#toodamnloyal

“Navy then,” Templeton accepted the correction gracefully, testing the draw on his pipe. Satisfied, he stood up to light the pipe at the fireplace. “Whichever it is, they seem intent to stretch your neck so avoiding the British in general is likely your best decision right now.” Grabbing a spill from the jar he kept on the mantle, something in Theo’s words struck Templeton’s ears oddly. Turning toward the other man, he tilted his head. “The riots in Boston? You mean the Massacre?” His brows pulled together. That had been roughly eight years ago, and was widely considered the flashpoint for the whole sorry mess the continent was in now. He had been in his twenties then—twenty-four if his math was correct (which he slightly doubted)—and the four of them had been on the run from the British for nearly two years at that point. That was the very reason they had all agreed to stay away from Boston, or any other large city with a strong British presence. None of them were eager to be returned to their prison ship for the miserable trip to London for their court martial. The very thought of taking a sea voyage made Templeton’s stomach churn. It was bad enough at fifteen when the army booted him out to the Colonies. After finally landing on North America’s shores, haggard and borderline-emancipated, Templeton swore he would rather die then make the return voyage to England. Now, as fate would have it, if he did try to return to that blasted island, he likely would die. Better to just try his luck here, and throw his lot somewhat in with the Continentals. “If that’s the event you’re referring too, I’m surprised you were old enough then to influence anyone.” He finally stooped to poke his spill into the fire. “I was only twenty-four myself, and I doubt anyone would have been willing to listen to a word I said about it, even if I had been willing to try.” Lighting his pipe gave Templeton an opportunity to study his guest. Theo did not look too much older than himself, but looks could be deceiving. And if he had been an officer eight years earlier, he might have had the needed clout to try to sway people in one direction or the other, however unsuccessful his attempts had been. Still, it did add an interesting note to the conversation. Tucking the fact away in the back of his mind, Templeton flicked the butt of the spill into the fire, and slowly exhaled a mouthful of smoke. Theo had drifted away from the conversation, staring at the table as if the wood would produce some valuable insight that, so far, had eluded him. After a few minutes, he seemed to give up and returned his attention to his host. Templeton could not help laughing when Theo pointed out that the city was not welcoming to the British. “That’s their own fault, you know.” He pointed out. “Most of the Continental supporters fled to York with the Congress, or scattered around the countryside. When General Howe marched in, mostly all that was left were Tories and people who didn’t pick a side. Since they’ve taken over, they’ve succeeded in alienating all but their richest supporters. Hardly surprising though—somewhere between the soldiers terrorizing the local population without punishment, and the officers burning through the resources to host lavish parties and tedious stage shows, the average citizen is getting rather tired of His Majesty’s presence.” He shook his head. Though he was no supporter of the Crown, Templeton knew the situation did not need to deteriorate so quickly. If the officers had just taken more responsibility for the rank and file, or if they had put some more thought to how their entertainments would look to a tired, hungry populace, then they might still be more tolerated. Though Theo had hoped his tidbit would satisfy Templeton’s curiosity, he likely underestimated just how much the younger man had. The news that Theo grew up in the city made Templeton perk his ears. “Anyone here you should look out for then? Anyone who might remember you… for good or for ill? I know at least one of the Watch’s constables is a local man—you might do well to avoid him if you can, in case he should recognize you.”

Now was hardly the opportune time to have guests in White Hall, but Mary had learned long ago that she needed to always be prepared to host business associates of Richard’s, and notable military figures who might pass through. Granted, in a backwater like Setauket, not that many famous people came to visit so she mostly worried about Richard’s friends. Their current guest, a Mr. Becktel, had claimed relation to a rather rich and influential man in England whom Richard had heard of in passing. Always a man prudent in his choices and never willing to squander opportunities to strengthen connections, Richard welcomed Theo into Whitehall for the few days he would be in the village. Granted the real welcome fell on Mary’s shoulders. As the only woman in the house, she was the de facto Mistress of White Hall. She took pride in that title, and made a point to carry it off with as much dignity and grace as she felt she could muster. So far, she seemed to have done well even if it had made little impact on her husband’s opinions of his father, or the property he was bound to inherit in time. He was still too besotted with his failed cabbage farm. “Mr. Becktel?” Mary swept gracefully into the sitting room where their guest had been established. “Your room is ready now if you wished to retire and freshen up before dinner. If you want, I can show you to it. White Hall is rather large, and it is easy to get turned about.” White Hall was also full of secrets—quite a few of which she would be reluctant to have her guest stumble into while wandering around looking for his bedroom.

Another lieutenant had been kind enough to point out which door to expect Lieutenant Becktel to emerge from and once the door opened, the Admiral smiled a joyful greeting with a chipper “Good morning, Lieutenant Becktel.”

“Et où as-tu appris ça exactement?” He asked back, surprised the man could figure out where his accent was from.

[ @toodamnloyal ]

//whoops xD Cro be a good boy!

Slowly the slayer moved around to look at the various new additions, “Either that or he hired ya for some building but gotta tell ya dude, you’re not gonna see a dime if that’s the case.”