"Yes, I need to spend the morning in thevillage seeing to those that are ill. Don't worry, I'll be returning tothe castle in the afternoon." You have ... meeting with the village elders of Whiteflow tomorrowafternoon." Macha reminded her love, as she dismounted from her ownhorse."Evening then." Aislin looked up at the Knight and smiled."No chance of you sleeping in late tomorrow then?" Miles asked half-jokingly. No matter how the King's Healer tried to hide it, Aislinlooked like she was going to. Sid and Ryan were almost two peas in a pod. Both had short, dirty blond hair, thin faces with sharp noses and both had accents.I got picked up at the house because we were taking the Guerneville Road to the coast so we could take good old U.S. 1 down the coast to Point Reyes Station. The overcast skies were soon matched by the blue-gray waters of the Pacific as we sped on down the highway. There had been music on the radio and happy and excited chatter all around, but it mostly flowed around. You accept. Ready?’‘I’m not sure,’ smiled Trudy.‘Tough. Brace yourself,’ he murmured, winking at Trudy and sending her a wicked grin. ‘It’s payback time.’ Eddie pressed a button on his phone and threw the device down on the bed beside them. Trudy’s eyes swivelled to look at it, noting that the display showed 09:59. She turned back to look at Eddie and felt a shiver pass across her body. He was standing an arm’s length away from her, studying her carefully. She opened her mouth to say something. Moore. It would be a shame if something were to happen, say fires, vandalism, that sort of thing. I’m offering you an insurance policy here, a contract that would stop any of that from happening, and the cost is only fifteen per cent of everything, a bargain really. My employers require an answer in the next seven days. Think carefully before you decide.”“Is this an attempt at extortion?”The man looked mildly amused. “Not at all. We are merely a protective service, to make sure no bad luck.