She picked up the book she had discarded earlier but it couldn't hold her attention. What was it about this place, this gentleman, that had so stirred her feelings that she felt as if she belonged here? She would have to do be wary if she did not desire to put herself in an invidious position and be obliged to remain here because she had been compromised.

  Ralph had remained in the little office after she had departed. She wondered what his reaction had been when he saw how much money she was going to contribute to his finances. Although she could not yet access the principle of her trust fund, the interest from that was more than most families had to live on for a year. The money would be transferred to the household account as soon as she could send a letter to her bankers.

  After an hour she tossed the book aside and stood up, restless, not sure how to occupy her time when her head was filled with images of a raven-haired gentleman. She was about to ring for some refreshment when she was startled by the sound of heavy footsteps. The door flew open and Ralph came in, his expression was grim.

  *

  Honour waited calmly to hear what he had to say.

  'You were obliged to abandon your carriage the day before yesterday. My estate manager went that way this morning and it was gone. There was evidence that several horses and a large cart had been there. I'm at a loss to know how such a thing could have happened so quickly.'

  'Then I can enlighten you, it will be my cousin, Sir Edward Fitzroy, who has taken it. Ralph, I must leave here at once. Do you have a carriage I can use?'

  He had feared it was something of the sort. She looked calm but when he touched her arm she was shaking. 'Sit, sweetheart, you must tell me everything about this man so I can be prepared for his arrival.'

  'I told you, I must leave before he comes. I have brought more than enough trouble to your household without adding anymore.'

  He guided her gently to the chaise longue and obediently she sat. He took her hands and hoped by holding them he would give her the reassurance she needed, that he could convince her he was more than capable of taking care of her.

  'I might be recovering from a serious injury, my dear, but I am a soldier to my backbone. I have more than a dozen loyal men at my disposal and sufficient weaponry in my gunroom to equip them. Is your cousin likely to bring more?' He had thought she would smile at his hyperbole, tell him that he was overreacting, but instead she nodded.

  'He is a desperate man, I fear he will go to any lengths to snatch me back before my name day. If I were to die then everything would go to him. He has more than a dozen retainers loyal to him, and he could well hire more. People could be killed, and I will not have that on my conscience.'

  'God's teeth! It will not come to that. As you noticed on your arrival I have locked gates and a six-foot wall along the entire boundary that is accessible from the road.'

  'But I am certain there are ways to get in that you cannot prevent. He could set fire to the house and then we would all perish.'

  'Come now, sweetheart, you are exaggerating the case. Your cousin is a desperate man perhaps, but not a mad one.'

  'I think he could well be insane, his behaviour this past few months has been erratic and violent, not just towards me but towards his son and servants.' She snatched her hands back and leapt to her feet. 'I am not going to take that chance, Ralph, I shall leave immediately.'

  He towered over her, he was twice her size, but he would never hurt her in any way – and he would die before he left anyone else do so. 'You will do no such thing. You must trust me to do my job. If you will not give me your word that you will remain inside then I shall be forced to have you locked into your apartment.'

  She subsided like a deflated pig's bladder. 'I suppose that I must trust you, you are a military man, if you cannot protect me then I might as well hand myself over and save all the aggravation.'

  'Do I have your word?' He knew her well enough, even after so short an acquaintance, to realise she was prevaricating, avoiding having to promise to remain.

  'Very well, I promise I shall not try to leave.'

  He smiled, then she continued. 'But I shall only do so if you do not shut me out. I want to be kept fully informed of everything that is happening and not fobbed off with platitudes.'

  'I shall tell you when I have everything in place. They have a day's advantage and I cannot sit here bandying words with you any longer if I am to…'

  'Then go, it is you that is bandying not me.'

  He was on his feet immediately. 'Please, sweetheart, remain inside until this business is over. You must forget about visiting the orangery, the puppies or anywhere else that involves leaving the house.'

  'I am not a widgeon, sir, I have plenty to occupy me for the moment.' She smiled and something changed for him. Then the colour left her cheeks and she was once more on her feet, her face anguished.

  'I sent some of your outside men into the wood to collect greenery. Have they returned? I shall never forgive myself if anything untoward has occurred because of my desire to decorate the house.'

  'I'll find out. I'm sure they are perfectly fine. Remain here and I'll send word to you.'

  He hoped his words and smile had reassured her, that she hadn't seen the worry in his eyes. He strode through the house making decisions as he went. First, he needed to speak to Gifford. His valet listened without comment.

  'Right you are, Major, no need to alarm anyone as yet. I'll nip down and see what's what outside.'

  'Do that, it could be that we're worrying unnecessarily – but I have a bad feeling about this. All Fitzroy's men had to do were make enquiries in the village and they would have known something was going on. This is the nearest house to where the carriage broke its axle so Fitzroy must know his quarry is here.'

  Gifford vanished through the dressing room door, taking the passageway that bisected the house, the one put in especially for the use of servants so they wouldn't be seen about their business.

  He went from room to room checking the windows were latched and then closing the shutters. Then he inspected each door, including the ones used by the staff, and firmly bolted them. Those working here needed to know why there was the need for caution, but he wasn't sure how urgent this matter was, he would wait until Gifford returned before going down to the servants' hall and speaking to those that worked for him.

  His valet returned. 'The sledge went out more than an hour ago and hasn't returned. They were going to Home Wood, I reckon it would take them half an hour to get there, an hour to fill the sledge, and another half an hour to return.'

  'In which case they should be visible from an upstairs window. There is a clear view to the wood from the rear of the house.'

  They pounded up the stairs and shoulder to shoulder entered one of the guest bedchambers. The tracks left from the sledge and the horse were quite clear, but there was no sign of them returning.

  'Gifford, bring everybody inside. Make sure the grooms leave the horses with food and water for the next twenty-four hours, also the dogs.' He frowned and considered what else he could do. 'One of the stableboys must bolt the doors from the inside and then exit through the hayloft. Make sure there are no ladders available for an intruder to use.'

  His man saluted, and it didn't seem incongruous that they were both wearing civilian clothes.

  'Yes, Major, right away, sir.'

  Ralph had promised he would keep Honour fully informed of what was going on. She sat unusually silent whilst he told her everything he knew and what he was doing.

  'Are you not going in search of them?'

  'I cannot do that at the moment, it is what they would expect to happen. My first priority is to make the house safe, ensure that no one else can be abducted – if that is what has happened.' Better to say they were being held hostage than the alternative, which was that they were already dead.

  'I shall come with you when you speak to the staff. I am an expert with firearms, I can handle a musket or a pistol as well as most men. I am also proficient with a foil.'

  He drew her into his arms, it was an instinctive thing to do, and she didn't object. 'I hope you will not be called upon to demonstrate your prowess.' He held her close for a moment and dropped a light kiss on the top of her head. It fitted perfectly under his chin.

  'I have been thinking in your absence, there is one way we can put a stop to this but I cannot see how it can be accomplished in time.' She tilted her face to look at him. 'You could marry me and then if I die everything would already be yours.'

  He started to laugh but then saw she was serious in her suggestion. 'I suppose I should not have been surprised that you have proposed to me. I am already your financial dependent, am I not?'

  'Fiddlesticks to that! I am injecting a fraction of my annual interest into your household account. It is only fair that I pay my way as I am your uninvited guest.'

  What happened next was inevitable. He cupped the back of her head with one hand and drew her closer so every inch was pressing against him. He paused for a moment to see if she would struggle but instead her hands slid up his chest and entangled themselves in the hair at the back of his neck.

  He covered her mouth with his own and their fate was sealed. Only the arrival of Gifford, who cleared his throat noisily, prevented things from getting further out of hand.

  He kept one arm around her waist and turned to face his orderly. 'You may be the first to congratulate us, we are to be married at the earliest opportunity.'

  If he had announced he was to marry the Queen of Sheba Gifford could not have looked more shocked. He opened and shut his mouth several times before finding his voice.

  'Congratulations, my lord, but is now the time to be thinking of matrimony?'

  Honour stepped away and laughed. 'It is the perfect time, Gifford. However, you will need to go to London and obtain a special licence at Doctors' Commons. I shall supply you with my details, no doubt you already know those of the major.'

  She sat down at the escritoire and calmly began to write. He drew his man to one side so he could speak to him without being overheard.

  'I have no intention of holding her to this, so don't look so appalled. I am not husband material, we both know that.' He explained her reasons and his valet nodded.

  'Makes sense now you say that. But I ain't leaving you to fetch a licence, not at the moment. Why don't you send Fred, he is a resourceful young man, I reckon he could do it?'

  'If everyone is gathered downstairs we shall come down and speak to them.'

  There were no smiling faces in the hall. Sally ran across to join her mistress and they moved into a corner to converse quietly. The remaining outside men, boots respectfully removed, stood together, and they all looked worried.

  'We are under attack. Sir Edward Fitzroy believes that he can snatch his cousin from me. That will happen over my dead body – or over his. Miss Fitzroy came here for my protection and she has it. I hope you are prepared to do your part in keeping her safe.'

  He spoke as he always did to his troops, in a moderate tone, looking from one to the other as he did so and making direct eye contact. All of them nodded without hesitation.

  Cooper stepped forward. 'The four lads who went in search of greenery have been taken. I'd like to come with you to recover them.'

  A murmur of approval ran around the room, the other men surged forward to stand at his side and even the two stableboys joined him.

  'Mr Ensley left some time ago to find more volunteers from the village. He has been instructed to send someone to raise the militia. The villagers will approach from the other side and distract whoever has my men. This will give me an opportunity to make an attack. How many of you can use a firearm?'

  There were three others apart from Gifford, Cooper and himself that he thought it would be safe to take.

  'Miss Fitzroy is in charge of the defence of the house as she is an excellent shot.' He turned to Cooper. 'Is the exit through the cellars still passable?'

  'It is, but a mite mucky, my lord, but I reckon we could get through there all right.'

  Satisfied he had everything arranged as he intended he sent Gifford with two others to collect the weapons. His own sword was kept in the armoury, if a small locked room could be so designated, and he would wear that. With two primed and loaded pistols, one in each pocket, he should be ready for anything that occurred.

  He beckoned his small party away from the others so he could speak directly to them. Once they were out of earshot he told them what he expected to happen and what their role in this would be.

  'We cannot approach directly as we would be seen immediately. We shall travel on foot, of course, and approach from the west, they won't expect us to be coming from the same direction as they did. Make sure you are warmly dressed, have stout boots on, and tie your mufflers around your face so that only your eyes are visible.'

  A quarter of an hour later they slipped out of the cellar door and he waited until he heard one of the stableboys bolt it firmly behind them. They were unlikely to have been seen emerging from here as it was behind the laundry and dairy block. There were no longer cows kept at Devil's Gate, but if he was to stay here permanently he would bring back a small herd, just enough to take care of the household's needs.

  Why the hell was he thinking about cows now? It had been too long since he had been with the army, he was soft, more a civilian than a soldier nowadays. It would be a long walk and he needed to pace himself. If his new sutures ripped he would be in trouble.

  Chapter Six

  Honour double-checked that all the shutters and doors were locked on the ground floor and then insisted that everybody went upstairs. 'We need a fire lit in this room, I shall leave that to the girls. The rest of you will keep watch at the windows and let me know immediately if you see any movement.'

  She carefully propped the three muskets, and the paraphernalia needed to fire them, against the wall. When she turned to speak to the men that had been left behind she realised someone was missing. 'Where is Fred? Did he go with his lordship after all?'

  One of the other young men shook his head. 'No, miss, he went off a while ago on an errand for the master. He said he would be gone a fair while and wouldn't be back until tomorrow or the next day.'

  'Thank you for that information, as long as I know he is not missing, I shall not worry about him. Now, do you three know how to fire a musket or would you like me to show you?'

  None of them did but they were quick learners and after an hour she was confident they would be able to at least load and fire the weapon even if they couldn't hit a target. One would load whilst the other two fired.

  She could probably do more damage herself, but she wanted to keep them occupied. The six girls had split up and returned with several baskets of logs and coal. Soon the chamber was warm enough to consider removing her cloak but she decided against it, just in case she was obliged to go outside for any reason.

  'Jed, I should like you to open a window, not too far, just enough so we can hear what is going on outside.'

  Sally was taking this in her stride, but then she had travelled all over the world and been involved in all sorts of excitement without upset. 'I'll take these two with me and bring up some refreshments. No need for us to starve whilst we're on sentry-go.'

  'Stay away from the windows just in case whoever is out there has managed to creep close without being seen.'

  There was too much time to dwell on the situation. She ran over the events of the past few days to see if she would have done anything differently if she had her time over again. She would certainly have been more careful climbing the gate so that she did not fall on top of Ralph. Apart from that, even with the current unfortunate situation, she could see nothing that she could have changed.

  One thing did puzzle her – why had her cousin bothered to take away the carriage? With a broken axle it was no use to anyone. The only possible explanation was that he intended to sell it once it was repaired. The vehicle was recently purchased and would no doubt finance some of the men he had hired to find her.

  'Miss, miss, did you hear that? I'm certain that I heard the cart returning. The lads are back and we've been worrying unnecessarily.' Jed had been hanging out of the window, contrary to her instructions, and this was why he had been able to hear activity that wasn't on this side of the house.

  Her initial delight was tempered by caution. 'Close the window, do it quietly. You could be right, but it could be a trap. Bring the weapons, we will go to the other side of the house and investigate before we do anything precipitous.'

  The chamber they went to was icy, frost patterned the inside of the window, and there were damp patches on the plaster. She raced to the window and threw it up, was about to poke her head out when she thought better of it.

  Sure enough, approaching along the tradesmen's lane that ran behind the stable block was the diligence, and there were certainly four muffled men accompanying it. Her breath hissed through her teeth. Sir Edward had certainly stolen her carriage, but he obviously hadn't kidnapped the men she had sent to collect greenery.

  The cart was piled high, even from that distance she could see the red berries of the holly catching the sunlight. 'We shall watch for a moment longer, it is better to be safe than sorry. The men are very quiet, should they not be talking to each other?'

  *

  Ralph led from the front as all good officers did. He kept them in the shadow of the hedges even when it meant the snow was over the top of their boots. No one complained. When the going was better he increased the pace, twenty strides at a walk and then twenty strides at the double. Again, they followed his lead without comment.

  He had demonstrated the various hand signals he would use to avoid speaking when they were close to their adversaries. They had been travelling for around half an hour when he raised his fist. He sniffed the air like a wolf – yes – he could smell men and horses not far ahead. He gestured to Gifford to crawl forward on his belly and investigate and his man did so.

 

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