"Such are the squires of England," whispered Cornbury. "They will drink and dice and wench for the Prince, but not fight for him."
"Not yet," Alastair corrected. "But when your lordship joins us he will not be unattended."
They reached the corner of the house from which in daylight the great avenue could be seen, the spot where that morning Alastair had delivered his credentials.
"I hear hooves," said Cornbury, with a hand to his ear. "Nay, it is only the night wind."
"It is a horse," said the other. "I have heard it for the last minute. Now it is entering the courtyard. See, there is a stable lantern."
A light swayed, and there was the sound of human speech.
"That is Kyd's Scotch servant," Cornbury said. "Let us inquire into the errand of this night-rider."
As they moved towards the lantern a commotion began, and the light wavered like a ship's lamp in a heavy sea.
"Haud up, sir," cried a voice. "Losh, the beast's foundered, and the man's in a dwam."