Summary

Edmund Jordan arrives in the village -- with his steward, his groom, and three sidemen -- upon a gruesome scene: Master Kent, Mr. Quill, and Thirsk standing around the corpse of the older newcomer, who has died in the pillory. Thirsk believes that the man died because, exhausted from standing on tiptoe while confined in the pillory, he slipped and snapped his neck. He allows himself to entertain theories that would make him feel less responsible, given that he failed to bring the man a log to stand on the previous night, but he cannot shake the guilt he feels for the man's death.

Master Jordan, his steward, Master Kent, and Mr. Quill all go into the parlor of the manor house, and Thirsk is assigned to return Willowjack to the stable. When Thirsk returns to the manor house, he decides to go inside...