Clutching her robe tightly to her chest, Aveline moved slowly toward the window and hid herself beside the curtain before daring to peek outside.
"Young lady!"
The voice that reached her was unfamiliar, belonging to a middle-aged man she did not know. His tone was not hostile, but it was loud enough to startle her, and the strangeness of it made her frown at once.
"I come in peace!" he called up. "I only want to speak with you for a moment."
Aveline's brows drew together. This was odd enough to make her wary, and yet there was something about the scene below that tugged at her curiosity despite herself.
She looked out properly then, and saw him standing beneath her window in dark linen clothes, his hair disheveled, his feet bare, and a rake held loosely in one hand.
He looked like a gardener. Or perhaps one of the cleaning staff. But something about him did not quite fit that impression.
