Page 52 of Four Promises to Love

While many would accuse Finn of being a charlatan, she believed she was providing a service. She listened as Mrs. Thornton confided her grief and regrets. While Finn might not have channeled Imelda’s spirit, she provided the messages that Mrs. Thornton needed to hear: that Imelda had forgiven her and was in a better place, one where bygones were forgotten and there was nothing but peace.

If this was fraud, Finn reckoned that any man of the cloth could be accused of the same.

Mrs. Thornton wept during every session, but Finn thought they were necessary tears. The lady was able to remove her armor and show her softer self. If sitting with a seer made her comfortable doing so, then Finn was glad to be of help. Mrs. Thornton, for her part, showed her gratitude with baskets of treats.

After a tasty luncheon of cold steak pie, pickles, and cheese, Finn and the Hawks found themselves at loose ends. Their appointments were done for the day, and their mission to find the treasure at Bottoms House was on hold until Owen’s return. They decided to make the most of their rare leisure by shopping in the village.

To keep up her mystique, Finn wore her usual ensemble, including her veil. Yet this did not prevent the villagers from calling out hellos. Tansy waved back, her face sticky from the column of barley sugar that she’d received from a friendly spinster. Simon proudly wore a hat given to him by the haberdasher, who’d taken pity after seeing the lad squinting in the summer sun. It was a cheap straw topper with a floppy brim, but it was the first item Simon owned that hadn’t been handed down to him, and he wore it as if it were a crown of gold.

Finn came to the astounding realization that the Hawks were benefiting from the stay in Chuddums. They were clean and well fed, with a solid roof over their heads. Instead of being chased by Peelers, angry mobs, and rival gangs, they were welcomed here with open arms. They were treated as if…as if they belonged.

I wonder if Iris would like it here, Finn mused. If we succeed in finding the treasure with none the wiser, perhaps we could return here with Iris. Make a life for ourselves⁠—

“Well, haven’t we all turned disgustingly domestic.”

Caleb’s sneering comment popped the bubble of Finn’s fantasy.

“Must you complain about everything?” she asked.

“I am merely pointing out a fact. We’ve been here a fortnight and aren’t any closer to rescuing Iris.”

“That’s not true. I got us into Bottoms House⁠—”

“That ain’t going to satisfy Carver.”

“I wrote him that we’re making progress,” Finn rejoined. “There’s nothing else I can do. Owen will return soon, and we’ll have another go at finding the jewels.”

“Until then, we’re just going to get fat and jaw with clodhoppers?”

“I like the clodhoppers,” Tansy said. “They’re nice.”

“They’re bribing you with sweets like you’re some babe,” Caleb shot back. “They are making you soft, and you don’t even know it.”

Tansy’s eyes flashed, her hand gripping the stick of barley sugar like a dagger. “I am not soft.”

“Stop it, both of you,” Finn ordered. “Hawks do not fight with one another.”

“Are we still Hawks?”

Through her veil, Finn narrowed her eyes at Caleb. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“It means we are not acting like Hawks. We should be focused on rescuing Iris. Instead, we are turning into a herd of sheep.”

“Flock,” Simon said.

“What?” Caleb glared at him.

“Sheep, flock,” Simon explained. “Cow, herd.”

“See what I mean?” Caleb threw up his hands. “Simon is turning into a bleeding shepherd; Tansy eats sweets all day. And Nell is—where is Nell, anyway?”

They all looked around. Finn spotted Nell several feet away, standing beneath the large bare-branched tree in the village green. She was talking with a strapping lad with wheat-colored hair, and even from a distance, Finn could see that somber, practical Nell was blushing.

“Bugger this,” Caleb growled. “I’ll not stand by and watch us fall apart.”

When he stalked off, Tansy made to follow, but Finn stopped her.

“Leave him be,” Finn said flatly. “He’ll come back after his head is cool.”