her closet a million times, and she smiled at the utter ridiculousness of it all. When they'd met she'd been wearing nothing special to a party where many men would gaze at her, and he was middleclass at that. Anything she wore would likely be much more exspensive than anything he owned. She sighed and went back to her closet.
***
It was late and the marketplaces were just closing as Scar left a long flat plastic bag over his arm and a small case beside two brown paper bags in his hand. His other arm left free as he spun a metal button. He hired a carriage back to the Sylvador manor. When he stepped out into the street Rat was outside with a group of the men going over plans for his next job. Scar had heard that his orders were for a robbery of a well known vault of valuables. He sneered at his back as he passed and ran right into a man named Carver,
"Hey! Dumb bastard watch where your..." Carver had spilt somthing down his shirt and looked up with a murderous glint to his eyes. His eyes widened as he saw who he was talking to.
"Scarface, I uh.. didnt see it was you."
Scarface watched in amusement as the large man turned white and then scrambled for his dignity, "I um should pay more attention to where I'm going."
He let his face break into a wide smile, the man remained hesitant as he backed up a pace, nervously fiddling with his shirt.
"Nonsense Carver," he took a step forward, "I hope that doesn't stain." He flicked the other man's shirt and walked away.
Carver seemed to gain his senses and spun on his heel, "Hey Scarface, do you need any backup with your latest job?"
Scar shot a glance at Rat through the door, and his lip curled despite himself.
"Everyone knows I work alone."
Carver scratched his head, "Yeah, I just thought with it being such a big job and all..."
He smiled softly, almost genuinely this time, and turned for the stairs, "I'm afraid some habits just cant be broken. Thanks for the offer Carver, I'll remember it."
Carver nodded, pleased with himself, and turned down one of the first level hallways, Scar assumed he was changing his shirt out. When he reached his room he grabbed his expensive, shiny, leather shoes and stuffed them on top of the contents of the first brown paper bag. He turned and left shortly after. A block down the street he climed back into the carriage waiting for him and rode off to his little cottage. The carriage stopped a considerable distance from his hidden abode and he exited into the wet night air. The rain was light, hardly rain at all but he walked briskly to the entrance. He pushed the door open quickly and went straight to his room laying his things down on the bed and removing his cloak. It spattered the floor with stray droplets of water as he hung it on a wooden peg rack. Another one of his hand crafted pieces. Along with the wooden rotating floor pedestal.
He began unloading the first brown sack. He tossed his shoes onto the rotating pedestal and pulled out a long chain and two pairs of thick metal bracelets with soft padded lining. Shackles designed for foreplay but unbreakable, he would know, he had used them before. Ofcourse his intentions were entirely different from what he'd used them for in the past. He'd bought them from a merchant who was used to keeping the discretion of rich nobles in concealed hoods and cloaks. He smirked to think that he'd been assumed as a noble, but as long as no eyebrows were raised he was pleased. Among that he'd bought an exspensive silver suit and in the small case sat a frozen black rose. He told himself it was all part of the plot to kidnap Nadine, even the rose. He didnt know how long negotiations would be with Marcion, but he had to be prepared for the worst. He unpacked dough and eggs from the bags storing them away in the underground box in the kitchen. There was still snow from last winter packed into the sides of small space. Snow that only stayed because of a few sprinkles of corked ice magic every few months. The stuff was exspensive as hell but worth every penny. He had baskets of dried meat wrapped and stored in the corner of the kitchen. They could stay here for the rest of autumn and into the middle of winter at least living off the dried meat storage he had. A little shed a mile off the house held a small inventory of wines and cheeses. The cheeses he had bought. The wine he had made, it was good quality stuff. He'd kept a lock on door once the guys had found it and had a bit too much fun. He chuckled at the memory of a nineteen year old Rat in a drunken stupor, ofcourse that was just before they had met Savaria.
He went to the front door and grabbed the little broom he kept outside. It was frayed and beaten but she still got the job done. He swept the area quickly and deposited the broom back out front.
He lit the oils lamps as he went and contemplated where to install the hook for the chain. He ended up putting it beneath the archway between the bathroom and the bedroom. The chain made it to the kitchen and almost to the front door. He unhammered the link and rehammered it back into place. Taking of the four feet of extra chain as he went. He took out the middle link on each bracelet set and wiped away the sweat on his forehead before adding in the extra links between the bracelets. It was the least he could do to make her comfortable. When he was done he was very displeased with the feeling in his gut, but his stance on the matter was clear. Tomorrow morning first thing when he met with her he would abduct her. His future with the gang depended on it.