When Penelope hesitated for a while before answering his question, Crow wondered if she wouldn’t be willing to help him after all. It was a huge risk for her since, if she was caught, there wouldn’t be an easy way for her to explain herself to her comrades. She had built up quite a reputation for herself amongst the knights, even becoming a lieutenant for one of the barons, so he wasn’t surprised that she would be reluctant to put all of that at risk for a thief like him.

He was just starting to consider his first option again, trying to think of a better way to go about moving the chains, when she spoke up again and surprised him by agreeing to help. As she took the key from his palm, he blinked and watched her move to the other side of the tree to prepare to pick the lock. His heart beat a little faster and he found that he was smiling in spite of himself. He knew she was probably only helping him because she cared about him as an acquaintance or friend, but the part of him that was still hoping for more wondered if perhaps there was another reason why she was willing to put herself at risk to save him.

[i]Calm down,[/i] he took a deep breath, trying to keep a level head. [i]She’s with Gavin. It’s not like that.[/i]

He suddenly realized she was waiting for him to explain how to use the pick lock key, and he snapped back to attention, peering over his shoulder at her as he gave her soft-spoken instructions, “Put it in the lock like you would any other key. That alone should open the first tumbler in the inside. You’ll be able to tell because it’ll make a noise like a click, but you’ll have to listen carefully, because it’s really quiet. After that, try tilting it at different angles to hit the other tumblers. I don’t know how many that sort of lock has—probably no more than three or four—but it should pop open when you hit them all.”

He paused as he remembered something else that he had learned when he first started picking locks as a child, “Also, if you feel the key get stuck on anything, don’t panic. There are usually wards inside to prevent keys like mine from opening the lock, but they’re not that effective. Just move the key until it comes loose and keep going.” He offered her a confident smile. “I’m sure you’ll do just fine.”