Apparently, I'm the Infamous Earl's Legendary Bride

Book 2: My Lord Saves the Citizens - Chapter 40

Derek widened his eyes. "Pardon? Six hours? How? Even with the best of horses, a full day's ride is possible, but half? That is impossible."

Connor chuckled, his eyes twinkling. "With these steeds, it's a different story, Derek."

"Traveling between Carnfell and Norsewood town in half a day is unheard of," Grandpa Joel said. He turned to Rory. "Isn't that right?"

The man nodded his head. "Yes, it is indeed unheard of."

"Does that mean we'll be arriving at Norsewood Lodge not tomorrow afternoon but this very afternoon?" Gemma asked.

Connor nodded. "Precisely."

Everyone felt a bit dazed at hearing that, and indeed, rather excited at the prospect that they'd get to see Norsewood Lodge and be reunited with family and friends earlier than expected.

The journey was uneventful, although there were a few pauses here and there due to the roads being covered with the winter's snow. The group made a stop for an early lunch at Dunwich, another small community where the civilians and the stranded had already been rescued. With the six coaches coming to a stop, the passengers inside filed out to stretch their legs since it was rather nice outside with the clear sky. There was no sign of a snowstorm anywhere, and they felt blessed that their journey was not interrupted by foul weather.

The soldiers went about distributing lunch, which was the classic sandwich with soft buns packed with crunchy lettuce, slices of avocado and cheese, and pieces of juicy chicken, and as expected, there was a lot of marveling at the food, especially the buns and the creamy avocado.

"How..." many asked. "How is the bread so soft?" Of course, they were used to their dark-as-night rye bread being as hard as a rock.

"Is there a method to making the bread this soft, sir?" Natalie asked, intrigued and eager to know the secret, as were the other women.

Captain Connor said, "I don't know what the method is personally, as I'm not a cook, but yes, there are methods, or rather a recipe, I believe. The cooks at Norsewood Lodge know of it. Mrs. Burton is particularly excellent at baking all the breads."

"Mrs. Burton, as in Gladys Burton?" Grandma Liz asked. At Connor nodding his head, she said, "She's a family friend. I must ask her then." Suddenly, the other women begged to be introduced to the now renowned Mrs. Burton.

Derek said, "I know the bread is spectacular, but this soft, creamy thing? What is it?"

Connor said, "It's my favorite, too. It's called avocado. I heard Kent mention they have a few of the trees that grow this fruit, and though still under experimentation as to whether it'd grow sufficiently in Norsewood soil, it seems to be going rather well."

Derek raised a brow. "Does his lord and ladyship plan to grow this fruit in Norsewood?"

Connor chuckled. "Not just the avocado, Derek, but many other fruit and vegetable plants we've never even seen or heard of before. This is not yet official, but since I've been invited to the important meeting, there'd been mention that soon, farmers will be encouraged to grow any sort of new fruits and vegetables they'd like, whether it's for commercial purposes or one or two trees at the back of one's cottage for self-sustainability."

"I see," Derek said, his mind racing. He simply couldn't wait to meet with Kent Ingram and see all the different sorts of fruit and vegetable plants.

Once lunch was over, the group resumed their journey, and it was three hours later, as Connor had estimated, that they saw the grim destruction of Norsewood town which sat abandoned for four years. Snow covered most of the ruined buildings as well as the partially destroyed town's walls, hence the decay wasn't as heartbreaking to see as it would have been during the warmer season when the devastation was laid bare. Evidence of cleanup was noticeable as they moved closer toward Norsewood Manor, as there were less rumbles and ruins, and soon, they saw the manor itself looming in the distance. The place was a wreck and a sense of forlorn spread within the carriages.