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she was but not so far east as the poulterers. That should be safe enough. |
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Joanna called to Knud and explained her purpose. Cautiously, he suggested they should take some of the men in case they should meet looters, but Joanna said it was not necessary. The crowd was so restless that every man was necessary and the shop she had in mind was not far down the lane. They would hardly be out of sight of the men. Joanna touched her mare with her heel and loosened her rein. The animal balked a bit, but when her rider insisted went delicately forward. |
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As she had remembered, the shop was only a short distance south of the market place. It was, as might be expected, tightly shut, but Joanna was determined to have what she needed. She bade Knud dismount and knock on the door. Perhaps someone was within. If notJoanna paused to cough againKnud should try a few of the shops farther down the street. Knud looked around. Certainly the street was quiet enough. There was no sign of thieves and, besides, this was a less likely target for looters than the goldsmiths or butchers or mercers. Little could be realized from jars of unguents or a few handfuls of spice, and the lord mayor's men had been through this area already. It seemed safe enough to Knud to leave his mistress for a few minutes if she remained mounted. He voiced this idea and Joanna agreed readily, coughing again. The air in the narrow lane hardly stirred, but it seemed full of smoke and the horses were moving so restlessly that when Knud dismounted Joanna held out her hand for the rein of his mount. |
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Knocking loud and long had no effect, and Knud moved down the street, peering up at chimneys and through the shutters to determine, if he could, whether anyone was inside. He had found a likely shop quite a way down the street on the other side of the lane when Joanna heard a confused noise swelling slowly behind her. She turned anxiously, but a curve in the lane hid the open area of the Chepe. The noise swelled again. It sounded frantic and ugly. Joanna drew breath to shout for Knud to come back but began to cough |
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