Page 122 of New Storm Rising
I nodded. “Call him in.”
Reaching out, Mr Ambrose rang the bell on his desk. A moment later, a nervous yet excited young man stuck his head through the door. I recognized one of the villagers who had first come to ask us for help.
“Yes, Mr Ambrose, Sir? What can I do for you, Mr Ambrose, Sir?”
“Send in the marshal, please.”
“Yes, Mr Ambrose, Sir! Right away, Mr Ambrose, Sir!”
Rushing out, the man skipped down the corridor.
I raised my toast-holding hands to do air quotes. “Yes, Mr Ambrose, Sir! Right Away, Mr Ambrose, Sir!”
“Quite satisfactory manners, don’t you think? I know a certain secretary who could learn a thing or two from such a polite young man.”
“You…!” I aimed a kick at his shin, which he neatly dodged. I aimed another, which he also dodged.
“Two to zero,” Mr Ambrose said, sounding not the least bit smug. No, definitely not.
“This isn’t a game of footsie!”
“It isn’t? I seem to remember us playing a rather similar game at my parental home.”
“Well, yes, but—”
“You might almost say,” he interrupted, his dark, sea-coloured eyes boring deeply into mine, “that it is our little tradition?”
For a moment, I was dazzled.
That moment was all he needed.
“Ow!”
“Three to one,” Mr Ambrose announced, not smiling smugly whatsoever.
“You…! I said this isn’t a game of footsie! And even if it is, that isn’t a game you keep score for in order to—”Wham!My foot lashed out. “Ha! Caught you by surprise! Three to one!”
“You were saying about not keeping score?”
“Um, never mind. Never mind.” I flashed him a grin. “Let’splay.”
When a certain young man returned five minutes later, he found Mr Rikkard Ambrose and his lady wife sitting at a desk, aiming swift successive kicks at each other’s legs.
“Um…Mr Ambrose, Sir?”
“Ehem.” The dignified business mogul quickly straightened up and cleared his throat. “What is it?”
“I…came to let you know the marshal is on his way, Sir. He’s just doing a last check on the prisoners to make sure they’re all secured. He’ll be here in a few minutes.”
“I see. You may leave.”
“Um…yes, Sir! Do you, err…need some balm for your legs, Sir? I could go to old Mrs McDougal and—”
“That won’t be necessary.You may leave.”
“Yessir! Right away, Sir!”
He raced out of the room, letting the door fall shut behind him. For a moment, silence fell over the room.
