Read BreadCrumb Trail (The Yellow Hoods, #2): Steampunk meets Fairy Tale for Free Online Page B

That makes sense,” he mused, and paused. “I’d burn a lot of things, but I don’t think I’d burn my life’s work. St. Malo made it clear how important this is to you. You wouldn’t destroy everything.” He stood up. “You gave it… to your son … to take to someone. Perhaps… ah .” Satisfied with his deduction, the Hound slapped his knees and then stood.
    With a final glance around, he turned and exited the town home. He carefully locked up, and then called over one of his thugs. “I need you to brush all around here—we want no sign of footprints. Do you understand?”
    The thug nodded.
    “Your money will be waiting for you at the tavern where we met earlier. Ask the bartender,” said the Hound. He stepped into the coach and closed the door.
    Inside the coach, Maxwell Watt, tied up and with a large man at each side, stared at the Hound.
    “Watt, I know where you’ve sent your son,” said the Hound, grinning menacingly.

CHAPTER SIX

Merry Solstice
     
    It warmed Nikolas’ heart to see the large crowd that had gathered for Mineau’s first community Solstice celebration. He greeted and thanked every person who came forward with something to donate. Some apologized for the quality or number of gifts they were giving, and Nikolas reminded them no score was being kept, and that it was their act of generosity that was the important thing.
    The line of children awaiting a gift started at the sleigh, then wound and snaked away so far that Nikolas couldn’t see the end. There were Mineau guardsmen throughout, more as a reminder to everyone to behave well, than for any specific action. Nikolas loved seeing the children of the poor and rich alike, standing side-by-side, and eventually talking to one another. He’d seen remarkable friendships develop because of the Solstice lines.
    Some people out for an evening walk stopped and stared, not sure what to make of everything. Some watched from a distance, often being approached by someone participating and thus being drawn into the event. If anyone had an issue with what was taking place, they kept it to themselves.
    “I can’t believe you guys made all this stuff,” said Tee. The Yellow Hoods were responsible for taking gifts from the sleigh, one by one, and handing them to Pierre, who handed them to the line of Cochon brothers and guardsmen, and then on to Captain Gabriel Archambault of Minette and his Mineau counterpart’s right-hand man, Deputy Captain Samuel Davis of Mineau, and finally to Nikolas, who handed each gift to a child.
    It was Isabella, many years ago, who insisted Nikolas be the one to hand the gifts to the children, instead of being the one taking them out of the sleigh. The Magistrate of Minette had made a point of telling Nikolas, with Isabella at his side, that if Nikolas wasn’t going to be the one to hand the gifts out, then there would be no community celebration. The Magistrate at the time felt it was very much Nikolas’ creation. Nikolas was certain it was a bluff, but relented. From then on, he required everyone involved in the gift giving line to train together, so they could get through it quickly, without the children feeling they were having toys thrown at them.
    The Magistrate of Mineau sat at the table closest to where the gifts were being handed out, but had been too suspicious at first to participate. He watched for twenty minutes as each present was placed into the hands of an appreciative child, on the stage he’d insisted be built for the purpose. Then, to the surprise of many, he got up and took the place just before Nikolas. He didn’t feel right taking the spot he’d originally demanded, that of being the one to actually hand the presents to the children. He struggled to keep up, often forcing Deputy Captain Davis to toss gifts above or around him to Nikolas to maintain the flow. It made for a wonderful spectacle and drew cheers from the crowd.
    After the last child, Tee looked down the line and saw there were