Fred to the Rescue
The Never Ending Quest - Episode 32257
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Fred waited what seemed to him a very long time, but was actually only
another fifteen minutes, when at last he heard voices and saw the light of
a torch. The men were leaving the barn, and from their frequent laughter
they seemed to be in high spirits. He couldn't hear Astra's voice, and at
this distance their torch provided too little light to tell whether she
was with them. All he could see was a number of dark figures.
As the men approached, it looked more and more as if Astra was not with them. He crouched lower in the gulley as they passed by on the road. A couple of snatches of their conversation came to him on the breeze: "...fell for it hook, line and sinker... the boss will be very pleased... what are we going to do with her?... that bracelet might be worth something." That did not sound at all good. He waited till they were out of sight, then made his way over to the barn. The padlock on the outer door was in place. That wasn't all bad news, though, as it implied that the men hadn't left anyone behind on guard. He took the slight risk of lighting his own torch, and made a circuit of the barn hoping to find another way in. However he couldn't find one. He would have to use his belt dagger to cut out the lock. That wouldn't do his dagger any good, and would take some time, but he probably had at least until dawn. An hour later, he was able to enter the barn. The doors of most of the stalls were open, and he could see that the stalls were empty. A few doors were shut. Luckily each door was secured by one bolt near the top and another near the bottom. He would not need to use his dagger again. He opened the door nearest to him. The light was dim, but he could see a centaur's rear end facing him. "Horace?" he asked. The centaur turned to face him.
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JH
9/14/2003 3:21:37 AM
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