“Lord Chertsey? What the devil are you doing here? I’ve got Clara, but Joshua is somewhere about. He’s injured, and I can’t see a damn thing!” Charles said, his voice gaining a little confidence now that he had support.
“Stay where you are,” Edmund instructed.
Outside sounded chaotic with the noise of shouts, gun shots and obvious fighting. At the moment Clara was safer inside the cave rather than out of it. Edmund needed to find Joshua; while he was at large, she was not completely out of danger.
They were all rattled when the explosion from the water’s edge seemed to shake the cave. “I’ve had enough of this. Wait there Baker; I’m going to get some light!” Edmund snapped, walking out of the cave.
He shouted out to one of the excise men who had lit a torch near the beach pathway, standing guard over the path off the beach. The torch was brought across to the cave entrance, and Edmund returned to the darkness inside.
It soon became clear there was no one else in the cave apart from the brother and sister. Edmund felt his legs buckle underneath him caused by the relief that she was alive and unhurt. He sagged against the cave wall, staring at the back of her head. He had not realised just how afraid of her being injured he was until he saw her wrapped in her brother’s arms, safe.
Edmund wanted to move across to them both, but they were so wrapped together that he could not intrude. He felt like an imposter looking on jealously. “Are you both unhurt?” He asked gruffly.
“We’re fine. I need to get Clara home,” Charles replied.
“I’ll make sure it’s safe before you venture out,” Edmund said, leaving the cave to check that everyone who should have been captured was.
He met Henry walking across the beach. “Is everyone contained?” he asked.
“Still alive? I’m surprised after pulling a stunt like that!” Henry growled at him. “You nearly cost us everything.”
“At this point I couldn’t give a damn about anything apart from returning those two to their home. There’s not going to be any nasty surprises if I move them?”
“I’ll send a couple of men to check everywhere, but there shouldn’t be. The pathway was covered. Have you got Shambles?”
“No,” Edmund responded in surprise. “I thought he had returned to the beach. He isn’t in the caves.”
“He isn’t on the beach. He must’ve gone into the backs of the caves; we need to find him,” Henry snarled.
“No. You need to find him. I couldn’t care less where he is. As of this moment I no longer work for King and country,” Edmund said, turning back to the cave. “Let me know when everything has been checked,” he shouted over his shoulder.
“If you think you can walk away as easily as that, you are a fool!” Henry cursed before issuing some orders. Four of the excise men lit torches, two going up the beach path and two entering the cave to search out the rear. He had a gut feeling that they would not find anything; after all the planning, all the waiting, it appeared Joshua had evaded him.
*
Clara remembered saying goodbye to her mother. The illness had only lasted a few months before the children had been taken into the bedchamber to say a final goodbye. Charles had been devastated and taken out of the room by their father. Clara’s mother had indicated for Clara to come closer.
Tears streamed down the young woman’s face as she grasped her mother’s hand. “Mama, I love you.”
“And I you, my wonderful girl,” came the laboured response. “Take care of your father, he will mourn too much.”
“I will.”
“Clara, I need you to promise me something.”
“Anything, Mama.”
“Promise that you will care for Charles. Look after him, he is young and impressionable; I worry about him when he ventures into society. Your father will be of no use to him; I’m relying on you and, if you are married by then, your husband. Only you are capable enough to look after him. Promise me.”
“I promise, Mother; I will always look after him.”
The words would be more prophetic than both women had realised. The death of Clara’s father was only two years after they lost their mother; he finally gave in to the malaise that had descended on him on the death of his wife.
Charles had never quite understood his father, the death of a parent not being as debilitating as the death of a life partner. Clara had been the one to keep relations smooth between the pair and, as a result, had grown even closer to her brother.
She had no serious worries about protecting her brother; in many instances he deferred to her advice, and it seemed as if their mother’s concern had been unfounded.
Recent events had upset Clara’s equilibrium, and she had been haunted by the feelings of letting her mother down. After the evening’s trials, she was clinging on to Charles as if letting him go would result in him being hurt.
She vaguely heard Edmund, but her state of shock, fear and complete and utter terror maintained her focus on Charles.
“It is safe for us to return home,” Charles said quietly to Clara.
“They might hurt you,” Clara responded, wrapping her arms even tighter around Charles. “I won’t let them harm you.”
“Miss Baker, Clara, it’s safe,” Edmund said gently, helping both bodies move as one as he guided them to their feet.
“Mr Shambles?” Clara shuddered at the need to say the name.
“Long gone,” Edmund responded. Joshua had obviously managed to slip past the excise men and was probably well on his way back to London. He would not risk capture by staying in the area.
Charles and Clara walked slowly back to the house, both were stiff, cold and sore from the effects of their imprisonment. There was still much activity on the beach, but neither sibling registered what was happening, they both seemed too engrossed in caring for the other.
Edmund wanted to touch her, to wrap her in his arms and never let her go, but it was not right to come between them. He felt intrusive on the scene and excluded from the person who he ached to be close to.
If Clara and Charles had expected to enter Glazebrook House without any disturbance to the other occupants; they had underestimated the impact of the commotion on the beach. The voices and shouts might have been swallowed by the sounds of the waves, but the gun shots and then the explosion had not.
The pair, followed closely by Edmund were met in the hallway by every occupant and most of the staff of the house.
Milly was the first to move forward. “Oh, my goodness! Come into the drawing room! Tea, brandy and warm blankets!” she instructed briskly.
Edmund helped Milly to shepherd the pair into the room and seated them both on a sofa. He banked the fire before moving a chair near the sofa at Clara’s side.
“What on earth has been going on?” Mr Beresford demanded.
“Not now,” Edmund growled out.
“Not now?” Mr Beresford exclaimed hotly. “If any of my family are at risk of goodness knows what, I demand to be told!”
“No one is in danger,” Edmund flashed him a look that would have silenced most people.
“Can you guarantee that? I want to leave; my wife and daughter are not going to be put at risk!” the concerned parent continued.
“You fool! Yes, take your family off in the middle of the night and see how long it is before you are accosted by highwaymen, or overturn your coach on the roads in the dead of night. That’ll be a fine example of protecting your family!”
“You might be a Lord, but I don’t like your tone, young man!” Mr Beresford shouted.
“Enough!” Milly said loud enough to silence the two combatants. “If Lord Chertsey says there is no danger, then there isn’t, Mr Beresford. Rest easy that the male staff will patrol the house all night to ensure we are all safe in our beds; there is really no need to leave. If you wish to leave in the morning, I understand, but please rest easy. If you would like to return to your chamber, I shall have a tray sent to your room with some warm spiced wine; it
is a recipe of the area and is perfect for settling ones nerves after such an upset.”
Mr Beresford seemed slightly mollified at Milly’s calming words and, at Milly’s nod, was escorted from the room. Before the door was closed behind him, he turned to Milly. “I shall be speaking to your cousin about his engagement. I am no longer convinced of the advantage of the attachment.”
Milly sagged when the door was closed; she was thankful that neither Charles nor Clara had seemed to notice what had been said. They were seated, their heads touching, talking quietly to each other.
“What happened?” Milly asked Edmund.
“A little more than smuggling brandy,” Edmund replied, too tired and concerned to enter into a full explanation.
“Lord Grinstead knew about this didn’t he?”
“He organised the welcoming party to try and capture the culprits.”
“So you knew that it wasn’t simple smuggling before tonight?” Milly asked in shock.
“Yes.”
“And yet neither of you saw fit to let us in on the potential danger we faced.” Milly was reminded of the conversation she had exchanged with Henry but, if she were honest, she had not believed him fully when expressing how much danger they were in.
“We couldn’t risk exposure. Henry in particular has worked for a long time on this,” Edmund said quietly.
“My family could’ve been killed!”
“I know,” Edmund responded, his voice barely above a whisper. That thought was going to haunt him for a very long time to come.
The conversation was interrupted by the arrival of drinks. Milly made both Clara and Charles drink a large brandy before giving them a cup of tea each with lots of sugar. As Milly handed the cups to her cousins, she exclaimed. “Look at your wrists! They’re bleeding!”
Clara looked down at her wrists, as if noticing the cuts for the first time. “It happened as we cut the ropes; we had to act quickly or someone could have disturbed us.”
Milly ordered water and cloths to be brought in order to clean the wounds. “Where is Lord Grinstead?” she asked Edmund.
“I don’t know. Outside somewhere.”
“I shall return soon,” Milly said, standing. The normally calm woman had an expression that would have worried even the most hardened man. “I’m entrusting my cousins’ care to you, Lord Chertsey; I shall return as soon as I can.”
Edmund raised his eyebrow; he was suddenly a little sorry for Henry if the quiet but formidable young woman was able to find him.
A bowl of steaming water was brought in, and Edmund dampened the cloths that had been provided. He positioned his chair so he was seated directly in front of Clara and gently took her hand. He said nothing, but carefully washed her wounds.
Clara looked at him and the haunted expression nearly brought him to his knees. “They were going to leave us to drown,” she said quietly.
“I would’ve saved you,” Edmund said gently but firmly.
“I didn’t keep Charles safe.”
“You did; he’s here and, apart from a few cuts and an impressive black eye, he’s perfectly safe and probably a lot wiser.” Edmund received an embarrassed smile from Charles.
“I promised, and he could’ve been killed!” Clara said, beginning to shake.
“I’m here, Clara; please don’t upset yourself,” Charles pleaded.
“She’s in shock. Is there any laudanum in the house?” Edmund asked, standing and walking to the bell pull at the side of the fireplace.
“I think there might be,” Charles replied.
Edmund gave his instructions to the housekeeper and sent her on her way to find the drug. He then approached Clara. “You need to sleep. Everyone is safe, but I’m not happy about your health. Come with me.”
Clara did not place her hands in the two hands outstretched towards her. “I’m not leaving Charles.”
Edmund moved swiftly and easily picked Clara off the sofa and held her in his arms. “Baker, lead the way to your sister’s chamber. She needs to sleep.”
Clara protested but could not fight the firm hold that encompassed her. She eventually lay her head against Edmund’s shoulder, watching Charles as he led the way upstairs.
The group entered the bedchamber, and Edmund carefully laid his precious cargo on the bed. He went to Clara’s feet and unfastened the laces of her boots, removing them. He then pulled the eiderdown folded at the bottom of the large bed over Clara.
They were interrupted by the housekeeper, bringing the requested draft. She handed it to Edmund, and he supported Clara’s head while she drank the liquid.
Clara was so meek that Edmund was really concerned. The fire had gone from her, and he was terrified that she would make herself ill if she did not soon rally. Charles had held his sister’s hand since their entrance into the room.
“You need to rest,” Edmund said quietly to Charles.
“Soon,” Charles replied. He seemed to have aged during the evening, Edmund noticed that the young, carefree eyes that had looked at everything as a bit of fun, had a new maturity in their gaze.
Milly entered the room, looking flushed and a little upset. Edmund looked at her with a frown, but she seemed to be purposely avoiding looking at anyone or offering any explanation for her discomfort.
“Is everything well?” Milly asked, not quite meeting Edmund’s eyes.
“Yes. I’ve given some laudanum to your cousin in the hope for some much needed, undisturbed sleep. You look a little out of sorts, Miss Holland; are you feeling ill?”
“No. I’m fine, thank you, My Lord.”
Clara looked at Charles. “Will you stay?”
“I’ll stay as long as you wish.”
“I promised I would protect you.”
“And you did. You reached my knife, and that freed us,” Charles said gently. “I couldn’t have done it without you, my lovely sister. You saved me.”
“We saved each other,” Clara said, before her eyes became heavy, and she drifted into sleep.
“I’ve never seen her like this,” Milly said, frowning. “She’s always been so much in control, so confident.”
“It’s been a shock, hopefully she’ll awaken more herself,” Edmund assured her. “Baker, you need to rest as much as your sister does.”
“I don’t know if I’ll sleep for a long time,” Charles admitted. “I can’t shake off the feeling of stupidity, of being so wholly taken in by Joshua. Do you know he admitted that when I was set-upon by some thugs a few months ago, it was all arranged in order for an acquaintance to be developed? How foolish was I to be taken in so easily?”
“They are professionals at what they do,” Edmund admitted. “Don’t be too hard on yourself; if you’d have become suspicious, they could have hurt you or your family. In this case it was better to remain unawares.”
“So I should be thankful for my stupidity?” Charles said roughly. “I doubt that will help make me sleep better this evening.”
“I will stay with Clara to make sure she’s settled,” Milly said.
“Might I call tomorrow–later today to see how you all are?” Edmund asked, realising just how late it was.
“You are welcome here whenever you like,” Charles said with feeling. “I’m glad you were there tonight.”
“I did very little; it seemed you had the situation under control from what I saw.”
“Thank you for having confidence in my ability, but in reality I wasn’t capable of being able to fight off any of them.”
Edmund put his hand on Charles’ shoulder and squeezed it with sympathy. “You did well tonight, Baker; don’t try to convince yourself that you didn’t.”
Charles nodded, and they left Clara’s bedchamber together. Edmund left the house reluctantly. He wanted nothing more than to stay by the side of Clara’s bed until she awoke but, once again, he had no real right to be so near.
Chapter 20
Clara awoke to an empty bedchamber. She felt groggy and, for a while lay still
, drifting in and out of sleep while the effects of the drug wore off. Eventually, she felt awake enough to pull back the covers and sit up. She groaned at her state of dishabille; her clothes were creased and dirty from their exertions the night before. She sighed, it was no exaggeration to feel that these clothes would be irreparable.
Swinging her legs over the edge of the bed she felt a little dizzy but shook her head in an effort to clear it. She was not going to faint; the more movement she could do, the better. Standing, she rubbed her hands across her face, thinking about what had happened.
There were so many ‘what ifs’ that her mind reeled, but she managed to get herself under control; they were safe, Joshua was gone and Edmund had cared for her.
The events made her shudder and would haunt her for a long while but, at the same time, she felt proud. Charles had not been the frightened little boy who had surfaced when their mother died; he had been a capable man, prepared to get them both out of the danger they were facing. She smiled with pride at the thought that her little brother was now a man; it was just a pity they had been forced to go through such an extreme circumstance for the adult to emerge.
Clara took off her clothing, not caring that she ripped some of the material. She did not want to face her maid just yet. Fresh water had been left, and she washed, scrubbing off the sand that still managed to cling to her body.
She was dressed in a clean petticoat when a knock disturbed her. “Yes?” she shouted, from behind her screen.
“It’s Milly.”
“Come in!”
Milly entered the room and was relieved to see the signs of Clara being up and about.
“Milly, please help me into my dress; I’m not quite ready to face the speculation of the servants.”
Milly smiled and walked around the edge of the screen, picking up the dress that Clara had chosen and helping her cousin into it as she spoke. “They all had such late nights that I think they’ll be too tired to gossip about anything today. You are looking well; I sat with you for a few hours last night, but you appeared to be in a deep sleep with no nightmares, so I confess the call of my own bed was too irresistible to ignore.”
My Lord the Spy Page 16
