Chivalrous Captain, Rebel Mistress

by Diane Gaston

  Would it work?

  She inhaled a nervous breath. ‘We must hope that the Home Office is kept in the dark, but we prepare as if they know the whole plan. Does the captain know when the march is to take place?’

  ‘I do not think so,’ Reilly said. ‘He is still asking for information in the taverns, but everyone knows who he is and what he wants. He almost got into fisticuffs with your cousin at the Coach and Horses Inn the other night.’

  ‘My cousin?’ Marian gaped.

  Yost added, ‘Your cousin is often seen in the taverns, as well, and not always in the company of gentlemen.’

  So much for Edwin’s promise to cut down on his drinking. At least he no longer called upon her, although that must mean he was very deep in the cups.

  She looked down at the piece of paper, now hopelessly creased. ‘My cousin is of no consequence. It is the Home Office and Captain Landon we must fear.’

  But not for much longer, because by this time tomorrow, it would be all over.

  Sidmouth sent Allan to the taverns that evening to search for Edwin. Neither Edwin nor his nefarious partner had reported in to the Home Office all day.

  Unlike when Allan had searched for Edwin at Badajoz, this time there was no gunfire, no riotous shouting. No agonised screams, but something was afoot. Allan sensed it. His heart pounded with the same foreboding as it had in Badajoz. The sense of anticipation was so strong it was almost palpable.

  He enquired after Edwin wherever he went. Not truly caring whether Edwin went to the devil or not, he really also sought information on the march. No one would tell him anything of that, but several men had seen a man fitting Edwin’s description. Reports were that Edwin had been drinking heavily and had been in the company of a Mr Jones—Lord Sidmouth’s man, no doubt.

  Allan followed Edwin’s trail from one dark taproom smelling of hops and sweat to another. As the night wore on, the sense that something was in the air intensified. More men eyed him with suspicion. Fewer men sat drinking. More wandered the dark streets.

  Hairs rose on the back of his neck as shadowy figures passed him in the night. Memories of Badajoz filled his mind.

  He felt himself grabbed from behind and swung around ready to put a fist in the man’s face.

  ‘Whoa, Allan! It is me. Gabe.’

  Gabriel Deane. His friend from the Royal Scots.

  ‘Gabe!’ He clasped his friend’s hand and shook it. ‘I did not know you were in London.’

  ‘I arrived not long ago.’ Gabe rubbed the back of his neck. ‘The battalion disbanded, Allan. I’m at a loose end at the moment.’

  ‘Disbanded?’ Allan frowned. ‘I’d heard rumours that might happen. What will you do?’

  Gabe shrugged. ‘Pay a visit to Manchester.’ Gabe had grown up in Manchester. His father and brothers were prosperous cloth merchants there. ‘After that, who knows? And you? How do you go on?’

  Three men slipped past them, eyeing them suspiciously.

  ‘What the devil is going on here?’ Gabe asked. ‘I’ve been seeing men on the streets everywhere.’

  Allan pulled him aside and explained about his employment with the Home Office and about the march he was trying to prevent. ‘I am loathe to admit this to you,’ he added, ‘but I am in search of Edwin Tranville again.’

  ‘Edwin?’ Gabe cried.

  ‘He’s in the thick of it, causing trouble.’ He peered at Gabe. ‘Come with me, if you are at liberty. I’ll explain the rest.’

  Gabe laughed. ‘I am quite at liberty.’

  Allan went into more detail as he led Gabe to the next tavern. He explained about the Home Office, Sidmouth, about Yost and Edwin and about the provocateurs. He did not speak of Marian, telling himself he was merely protecting her by leaving her name out of it. Perhaps, though, he feared the pain of explaining to his friend what he’d almost had with Marian. And lost.

  They left the third tavern without success.

  ‘One more,’ Allan said. ‘If Edwin is not there, I’m going to simply follow some of these men to see where they ultimately are bound.’

  ‘One more tavern,’ Gabe agreed.

  They entered a tavern near Hyde Park Corner, dark like the others with chairs filled with men who examined Allan and Gabe as they scanned the room. No Edwin.

  They were about to leave when a man raised his head from a table near the back of the room.

  ‘More brandy,’ the man cried, holding up a bottle. Enough light hit his familiar scarred face.

  They’d found him.

  Allan and Gabe crossed the room and Edwin lay his head back down on the table.

  Allan looked down on him. ‘Edwin.’ He spoke as if issuing orders.

  Edwin looked up and it seemed to take time for his eyes to focus. ‘Lawd, it is you.’ His filmy gaze turned to Gabe. ‘And you. I s’pose you’ll want to drink with me.’ He waved his hand to the weary tavern maid again. ‘Two bottles, wench. These fellows are paying.’ Edwin laughed as if he’d said something extremely amusing.

  Allan gestured for the woman to leave them. He sat and leaned close to Edwin so others could not hear. ‘Something is afoot. What have you learned, Edwin? Where is Jones?’

  Edwin looked around. ‘Where is Jones?’ he said too loudly. He slapped his forehead. ‘That’s right. He left. Went to make the report.’

  ‘What report?’ Allan demanded.

  Edwin drained his glass and poured another bumper of brandy from the bottle. He gave Allan a smug look. ‘Not going to tell you.’

  Gabe seized Edwin by his coat and hauled him to his feet. ‘Tell him what he wishes to know if you value your neck.’

  Edwin’s face contorted. ‘Very well. Very well. I’ll tell. What do I care about it?’

  ‘Then speak up now,’ Gabe ordered.

  ‘Jones left. Told me to go to the devil.’

  Allan took Edwin’s face in his hand and forced Edwin to look at him. ‘Where is the march to be? When is it scheduled?’

  Edwin squirmed in Gabe’s grip. ‘This morning. Not going to tell you where. Not going to tell you when. You’ll grab all the glory.’ He tried to pull away, but Gabe restrained him from behind. ‘Going there myself. T’watch the Horse Guards. Told Jones I’d meet him there.’

  The Horse Guards? Did Sidmouth plan to release the Horse Guards on the protestors? The soldiers would not stand a chance.

  Allan leaned into Edwin’s face. ‘Tell us where. What time this morning?’

  Edwin slumped and Gabe must have loosened his grip, but all of a sudden Edwin broke free, flailing his arms. He swung out at Allan before Gabe grabbed him again.

  ‘Leggo!’ Edwin shouted. ‘I’m gonna report you to Sidmouth. Have you arrested. You wait and see!’ He struggled, but Gabe held him tight.

  Allan moved to another table, asking the two men seated there, ‘Do you know where the demonstration will be? Do you know what hour?’

  ‘Go away,’ one man growled.

  He addressed the entire room. ‘Tell me, any of you. Where is the demonstration to be?’

  They only glowered at him.

  He went back to Gabe. ‘I have to find out more, but I cannot let him get to Sidmouth.’

  ‘He’ll cause no mischief.’ Gabe shook Edwin like a rag doll. ‘I’ll make certain of that. Do what you must.’

  Allan nodded his thanks and rushed out. All he could think was that he had to warn Marian that she was walking into a trap. Bryanston Street was too far to walk, and finding a hackney coach might take time.

  More men filled the streets, sauntering in the direction of Westminster Cathedral. Were they headed there or to Westminster Palace? There would be few avenues of escape if the march was on Parliament.

  Allan went to the stables where Valour was kept. He shouted for the stable lad to let him in and to saddle his horse.

  A few minutes later he was astride Valour, skirting Hyde Park to reach Marian’s town house. The first slivers of dawn were peeking through the sky.

  He dismounted
in front of Marian’s house and pounded on her door. ‘Marian! Open the door! Open the door!’

  Her house was dark. He glanced at Yost’s. It was dark, too, but that did not mean that they were not awake in the back, preparing for the march.

  He pounded again. ‘Open the door! It is urgent!’

  He heard a frightened voice through the door. ‘Go away, sir.’

  ‘Hannah? Hannah, is that you? It is Captain Landon.’ He used his army rank without thinking. ‘I need to see Miss Pallant immediately! Let me in, Hannah.’

  ‘I dare not!’ she cried. ‘She’s not here, anyway.’

  He heard another woman’s voice. ‘What is this, Hannah?’ Blanche.

  ‘Mrs Nunn,’ Allan cried. ‘You must let me in. I have news of grave importance.’

  There was a pause, then the door slowly opened. Blanche’s face appeared in the gap. She held a candle. ‘What is it, Mr Landon?’

  ‘Let me in, please,’ he said to her.

  She stepped aside and he entered the hall. Hannah held a hand to her mouth, looking frightened.

  ‘I’m not going to hurt anyone,’ he assured her. He turned to Blanche. ‘Where is Marian?’

  The women looked from one to the other.

  ‘Has she already left for the march?’

  Their eyes grew wider.

  Allan took a step closer to Blanche. ‘You must tell me where she is going. I have to stop her. She’s walking into a trap.’

  ‘A trap?’ Blanche cried.

  ‘The Home Office knows where the march will be and when, but I do not. You must tell me before it is too late.’

  Hannah spoke to Blanche. ‘You cannot tell him. Miss Pallant said we were not to believe him.’

  He faced Blanche, placing his hands on her arms. ‘You must believe me. I want only to protect her. And the men, if I can. And Mr Yost. Good God, Mrs Nunn, they are calling out the Horse Guards.’ She blinked.

  ‘Mrs Nunn, listen to me—’

  ‘Don’t listen,’ Hannah cried.

  Allan went on. ‘She is walking into a trap. You must help me stop her.’

  Blanche searched his face. She blurted out. ‘Dawn. At Charing Cross. She should be there already.’

  He spared her only a quick grateful look, running out the door to mount Valour and race down Bond Street to Piccadilly.

  The sky had lightened. Dawn would come within minutes. On Haymarket Street wagons and carriages stood at a full stop. Valour made her way through them.

  When he finally reached the intersection known to all as Charing Cross, it was filled with soldiers, hundreds of them. They kept their voices low, collectively producing a low hum.

  He searched for Marian, slowing Valour to a walk. The men barely parted for him.

  ‘I say we give them a good fight,’ he heard one man say, his voice louder than the others.

  ‘We gave our word, man,’ another responded in a Scottish brogue. ‘Stubble it or we’ll mark you for a provocateur.’

  Allan continued to pick his way through the crowd. How hard could it be to find a woman among all these men?

  He glanced down Whitehall towards Westminster Palace. Years of war had made his eyesight keen.

  He saw movement.

  The Horse Guards were forming their ranks, preparing for the charge.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Marian stood at the base of the statue of Charles I inside the wrought-iron fence, dressed once again as a boy. Surrounded once again by soldiers. Her nerves bunched in her throat, making it hard to swallow. Soon she’d know if they’d be successful or hanged for traitors.

  Reilly climbed on to the statue. ‘Is it time now, miss?’ He would lead the cheer.

  Three huzzahs and they would be done.

  The sky was light, light enough for Marian to catch sight of the man on the horse, the man searching the crowd. The captain.

  She turned away from him. ‘Yes, Reilly, now, I think.’ Before he arrests us.

  She should have known the captain would come. He’d warned her he would.

  Reilly climbed a little higher and cupped his hands so his voice would carry. ‘Soldiers!’ he shouted.

  The crowd went silent.

  ‘Prepare to cheer!’

  ‘No!’ The captain swivelled around on Valour and pointed towards Whitehall. ‘Horse Guards! They are coming!’

  Marian scrambled up the statue to see rows of uniformed soldiers on horseback starting their charge. She remembered from Waterloo. They started slow and gradually built speed. They would burst into the intersection like a fire-breathing dragon.

  ‘Cheer!’ she cried at the top of her lungs. ‘Cheer!’

  ‘Huzzah!’ Reilly lifted a fist in the air.

  ‘Huzzah!’ Five hundred fists rose. ‘Huzzah! Huzzah!’

  ‘Run!’ boomed Allan. ‘Run now!’

  The men ran. From her vantage point on the statue they were like water splattering in all directions.

  The Horse Guards built their speed.

  Marian climbed down from the statue, and Reilly lifted her on to the iron fence surrounding it. ‘Do not wait for me, Reilly. Get out of here.’

  Reilly easily climbed to the other side. When his feet hit the pavement, he reached for her.

  ‘No,’ she cried. ‘Go.’

  He glanced behind him.

  ‘Get out of here, Reilly!’ It was the captain.

  The captain’s strong arm plucked her off the fence and on to Valour’s back. Reilly ran, disappearing into the remnants of the crowd. She prayed he would escape.

  ‘Hang on,’ the captain told her.

  She seized Valour’s mane in her fingers and pressed her knees tightly to keep herself from falling. Rather than turn away from the Horse Guards, the Captain headed straight for them, but veering off and heading into St James’s Park instead. She expected to hear horses’ hooves behind them, but soon the only sounds were the chirping of early morning birds. The water of the lake peacefully sparkled as the sun finally rose.

  ‘I didn’t see Yost.’ The Captain sounded worried.

  ‘He wasn’t there.’ With luck, Yost had delivered the list of demands to Parliament safely. She could only hope for the others as well. ‘Do you think they got away?’

  ‘I think they very well might have.’ He sounded as if he was glad of it.

  She turned to look at him. ‘You warned them. You warned the soldiers to run.’

  He did not answer, merely put an arm around her as he had done when they fled the peasants’ farm.

  The park seemed quite deserted as if nothing had ever disturbed its tranquillity, not even a nearby demonstration that almost ended with a cavalry charge. ‘Captain, I want to stop. Might we stop a while?’

  He swivelled around, checking the area. ‘Let us find a place where we won’t be seen.’

  He left the trail and found shelter under a weeping willow tree next to the lake. They dismounted and Valour ambled over to dip her nose into the water to drink.

  Marian sat upon the ground at the trunk of the tree.

  ‘I am reminded of our resting place after running from the peasants’ farm,’ the captain remarked as he joined her.

  She remembered every moment of their being together, but now was not a time for memories. ‘Why did you warn us about the Horse Guards?’

  He looked surprised by her question. ‘So the soldiers might get away. If not, there would be injuries and arrests. I never wanted that.’

  She shook her head. ‘You did not want the march to take place at all.’

  ‘There is no fear of arrest if no one breaks the law.’ He spoke as if this should be self-evident.

  ‘But then the plight of the soldiers could be further ignored.’ She lifted her palms, realising she was starting their old debate. ‘Did you not risk arrest by being there?’

  He glanced away, then met her gaze. ‘I had to save you.’

  Valour ambled over and nudged her. She reached up and patted the horse’s neck until Valour spi
ed a spot of grass nearby to nibble.

  Marian turned back to the captain. ‘I never wanted anyone to be arrested. Or hurt. That is why I planned it the way I did, to only show that the soldiers could be a force to be reckoned with if their needs were not met—’

  He interrupted her. ‘You planned it?’

  She nodded and went on. ‘There was to be no rabble-rousing. No speeches. Just a demonstration of force and the delivery of a list of demands.’

  He touched her arm. ‘You were the leader?’

  ‘It was my idea. All my idea,’ she admitted. ‘I involved others only because I knew no soldier would follow a woman.’

  ‘You enlisted Yost?’

  She would not answer him.

  He shook his head. ‘I am not spying now, if that is what you fear. In fact, today I shall resign from the Home Office.’

  ‘Why?’ she asked, astonished.

  He leaned back against the tree. ‘I kept hearing my father’s voice telling me to do what was right. I finally decided to listen to him.’ He glanced away for a moment. ‘Sidmouth’s tactics were not right.’

  ‘But you knew he was doing nefarious things like hiring provocateurs and still you worked for him,’ she accused.

  His eyes narrowed. ‘I needed to protect you. I could only do that by remaining with the Home Office and learning what I could from Sidmouth and his men.’ He took a breath. ‘I did not believe the rumours of Sidmouth’s provocateurs, that is, until he hired Edwin.’

  Her jaw dropped. ‘He hired Edwin?’

  The captain nodded. ‘Edwin boasted of being hired as a provocateur.’ His expression turned doleful. ‘But I do not suppose you will believe any of this now.’

  A day before she would believe nothing he said, but everything seemed different under this tree, next to the water, no one else around. ‘Did Sidmouth truly ask you to use me to spy on Yost?’

  He stared at her. ‘Yes. And I agreed.’ He gave her an anguished look. ‘But once I’d been with you, I knew I would tell him nothing I learned at your house.’

  She waved that away. ‘Did he ask Edwin to use me to spy on Yost as well?’