“It also helps that climbing down doesn’t take as much upper body strength as you’d expect,” Crow added as he walked over to the window. Undoing the simple latch that held it shut, he glanced back at the knight with a reassuring smile. “A lot of your weight will be on your feet, so you just have to focus on holding the cord. It isn’t too strenuous.”

Once the window was open, he turned back to it and carefully began to lower the loose end of the linens over the edge, snaking them down to the window below while being careful not to let the sheets slap against the glass. It would have been trouble if he made any noise and woke whoever was sleeping in the bedchamber below his, so he moved the makeshift rope slowly. Fortunately, it didn’t swing very much, so he managed to keep it from rapping on the window.

Once he was finished, Crow turned to Penelope to tell her to give him some space to climb down, but then paused as he caught sight of her face. She looked a bit pale to him as she peered over the ledge, and he wondered if she wasn’t as confident about climbing down as he’d thought.

When she took a step back and gestured for him to go first, he hesitated, studying her contemplatively. Instead of moving toward the open window, he stepped over to her and wrapped his arms around her back, leaning down to press a passionate kiss to her lips. He lingered for a moment before pulling back to meet her gaze with a soft smile. “You’ll do just fine,” he murmured, gently brushing her hair from her face. “And you don’t have anything to worry about. I’ll be right below you the whole time. I’d never let you fall.”

The viceroy touched another quick kiss to her lips and stepped back toward the window. “Right. It looks like it’s my turn then,” he peered over the window sill for a moment before lifting his right boot onto the ledge and hopping up. Having pulled stunts like this his whole life, he’d developed a good head for heights and wasn’t bothered by the steep drop. He knew he wouldn’t fall.

As he perched on the sill, he suddenly had a new appreciation for the clothes he’d chosen to don for the raid. There was a chill wind blowing that night, but beneath the thick layers of clothing, he could scarcely feel it.

He crouched down on the ledge to pick up the cord, grasping it firmly in both hands as he carefully turned around to face the room. He left a little room for the linens to fall slack and casted a wink at the knight. “See you at the bottom, love,” he said just before falling backward off the edge of the window.

As he fell, the cord pulled taut, and he tightened his hold on the linens to keep from losing his grip against the sudden jerk. The knots that he and Preston had tied at repeating intervals offered support for his hands, and once he was stable on his feet, he used them for help as he began to work his way down toward the lower window. He moved with caution, but it wasn’t difficult to reach it. The weathered surface of the wall provided plenty of traction for his boots, and the grips on the cord were close enough together that he could switch from one to the next with ease.

When he was just above the window, he paused to glance down at the remaining cord below him. He gauged its length for a moment and took a steeling breath. The next part was the riskiest, as well as the reason why he had elected to go first. Adjusting his hold on the cord, he wrapped a layer around his left hand to make sure it was secure and then leaned up, letting his feet fall away from the wall. However, instead of dropping, he moved in a controlled manner to prop his boots on the large knot at the bottom of the rope, using his abdominal muscles to keep himself from flailing in the air. He managed to land gracefully without slipping.

Crouching down on his heels, Crow reached into his boot with his right hand and withdrew his pick lock key. He took a moment to peer through the window, making sure the occupant was still asleep, before he gingerly slid the needle-thin tool through the crack between the window panes and dragged it upward to pull open the latch on the inside. In the next moment, a quiet [i]click[/i] sounded, and the window popped open, admitting the viceroy inside.

He smirked to himself and lifted the key to his mouth. Putting the metal tool between his teeth, he brought his right hand back to the cord and silently eased himself onto the window sill. As soon as his boots were on a solid perch, he let go and dropped down into the bedchamber without a sound.

Once inside, he checked to make sure he hadn’t woken anyone—the man in the room was still snoring soundly—before he leaned his head out the window and looked up, gesturing for Penelope to come down with him.