Despite the mess from the morning, they were still able to open the coffeehouse only a few minutes after the usual time. Immediately upon opening the shutters and unbarring the door, the same man who always sat at the bar every night arrived. Nathaniel assumed he was returning for his cloak, considering it was still snowing. He had turned to remove it from the hook on the wall when he realized the man wasn't alone. The black man who had warned Nathaniel about the morning's situation had followed the other man inside.

Nathaniel offered the first man his cloak. "Thank you for this. It was greatly appreciated."

He took the cloak and nodded. "Do you have a moment to speak?" he asked.

Nathaniel motioned them to sit at the bar. Both men sat there, though the second man sat so he could see the door.

"We're relieved to find your establishment open," the first man commented.

"As am I," Nathaniel replied.

Marie and Henri both noticed the visitors and joined them. Marie poured them coffee, which they thanked her for.

Both men eyed Marie and Henri. "I trust you all faired well this morning," the first man commented.

"Well enough when the dogs destroyed the house," Marie muttered.

The man nodded. "Very well. We'll be to the point then, before more dogs arrive. Your establishment has been under the use of our organization for several months."

Nathaniel wasn't certain what was meant by that. "Should that concern me?"

The man smiled. "I hope it does not. We've been attempting to acquire information from the British soldiers here about their plans and future movements around Boston. Unfortunately, I've been unable to learn anything at all when I spend evenings here. Even when I've attempted to befriend the soldiers, they fail to provide anything of value. My associate here thought he'd have better luck, but to no avail."

"They usually don't think very much about us freedmen," the second man explained. "I thought I might be able to get close enough to overhear something during the daytime hours, but they won't speak to me and don't discuss plans amongst themselves within my hearing."

"We thought perhaps you might be of service after the recent events," the other man continued. "If you can continue to make the British see you as neutral in the tensions through the city, you might be able to gain more information for us. I noticed your new associate was settling in well among the soldiers and the townspeople alike."

"Then I will help," Henri immediately agreed.

"And I will," Marie declared.

Nathaniel turned to her, reminded again of what had already transpired. "No. That would be too great a risk for you."

She planted her fists on her hips. "I'm just a woman. They will hardly take a second thought about talking to me."

The two guests both nodded.

"That is very true," the first man agreed. "She could flatter them into telling her things they wouldn't normally tell someone, especially if they are drinking."

Nathaniel thought for a long moment. In truth, now that the option was before him, he considered it a nonviolent way to fight the rule of the army. There would be great risk, however.

"If I don't wish to bring that danger here?" he asked, still uncertain and curious to know what they would say.

The man smiled. "You don't know our names. We'd simply send someone you don't recognize into the establishment in our steads. There are a few of us about. But, to be truly honest with you, you've already brought danger here yourself. Lieutenant-Colonel Alexander Weston will be seeking to discredit you as frequently as he can. He is proud but not foolish. He knew last night that he could not arrest you or take your weapon for using it to threaten his men and nearly cause a riot. Either of those actions would have caused the very thing we nearly avoided. When he returned today it had been to arrest you, and your absence gave him cause to take the gun so you could not use it again. When you returned, he knew he risked another dangerous event if he arrested you. Let no one know where you keep that gun, or that you still have it. He's found you to be his enemy and you have been the victor twice because the crowd has been at your back. This benefits us. There will likely be fewer officers here because he will not return unless he finds cause to arrest you, and the soldiers will talk more freely. You already need to take care as things stand. Once the events of last night and today are mostly forgotten, he will move against you."

Nathaniel did not wonder where the man had gotten this knowledge. If he was working to acquire information on the British army he likely knew much about many of its officers. Regardless of if he chose to assist these men, he knew he needed to be far more thoughtful in his response to threats against himself or Marie and Henri. He glanced to them. They both looked openly to him. Marie, who would surely do anything to avenge the cruelty they'd shown her, and Henri, who certainly owed Nathaniel nothing but would assist him for his sister's sake. He looked back to the visitors, still the only ones who seemed to realize the coffeehouse was open despite its morning visit.

"Do you offer us protection, then?" he questioned at last.

"Some," was the reply. "We can't promise it, but we have things we can do. We report to far more powerful groups who have more sway in legal situations. If you are arrested we will try to spare you if it doesn't endanger the rest of us. There is also a house you can flee to if the situation requires. For our safety you won't be told about it unless necessary."

Nathaniel could feel Henri and Marie both gazing at him still. He glanced at Marie first, who now had a firm set to her jaw, then Henri, who gazed back at him without obvious emotion. Nathaniel knew they were both upset by the treatment of less than a day's time. Everything that had happened had been Henri's introduction to Boston. Of course he wasn't pleased. And Marie had been handled roughly by the men the night before and deserved her vengeance.

Nathaniel finally nodded. "Tell us more."

The first man smiled. "You will know me only as John. I will continue to visit nightly and remain here until you close the tavern. If you learn anything, write it in as few details as needed and pass the note to me in secret. We will provide a code related to individuals and locations we are especially concerned with, which we will modify as needed."

The other man nodded. "And you will know me as Samuel. I will be here during the day. Do the same for me with anything you learn."

"And you will be compensated," John added. "Plus the cost of drinks and food."

The thought of adding a second employee had been weighing on Nathaniel, especially now in addition to what he needed to repay Mrs. Johnson for the things she'd had delivered to him. "I take it there is no contract of employment?" he asked.

John smiled and Samuel laughed. "Just a gentleman's agreement," John replied. "They keep us all safe."

Nathaniel nodded. "Very well."

John finished his coffee and stood. He placed some money on the bar. "Then I will see you tonight," he said as he gathered his cloak.

Samuel saluted him with his cup. "And I'll be here for the day. Perhaps we will have some luck."

The number of soldiers who visited the tavern that night was fewer than the previous night, and those who did visit were certainly not as relaxed as they had been previously. Henri smoothed things over by buying a round of drinks himself and Nathaniel watched vigilantly from the bar as they talked and toasted for some time before someone finally set out a deck of cards.

Nathaniel marveled at the way Henri could engage the soldiers while he drank and played cards with them. He laughed with them and made sure they had every drink they asked for. But Nathaniel could see that he wasn't drinking as much as they were and that he was truly watching every soldier as he interacted with them.

Marie surely had some level of her brother's acting skill herself. Though she had often complained to Nathaniel in the past in regards to the advances of the soldiers, now she was inviting it, though she seemed able to firmly reject attentions she did not want to entertain. How she did it with a smile and was able to continue conversations afterward showed her talent. Nathaniel, however, was prepared to address anyone who did not accept her rejections.

When Henri started to sing, Nathaniel's attention was immediately back to him. Though the words were in French, it stunned him. Henri's voice was clear and gentle, the melody moving and full of passion. Even John, sitting quietly at the bar, turned to look Henri's direction.

"Sing in English, man!" one of the soldiers yelled, a demand that was echoed by several others.

"English is an insult to the song," Henri argued, appearing offended. "And to my voice."

"Then go to Quebec and sing among the French colonies!"

Another soldier pushed the one who had spoken. "Quebec is English now! He can't sing in French there, either."

Henri spread his arms. "I suppose you'll need to teach me your English songs."

That led to a round of rowdy singing. Henri certainly had the best voice of everyone in the tavern, or of those who sang, at least. Nathaniel decided he wouldn't judge the others without hearing their voices. Several townspeople were ignoring the noise or shaking their heads at it.

A group of those townspeople motioned to Nathaniel when he passed them to put more wood on the fire. He knelt by the table to better hear what the men wanted to say to him. All four men were frequent visitors of the tavern or the coffeehouse, though Nathaniel only knew their names because they drank on credit. The youngest of the group was hardly older than twenty, the oldest close to fifty, Nathaniel estimated.

"I must admit, I'm a bit surprised to see your employees being so friendly to the soldiers," Denis McFadden said, his Irish accent heavy in the noisy room. "It hasn't been a day since you were insulted by those very soldiers."

Nathaniel gave them all a hint of a smile and glanced behind him to ensure no soldiers were close. "Be assured, you do not want the added attentions of Henri or Marie. Those they give more attention to are the ones I wish to take the most money from."

He hoped the men would assume he meant only that he used Marie and Henri to encourage the soldiers to drink deeply and gamble. He dared not admit to charging any group more than he charged others.

James Stewart laughed and clapped him on the back. "You are a clever man."

Nathaniel smiled. "I hope I am. As I've said, I welcome everyone to drink and eat, but I won't be forgiving what was done here already."

"Quite excellent," John Smith said, lifting his cup to him. "We won't try to send the good people of Boston from your doors then."

"So long as you don't send me to jail," Nathaniel warned.

"Of course!" Stewart assured him. "None of us want that. These British find any reason they can for arrests."

"I thank you," Nathaniel said as he stood again. "For the understanding I won't add your next drink to your account, any of you."

"In that case, I'll have another rum and cider!" McFadden declared. The request was echoed by the others at the table and Nathaniel thanked them again before returning to the kitchen for their drinks.

He decided then it would be good for him to keep a second ledger book in the event someone did notice his price differences. He had no intention of being arrested, as close as he'd already come.