A winding pathway reached the house, an imposing white-boarded affair of two floors with ornamental pillars supporting the veranda roof. Broad steps, edged with white balustrades, led up to the main door set to the right, with wide, panoramic windows alongside. In the black slate roof were three dormer windows. Two large barns were adjacent to the main building, a fenced-in area nearby in which three horses stood lazily staring at the approaching visitors.
Apart from the animals, the place appeared deserted.
Cole reined in his horse and looked askance at Parrot. Slung behind the young soldier, hands tightly bound, was Spelling, the wound in his right shoulder oozing blood. “This is the place, right?”
Parrot shrugged. “I guess so, but I ain’t ever been here before, Mr Cole.”
Noting the
