His lips twitched, but now was not the time for teasing. “The people you saw on the beach today, did they see you?”
Milly frowned slightly, trying to remember. “I’m almost sure not. I tend to seat myself behind some of the rocks; I like being on the beach rather than looking down from the beach house.”
“No one approached you?”
“No. I don’t think they even looked in my direction. They were interested in the caves though. I sat on the opposite side, more towards Mr Brandon’s property.”
“What did they do?”
“They walked around the headland. It’s unusual for people to come onto our beach, but not unknown; it isn’t private after all. The gentlemen walked over to the caves, entered them for a few minutes before walking back the way they came,” Milly answered.
Henry breathed a sigh of relief, for a split second he had worried that she had unknowingly put herself in real danger, but it appeared not. He paused before continuing; he was never normally concerned about anyone being in danger; he shook himself and continued. “Miss Holland, I need you to hide this picture where no one else will find it. You didn’t see anyone on the beach today; in fact you were engrossed in drawing pebbles and shells, not vistas.”
Milly paled a little, but her voice was steady. “Are my family in danger, My Lord?”
“Not as far as I can tell at the moment, but if you’d been discovered, you would have been. That drawing is excellent, but that’s a problem. I can recognise the men who visited the beach. If they knew of this drawing they would be determined to get rid of it. I’m not being unnecessarily dramatic in saying that they would not have hesitated in harming you if they had found you.”
“I shall return the booklet to my room and hide it there, or I could just destroy the picture?”
“No! If events don’t go to plan it could come in useful,” Henry said quickly. He could reproduce that picture if need be.
“I am concerned about your doubt that events won’t go as you wish,” Milly said; her tone was serious, and she held Henry’s gaze, challenging him not to try to pacify her with empty words.
“I’m going to do everything in my power to resolve things to both our satisfaction, but I would appreciate if you could assure me that you won’t go onto the beach alone for the next few days.” For the first time in his chosen occupation Henry did not wish someone to become embroiled in what was most definitely a dangerous situation. It was a strange feeling; it was easier when he did not care about what happened to anyone caught up in the illegal activities of society. Whether it was her quiet ways or the way she looked at him, as if she knew exactly what he was but did not condemn him, he was not sure, but he did not want her hurt.
Milly paused before speaking but eventually nodded her head. “None of us will be alone on the beach, My Lord.”
“Good.” Henry moved away from the painting. He would be glad when this episode was over and he could return to normality in London.
Chapter 16
Charles bounded into Clara’s bedchamber without knocking. Luckily, Clara was dressed and seated at her writing table, answering correspondence. She placed her quill on the inkstand and turned towards her brother.
“Am I to wish you happy?” she asked, smiling at Charles’ beaming face.
“Yes, dear sister, you certainly are!”
“Oh, Charles, I’m so pleased for you! She is a delightful girl, and I’m sure you’ll both be very content. You have my very best wishes.”
Charles flushed with pleasure. “She is an angel, Clara! I can’t believe she wants me.”
“I can,” Clara replied honestly.
“Even though I’ve been a beast these last few months?” Charles asked, a little hesitant.
“We’ve both been beasts,” Clara acknowledged. “I’ve been happy this last week because my brother has returned.”
“I have felt different,” Charles said honestly. “It’s to do with Miss Beresford. She brings out the best in me.”
“I hope your friend will be pleased for you. Are you making the announcement tonight as planned?”
“Yes, when we join you in the drawing room. Mr Beresford said he will send an announcement to the Times on Thursday, so it will be in Friday’s edition, in time for their return to the City. I’ve asked for a short engagement, and he has agreed. It’s all perfect!” Charles was all smiles, but then a cloud passed over his expression.
“What’s wrong?” Clara asked.
“It’s just Joshua. I don’t feel that I know him these last few days, he’s altered so much.”
“You’ve already acknowledged that you’ve changed, perhaps you are seeing him in a different light?” Clara suggested gently.
Charles smiled a rueful smile. “You mean see him as you do? I think I’ve always been a little in awe of him, perhaps even a little afraid, but he did me such a great service I’ve always felt I owed him a great deal.”
Clara was getting an insight into Charles’ feelings, something he had never admitted to before. It began to explain why he had so blindly followed Joshua. “And now?”
“He can’t join me in being happy, and I refuse to be miserable at the moment,” Charles said, his chest puffing out at his words.
“I’m glad. Miss Beresford deserves joy surrounding her on the announcement of her engagement. No one should take that away from you.”
“Are we friends again, Clara?” Charles asked, his demeanour a little less sure.
Clara stood and walked to where her brother was standing. She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into an embrace. “We are and will always be friends, Charles. You and Milly are the two people most precious to me. I love you both dearly, you especially, my darling brother.”
“And I love you. I’m sorry we’ve argued,” Charles said gruffly.
Clara looked at her younger brother, he was one of the world’s genuine people, proved even more so by his friendship with Joshua. “It takes two to make an argument; I’m sorry as well. I shouldn’t have harangued you the way I did.”
Charles kissed Clara’s forehead, squeezing her before releasing her. “I’ve got to go. I’ve promised to be beaten at chess by my sweetheart!”
Clara smiled as the door closed behind her brother. It was good to see him so happy and a relief to know that soon Joshua would no longer have any influence over him. It seemed that Milly had been right; Charles was moving out of his influence by his own will. She should have kept her counsel instead of creating so much ill-feeling, but it was over now; they were friends, and that was all that mattered.
She returned to her writing table but did not continue the task that had been interrupted. Although she had imposed the ban, she had missed the company of Edmund, and once again he was at the forefront of her mind.
There was no doubt that, along with Joshua disappearing once Charles was no longer of any use to him, so would Edmund. Clara felt bereft and cursed herself for her weakness; he had used them both; she should keep reminding herself of that.
The problem was that no matter how many times she repeated the mantra to herself, she still longed to see those eyes gazing into her own just before he kissed her.
*
The evening was the most enjoyable of the stay. It was just the Bakers and the Beresford’s who sat down, along with Joshua. All but Joshua were in a buoyant mood, and so the chatter was loud and jovial, especially after the official announcement was made. Clara noticed that Joshua left the room soon after the engagement was made public and was glad of his absence. His natural glower did nothing to lighten the mood.
It was late before everyone retired to their respective bedchambers. Clara sat in her window seat, not bothering to get undressed. She needed to have a few moments of undisturbed peace before she rang for her maid to assist her. It had been a noisy day, and she was glad of the quiet and time for reflection.
The moon was only partly obscured by cloud, there was a reasonable amount of light, illuminating the g
arden and glistening off the ocean in the distance. The sea always seemed majestic in the dark; tonight it was reasonably calm, but there was enough light to show the power of the smaller waves.
Clara suddenly sat a little further away from the glass; Joshua Shambles was making his way across the grass in front of the house, walking towards the beach path. He was not trying to conceal himself the way he had done on the other night she had seen him leave the building.
This must be the night that whatever he had planned was taking place, or he would still be taking care not to be seen. Clara breathed a sigh of relief; soon he would be gone from their lives. She should have been concerned that he was without doubt involved in something illegal, but she did not care; he would leave and no longer able to use Charles.
Edmund was out there.
Clara’s heart sank. Edmund could be at risk while Joshua was outside. She wanted to have the ability to warn Edmund but was sensible enough to realise that her presence would put him even more at risk as well as endangering herself. She did not like it but had to content herself with trusting that Edmund had enough experience and ability to keep himself safe.
Clara had relaxed again once Joshua had moved out of sight, heading onto the beach, but her peace was not to last long.
She was horrified to see Charles walking across the lawn, not attempting to hide himself, but following in Joshua’s footsteps.
Clara banged on the window with enough force that the panes of glass rattled with objection, but Charles did not hear them. He continued his walk, not looking back at all.
Clara felt sick with panic, but she jumped off the window seat, rushing to her wardrobe. Grabbing her pelisse, she flung it over her shoulders, struggling to put her arms in the sleeves as she hurried to her bedchamber door. Gone were the thoughts not to be anywhere near Joshua Shambles; Charles was putting himself in danger and did not realise it. Clara had to reach him before anyone else did.
*
Clara ran as fast as she could, gasping between barely contained sobs, thanking her foresight in not removing clothing or footwear that would have delayed her even more. She had opened the large wooden front door of Glazebrook House, leaving it swinging in the night air, not wishing to waste a second.
Why had she not told Charles any of what she knew? Joshua had shown her his true colours; she should have warned Charles to be on the alert. Even as the thoughts coursed through her mind she knew exactly why she had held her counsel; Charles would not have listened to whatever she had said to Joshua’s detriment. Clara stumbled in the dark; he was a foolish boy!
She reached the top of the pathway and almost threw herself against the Cliffside in order to conceal her descent. She could not make anything out on the beach, which she hoped was a good sign. Trying to control her breathing, which sounded uncommonly loud in her own ears, she made her way down the path.
The path was relatively smooth, but the cliff that it hugged provided a constant source of pebbles, soil and tufts of loose grass and caused Clara to curse as she stepped on one object after another or kicked a pebble scurrying down the path ahead of her. She hoped Joshua had disappeared, and Charles would be making his way back up the path, but she could hear no movement.
In fact she could hear nothing at all, apart from her own pounding heart and the noise of the waves rolling onto the pebbles.
As the pathway ended and she reached the pebbled beach, Clara hesitated. She had no light and was not sure which direction to start searching first. She dared not call out to Charles for fear of betraying both their positions.
Just as she was about to push herself off from the comfort of the cliff, Clara gasped.
“Now isn’t this sweet? Brother and sister come to poke their noses where they aren’t wanted,” came the amused drawl of Joshua Shambles.
Clara did not move; there was a gun being pushed into her neck. Her knees weakened through fear, and she prayed she would not suddenly faint.
“Not so talkative now, are you?” Joshua taunted at her silence.
“I-I just want to find my brother; I’m not interested in anything else that’s going on,” Clara stuttered, unable to stop the tremor in her voice, which was unsurprising as she had never been so afraid in her life.
“Don’t take me for a fool!” Joshua hissed, pressing the barrel of the gun harder into Clara’s neck.
“It’s true!” Clara gasped, hardly able to talk because the pressure against her artery was so great.
“Well, you’re going to see your brother, that’s for certain. I’m not one to prevent emotional goodbyes. Claude, take this snooty bitch to her stuck-up brother; let them have a family reunion while I think of how best to get rid of them,” Joshua instructed.
Clara was grabbed and hauled over the shoulder of what felt like a giant. She squealed in surprise, but any further sound was discouraged by the slap across the side of her head from Joshua.
She was unceremoniously bounced across Claude’s shoulders as he made his way across the beach. After the ringing in her ears had stopped, Clara decided it was best to keep quiet. The movement was causing her to feel nauseous so she concentrated on not embarrassing herself while being carried.
Claude walked into the main cave entrance, which was lit by two lanterns. He put Clara on her feet as he came to a halt, and she swayed at the sudden righting of her body.
“Clara! Clara! Are you hurt?” came Charles’ anguished cry.
Clara blinked until the dizziness faded, and she became used to the light. “Oh, Charles!” she moaned and moved towards him, but was pulled back roughly by her hair.
“Get off my sister, you damned lout! I’ll have you if you lay another finger on her!” Charles snarled.
Claude turned to Charles and smirked. He was the same man who Charles had been intimidated by when Charles had visited the warehouse with Joshua. Claude smiled and grabbed hold of Clara by the cheeks, squeezing them roughly between his strong hands. He pulled her close, and she heaved at the foul stench that came from his mouth.
“Now, now, Claude, how many times have I told you about getting amorous with the ladies?” came a voice from the entrance.
Bernard entered the cave and bent to tie Clara’s feet together while Claude still held her. When the job was done, he grabbed her hands, which had been engaged in trying to release Claude’s hands from his hold on her cheeks, and pulled them roughly behind her, tying them firmly.
“Claude, release her,” Bernard instructed.
Claude did as he was told, and Clara crumpled to the ground, unable to support herself due to being restrained by the ropes.
“You’ll pay for that!” Charles hissed. “I’m going to spend the rest of my life hunting you down!”
Bernard chuckled. “Well, we don’t need to worry for very long then; you’ll be fish food by the end of tonight. Come on, Claude, the boats are on their way.”
“You can’t do that!” Charles said hotly.
“Oh, we can, but in fact we don’t need to do anything actually. Look behind you, my little Baron; just look where you are and where the tide mark is on the wall. Your little lady will be sad to find out her beau has been washed out to sea by morning.”
Bernard walked out of the cave chuckling at the horrified expression on both prisoners’ faces. It was clear they had realised the reality of dealing with men like him. It was a lesson they would not easily forget.
Chapter 17
“Clara, are you hurt?” Charles struggled across the floor of the cave to be near his sister; he was restrained in the same way as Clara.
“I don’t think my cheeks will ever recover,” Clara responded. Her voice was shaky, but she tried to sound light-hearted when in fact she had never been more afraid in her life.
“Why did you venture out?”
“I saw you following Shambles. I was afraid for your safety; he’s dangerous, Charles.”
“I’m not going to argue against that after this evening,” Charles said ruefully.
“I’m hoping Joshua is going to have a similar bruise. I might be afraid of him, but he wasn’t getting away without at least a bit of a fight.”
Clara rested her head on her brother’s shoulder. “I’m just relieved you’re in one piece,” she said with feeling, glad they could at least touch.
“Aw, what a sweet picture you paint,” Joshua sneered at the pair as he entered the cave.
“You should be ashamed of yourself!” Charles snapped. “All I’ve done for you, and you repay me by murdering us!”
“You’ll just drown, nothing to do with me,” Joshua shrugged.
“The least you could do is untie us,” Clara said struggling against her bindings.
“So you can run to the magistrate? I don’t think so, Miss High-and-Mighty. Not so sure of yourself now are you?”
“Joshua, I was your friend!” Charles tried a different tack.
“Were you? Is that what you really thought? You’re more stupid than you look if that’s the case!” Joshua sneered.
“Why did you stick around after you saved me from those thugs, if that’s what you thought?” Charles asked, completely bewildered.
Joshua laughed. “You just don’t understand do you? That was a set-up, you fool! Do you honestly think I could’ve seen off that number of men? I’m good, but I’m not Claude!”
“It was a set-up?” Charles responded with disbelief.
“Of course it was!” Joshua snarled. “You were being watched, but you played right into our hands; I’ll give you that you’ve always been very obliging! We’d only found out that day who owned this land and who you were. You made it so easy for us. I’ll never forget the panic on your face when you were begging for your life.”
“It’s all been to get access to my land?”
“If it makes the little Baron feel any better, some of your peers will be feeling the same as you do tonight. We are using more than one beach,” Joshua mocked.
My Lord the Spy Page 14
