The farmer and the knight arrived at the head of the street, at a three-way intersection. Behind them, the intersecting road led left or right, but only the street before them mattered to Lauren. It was a suburban neighborhood, but the houses were all quiet, the yards silent, the gutters dry, and the greenspace unwent. The asphalt was old, its cracks patched by tar. The street ended in a cul-de-sac. Overhead, darkening oranges mixed with deepening blues as evening approached, yellow sun di