Lucy Lane and the Lieutenant

by Helen Dickson

  ‘Yes, of course. Tell me more about where she is being held.’

  ‘The organised band of deserters holding her are hiding out in the mountains to the north, which, with winter approaching, is a haven for deserting soldiers from all sides, soldiers who defy both the French and the English. They subsist by terrorising the countryside, taking what they want and murdering those who dare to oppose them. They take hostages—ladies of good families being a speciality—and hold them for ransom. Their leader is a Frenchman, Claude Gameau—also known as Le Chien Noir, the Black Dog. He’s ruthless, a man to be reckoned with.’

  ‘How large is the ransom he is demanding?’

  ‘One thousand guineas—in gold. Gold is a useful commodity.’

  Lucy stared at him in amazement. ‘How on earth will we transport such a large amount of money across Portugal? Why—we could be set upon by bandits and robbed.’

  ‘It is a chance we will have to take.’

  ‘Did you bring the money with you from England?’

  He shook his head. ‘It is here. The duke has been in contact with Sir Robert. He has the matter in hand.’

  Lucy frowned, suddenly thoughtful. ‘Perhaps they won’t let us go. After all, we will have seen their faces and be able to identify them. As deserters, if captured, the penalty is death. How do you know they won’t take the ransom money and kill us both?’

  ‘Gameau owes me. I am relying on that. These men are cutthroats, rapists and murderers—a gang of scum. Because Katherine was wounded when she was captured, caught in an ambush when she was in a convoy returning to England, it will make our task more difficult. Since the Duke of Londesborough lost his eldest son in Spain, followed closely by James, the child is his heir. Gameau is unaware of this, otherwise he would have demanded a king’s ransom. The child is no more than a baby. I have no idea of Katherine’s condition—she might not even be alive still.’

  He sighed heavily, brushing back a lock of hair from his brow with his fingers. ‘To be perfectly frank, Lucy, when I learned she had been taken, I would have returned to Portugal anyway to try to rescue her, without being ordered to do so. James was my closest friend. It is the very least I can do to try to find his wife and son. I knew from the beginning that I was going to need help to get them both out of the mountains. That was when I thought of you. I suggested this to James’s father and he agreed that under the circumstances it would be a sensible move—if you were willing. It is the Duke of Londesborough who is paying you the money for the assignment.’ He was studying her closely. ‘How do you feel about being dragged from hearth and home and forced to endure the hardships that will test your courage to the point of madness?’

  ‘I was not dragged. I came of my own accord—although not without some coercion from you. The loss of my job and mounting debts had much to do with it.’

  ‘Not to mention the five thousand pounds,’ he reminded her lightly.

  She smiled. ‘That was the decider, I admit.’ Turning from him, she walked slowly across the terrace deep in thought. Suddenly, when she thought about Katherine and how she and her young son must be suffering at the hands of her captors, the money didn’t seem important any more. But where did she go from here and how could she turn her back on Katherine now? She could see what she had to do, knew what she must do. She bowed her head.

  ‘How far away is she?’

  ‘Several days’ hard ride. The terrain will be difficult.’ Nathan looked at her, steadily assessing her. ‘I understand if you are afraid.’

  ‘Of course I’m afraid,’ she said, turning to face him. ‘I would be lying if I said otherwise—and you would know.’

  ‘But?’

  ‘I am deeply sorry for what happened four years ago, but you must understand why I behaved as I did. Despite all that I want to help you secure Katherine’s release.’

  ‘So, you are willing to sacrifice yourself for a cause which is not even yours?’

  ‘You have just made it my cause. I am a professional in all that I choose to do. I have a job to do now and I will see it through to the end. What do I have to do?’

  He looked at her for a long moment. ‘We have to stick together. You have to stay alert and aware, but I will tell you if there comes a point where you should be afraid.’ He shook his head, staring wistfully into her eyes. ‘Initially I had no intention of involving you or any other woman in this. Believe me, Lucy, when I tell you that I did not want you to have to live in fear.’

  Lucy was deeply affected and touched to hear this. ‘No—well—if things go to plan I may not have to. When do we leave?’

  ‘In the morning.’

  ‘But what about the horses? They are still on board the Harris.’

  ‘They will be well tended. I’ve arranged for them to be brought to the house tonight.’

  ‘But the poor things have spent the journey in the hold. Don’t they need time to recuperate?’

  ‘They’re tough. They’ll soon pick up again,’ Nathan assured her. ‘We’ll make an early start.’

  ‘I’ll be ready.’ Clutching the shawl about her, she turned to go. About to enter the house, she turned and looked back. ‘I can only say that I am sorry, Nathan—for what happened.’

  ‘So am I.’

  His eyes lingered on her for a moment, but the look in them was inscrutable. She turned from him. ‘I’ll go to bed now. Goodnight, Nathan.’

  ‘Lucy?’

  ‘Yes.’ She paused and looked back at him.

  He smiled at her. ‘I’m an ungrateful wretch and I don’t think it even occurred to me to thank you.’

  She smiled back at him, happy to see a softening and friendliness in the blue eyes. ‘I’ll see you in the morning.’

  Grim-faced, Nathan watched her go. Then he cursed under his breath. He shouldn’t have let her go like that. She’d tried to make a conciliatory gesture which, after all that had passed between them, must have taken a good deal of courage and he’d behaved churlishly.

  * * *

  Lucy went to her room with mixed emotions. An uneasy feeling of doubt about what Nathan had told her about his relationship with Katherine was nibbling away at her. In the past, before they had become lovers, Nathan, a red-blooded male, had been unable to resist a pretty face. That thought made her yearn to be in his arms again, but she could not relent completely, not until she knew the whole truth. She wanted to believe him, to trust him, but what he’d been doing that morning when she had seen him leaving Katherine’s house still remained a mystery.

  She stood at the window and looked out at the night. But neither the cool breeze that lifted her hair away from her flushed face, nor the moon shining silver on the Tagus or the sighing trees that fringed the house, could act as an unguent to her aching spirit.

  * * *

  The following morning she rose before dawn. Slipping into her masculine attire, she was surprised how good it felt to be without the restrictions of female clothing. Before leaving her room, as Nathan had taught her to do, she checked the priming of her pistol and thrust the weapon into her belt, sliding the knife she carried into her boot.

  Please, God. She prayed she would never have occasion to use either.

  After eating a hasty breakfast with a quietly focused Nathan, he carried the saddlebags outside, securing the one containing the gold to the spare horse. The other bags were packed with food rations, blankets and a change of clothes, and a few necessities they would need for the journey. There was also a soldier’s greatcoat for Lucy, which would provide added warmth when they reached the hills.

  Lucy stood back, watching Nathan. Maria came up quietly behind her.

  ‘You had a good evening, yes? You found your room comfortable?’

  ‘Yes, thank you, Maria. I left the dress on the bed. I doubt I shall get the chance to wear dresses again until this is
over.’

  ‘A woman should not need an excuse to wear beautiful things. I look forward to seeing you on your return, with Katherine and her child.’ She studied her closely. ‘You and Nathan talked last night—about his assignment?’

  ‘Yes. He left me in no doubt of the dangers that may beset us on the journey.’

  ‘You are apprehensive, yes, about what is ahead of you?’

  ‘I would be lying if I said no,’ Lucy confessed quietly.

  ‘Nathan will keep you safe, you must know that.’

  When Lucy flushed, Maria knew she had been right in her assumption that these two had feelings for each other. Perhaps they would do something about it since they were to be alone together for some time.

  ‘Would I be right in thinking that you still have feelings for Nathan, Lucy?’ When Lucy cast her a sharp look, she smiled. ‘I know the two of you were close before he went to Spain—that you were to be married.’

  The truth showed on Lucy’s face. ‘Yes, we were, but I ended it. I do still care for him, deeply, but so much has changed.’

  ‘But you are still the same two people who fell in love!’ Maria waved her hand in the air. ‘When two people love each other, they should be together.’

  ‘As much as I ache to bridge those lost years, to reach out to him, to hold him close, to somehow make it right again, too much has happened, Maria. I hurt him very badly—he hurt me. I’m not sure how he thinks, how he feels any more.’

  Maria raised a finely plucked eyebrow. ‘Then it is up to you to put things right. Nathan can be as obstinate as all the mules in Portugal, but he has a soft heart beneath that fearsome manner of his. Perhaps if you love him enough to accept everything and live only for the moment that will bring him back to you, you might have a chance. However obstinate he may be, the day will come when he can no longer struggle against himself and you. Some things are meant to be, Lucy, and life is too short for regrets.’

  Lucy agreed with Maria, and the compulsion to learn more about the enigmatic man who had turned her life upside down from the moment she’d set eyes on him long ago was so strong it couldn’t be denied. ‘Four years is a long time. I know nothing about his life after we parted.’

  ‘I only know what Robert has told me and that Nathan was the one of the best of the British intelligence officers who rode far behind enemy lines, riding brazenly on the flanks of the French forces. He sent back a stream of information about enemy movements, entrusting his messages and maps to Spanish messengers. It was a lonely, brave life he led, until he was wounded in October last year at the Battle of Arroyo dos Molinos in Spain.’

  ‘Yes, he told me. Was he very badly hurt?’

  Maria nodded. ‘A French sword in his side. He was brought to Lisbon, to this house, afterwards. He was very ill. For a time we thought he would not make it. But he is strong and he recovered.’

  Lucy turned her face away, feeling a lump of constricting sadness in her chest.

  ‘It happened months ago, Lucy. He seems to be over it now. I hope your journey into the mountains is successful and you bring Katherine and her child back home. My prayers go with you.’

  Her emotions under control again, Lucy nodded thoughtfully as she watched Nathan walk towards them. An image of him lying wounded dug viciously into her battered senses and she knew that if she dwelt on the image and the pain he must have suffered, she would be lost.

  Recollecting herself, she thought of what was ahead of them. Her heart began to hammer with a mixture of hope and dread, for although she had grown used to the idea of the journey they were about to embark upon, she still dreaded the thought that it could all go wrong.

  Chapter Six

  They spoke little as they left Lisbon behind. The horses were frisky and eager to exercise their legs in a gallop after their confinement on board ship. The third horse carrying the gold, it was hoped, would provide a mount for Katherine and her son, if the Frenchman, Claude Gameau, kept his word and released her on payment of the ransom.

  The scenery was a glorious feast for their eyes. They passed the end of the lines made by Lord Wellington—fieldworks stretching along the top of a range of hills, which, Nathan told Lucy, extended many miles, as far as the seashore, so as to completely shut off Lisbon from the French.

  Nathan had carefully planned the route they would take to the Sierras. Heading north-west, at mid-morning they had stopped to take refreshment and to rest the horses. Dusk found them camping in a clearing of tall trees close to a stream, water being an essential consideration for both horses and humans. Nathan tethered the horses to a misshapen, stunted tree. They bent their heads, cropping at the grass. Stars were set against the velvet sky, the air clear. The stream bubbled along the shallow valley floor and beyond the camp to the lonely hills to the north which rolled far away into the distance.

  With her arms wrapped around her drawn-up knees, in silent fascination Lucy watched Nathan, glowing with strength, energy and vigour, go down to the stream for water. Her eyes took in the flexing of the iron-hard muscles of his wide shoulders and the length of his sturdy, powerful legs. She remembered how it had felt to feel the warmth of his body close to hers, how his lips had felt on hers, his hands sliding down her eager body, and her whole being reached out to him, yearning for him to hold her and possess her as he had done so long ago.

  When he walked back to where she sat, she took a deep draught of fresh, night air in an attempt to dispel her wanton thoughts.

  ‘I’m sorry I can only offer you water to drink,’ he said, handing her the water flask.

  Hearing the howl of an animal in the distance, Lucy shuddered. ‘Are we going to light a fire?’

  ‘No. If there are enemies around, a fire is the last thing we want.’

  Lucy stared into the darkness. ‘There are some enemies a fire will keep away,’ she said, wolves and other things filling her mind.

  Nathan’s mouth became a hard line. ‘No fire, Lucy. We’ll manage without.’

  ‘Will we be safe here, do you think?’ she asked, looking about her into the gathering shadows.

  ‘Safe enough,’ he replied, his gaze doing a quick sweep of their surroundings. She looked at him. ‘What is it?’

  ‘I thought you would wear a uniform.’

  ‘No. This is a private assignment. A red military coat would attract unnecessary attention to us. Common travellers attract less notice.’

  ‘Of course. I should have known better than to ask. As I recall you were never one to seek to draw attention to yourself.’ As soon as she had said the words she wished she hadn’t. Nathan had always been a quiet observer of life and the world in which he lived. Attention always came to him, as if the very light from the sun and every candle fell only on him. It had nothing to do with his looks or his rank, but from his own demeanour and the quiet strength within.

  ‘That is true and it’s a fact that the countryside is full of marauders—men dispossessed by war, desperate men, who will go to any lengths to survive,’ Nathan said by way of an explanation. ‘I’ll take first watch while you get some sleep. You can relieve me for a couple of hours later. I’ll wake you. Tomorrow we should reach Villa Franca.’

  ‘How far is it?’

  ‘About fifteen miles. We should do it before nightfall. The accommodation should be an improvement. At least you won’t have to sleep under the stars.’

  ‘I don’t mind,’ she murmured, touched by his concern for her comfort. But despite this he was tense, watchful, his eyes constantly on the surroundings. ‘We have blankets and at least we are warm so we will be moderately comfortable. I’m so tired I could sleep anywhere.’

  All around them the undergrowth was alive with the sounds of nocturnal creatures. Lucy got to her feet to unroll her blanket. Despite what she had said, she was wondering how she was ever going to get comfortable enough to s
leep.

  Nathan propped his shoulder against a tree, folding his arms across his chest. He looked at his companion. Her eyes were large in the dimness. He watched her, entranced by the line of her throat, the wide mouth, the shadows on her skin above the collar of her jacket.

  Sensing his eyes on her, Lucy straightened and turned her face to his. Her eyes were dark in the moonlight that threw shadows beneath her high cheekbones.

  ‘How long has Katherine been a captive of Claude Gameau?’

  Nathan’s gaze was unwavering. He was aware of her body beneath the male attire, of dark shadows that promised softness. ‘She was captured in late July.’

  ‘Why—that’s three months ago.’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘And the child? How old is he?’

  ‘I believe he was six months old when they were taken.’

  ‘That will make him nine months. It must be horrendous for her. What is he like, this Chien Noir?’

  ‘He is clever. He speaks English like a native.’

  ‘How will we know where to find him?’

  ‘We don’t. When we get into the mountains, he’ll find us. He knows we’re coming and will have lookouts posted.’

  Reaching up to remove her hat, Lucy stopped what she was doing and looked at him, realising how little she knew about this man. ‘What is it like, being a spy? Were there many of you?’

  He nodded, shrugging himself away from the tree. ‘There’s a network of intelligence agents—in Spain, Portugal and France. It all goes on behind the scenes. In a way it’s a bit like the theatre. What the audience see on stage is nothing to what is going on backstage, the people, silent and invisible, who work to put on the show.’

  Lucy thought it strange, on this perfect evening, the light fading into translucent grey and the screech of an owl sounding somewhere in the trees across the stream, to think of the vast, secret war that shadowed the war of guns and swords.

  ‘How many men have you killed?’