The Captured War Chest

The great library of Morven Keep was silent save for the crackle of a freshly stoked peat fire and the steady, rhythmic ticking of the tall grandfather clock in the corner. Upon the Spanish oak refectory table sat the prize of the solstice battle: a heavy, green-leather-bound steel dispatch case stamped with the private coat of arms of Lord Archibald Sterling. Beside it rested two steaming mugs of black tea…