by Louise Clark
She looked up into Philip’s eyes, her own miserable. “Do you think he will be able to persuade Cedric that Prudence should be exchanged?”
“Yes. He will bring Prudence to the meeting place.” Philip hid the grim remainder of his thought from Alysa. Osborne might bring Prudence to the meeting place, but he would make no guarantees that she would be allowed to leave safely. To ensure that happened was up to Philip.
A tear trickled down Alysa’s cheek. “What a wretched choice! To sacrifice a brother or a sister! How can I do it?”
Philip gently stroked away the moisture. “You will sacrifice neither. If this follows as I plan, Prudence will return to Strathern Hall, Thomas will successfully escape and Ingram will be rewarded for his betrayals as he should be.”
Alysa smiled through her tears, her eyes trusting. “Can it be?”
“With a little luck and a lot of planning, yes, I believe it can.”
She snuggled against him. “Now all I have to do is convince Papa to talk to you.”
Philip smiled over her head. “Was he very angry?”
Alysa sighed. “He will be once he has time to consider what my absence really means. He is beside himself with worry over Prudence and was simply glad to know I had returned home safely. I did not realize that the note I left was more than a little ambiguous, you see. I said you and I were going into the lion’s den to find the spy and make him tell us where Prudence was. Papa sat up all night worrying about my safety, not my honor, I’m afraid.”
Philip’s hands stroked down her back in a comforting way. “So that is why you were able to slip away to meet me this afternoon?”
She looked up at him and smiled. “I would not have allowed anything to stop me, Philip, for I promised I would come. However, neither Papa nor Mama forbade me to see you, although I am afraid my stepmama guessed that we had become lovers. She said that I looked too happy. Papa, fortunately, wasn’t about when she spoke to me, but I am sure she will tell him soon. I do not know what he will do then.”
Another detail to be sorted out. Philip didn’t want to think about what he would say to Lord Strathern, not with Alysa warm in his arms and the woods silent around them. Planning could keep until later. For now he pushed the future out of his mind and thought only of the present.
He tilted her chin up for a kiss, giving her plenty of time to move away if she did not want to accept the embrace. Instead her lips parted and she moistened them enticingly with the tip of her tongue. He drew a deep, sizzling breath. “Alysa!”
She raised her hands to his head and urged him closer. Their mouths met and soon the only sounds to break the quiet of the woodlands were those of two people in love.
Chapter 18
Philip’s plan to save Prudence Leighton had all the precision of a military engagement. After choosing the field, he walked over it, hunting for its weak points and its strengths. Then, having assessed the terrain, he analyzed the people involved to decide how they would act and react. Finally, he created a plan, then tested it for flexibility. If the unexpected happened, how well would his design hold up? Did it have the capacity to bend or would it break, and thus lead to Thomas Leighton’s capture?
When he was satisfied that his overall strategy would be successful, he set about organizing his forces. His first recruit was Lord Strathern.
By the time Philip saw him, Strathern was nearly frantic with worry over Prudence and to a lesser degree over Alysa. He was in no mood to listen patiently to a man he knew was in league with his enemies, not to mention the fact that the same man had taken his eldest daughter into danger and ruined her reputation at the same time.
As Lord Strathern’s participation in the exchange was crucial, Philip let him vent his anger and frustration. When the man had pretty much run down, Philip said flatly, “Lord Strathern, my knowledge of Osborne and his activities is our greatest strength, not a weakness. It is a motto of every military man that to know the enemy is to defeat the enemy. Sir Edgar Osborne does not care about Prudence; he is just using her to get what he really wants—your son, Thomas. If he thinks Thomas will give himself up freely, he will gladly hand Prudence back to us. If he believes Thomas will prove elusive, he will keep Prudence as long as is necessary for him to make the arrest he seeks. That is why it is important for Thomas to seem to be giving himself up.”
Strathern eyed Philip warily. “I understand what you are suggesting, Hampton, but this exchange is all in Osborne’s favor. He will be there with his troop of dragoons—”
“We agreed that the exchange would be done quietly, with only the principals there,” Philip interjected quickly.
Strathern brushed this off with a flick of his wrist. “Osborne is a traitorous Roundhead. He will not honor his word. Mark me, the dragoons will be there.”
Philip was inclined to agree on that point, so he didn’t dispute Lord Strathern’s pronouncement. Instead, he said evenly, “Osborne might have his troops, but we will have the element of surprise.”
“Will we?”
“Yes!” Anger flickered in Philip and filled his voice. “Listen to me, Strathern! I know Osborne. Moreover, I know his sort. He’s a minor functionary in the Lord Protector’s court who has been given a task that he can only do if people act as they are supposed to. He’s never learned that success is the result of careful planning and hard work. He won’t go to the Fenwick Cliffs and walk the ground, looking for defensive positions and escape routes, as I did. Oh, he may go to the cliffs so he knows where they are, but he won’t put in the extra effort that a good commander needs to make his strategy work.”
Strathern frowned at Philip from under his brows. “What exactly are you saying, Hampton?”
“At the Fenwick Cliffs there is a grove of trees to the east. The ground does not fall off as abruptly there. Do you know the place I mean?”
Strathern nodded.
Philip continued in a flat, even tone. “Very well. When I walked amongst the trees I discovered a path that led down from the high land to the flats below. It is a steep path, little more than an animal track, but a man could scramble down it without too much difficulty, as I did. If a horse were waiting for him at the bottom he could gallop the short distance to Fenwick Cove and meet a boat there that could take him far away from West Easton.”
“Your idea might well be possible,” Lord Strathern said slowly after a moment, “but I see some flaws.”
“Such as?”
“If Thomas could scramble down the hillside, then anyone pursuing him could do the same.”
Philip smiled and nodded. “A good point, but as long as Thomas reaches the bottom first he will be safe, for there would only be one horse waiting there. If he was followed down the hill, his pursuers would be left standing in the dust of his passing.”
Strathern nodded thoughtfully. “A well-reasoned argument. I find it difficult to believe, though, that Osborne will allow Thomas to get close enough to the trees for him to reach the path.”
“Once again Osborne’s weaknesses will serve us well. Thomas and I will get to the cliffs first, so that we will already be in place when Osborne arrives. Because he has no sense of the importance of positioning, he will not object to where Thomas is waiting. The trick is to have Thomas nearing the woods when he and Prudence pass each other. If he is relatively close to them, he need only kick his horse into a gallop and he will reach the cover of the trees before anyone has decided what to do. Osborne, as I said, does not react well to the unexpected.”
“What about Prudence?”
“The moment Thomas gallops for the trees, I will ride to Prudence’s side and protect her.”
“Then she will go from Osborne’s hands into yours.”
There was a contemptuous note to Lord Strathern’s voice. Unspoken were the words and she will be in just as grave danger then as she is now.
Philip’s voice hardened at the intended insult. “On the contrary, Strathern. Your daughter will go from the hands of Cedric Ingram into mine.
I would feel far more comfortable about Prudence’s safety if she were being held by Osborne. He, at least, has nothing to hide and no reason to harm her. Ingram, on the other hand, still believes his perfidy to be unknown. He is capable of anything to keep his position here intact.”
At the mention of Ingram’s name, the frown on Lord Strathern’s face hardened into a grim mask. “What do you want me to do?”
“Contact Thomas and have him meet me at Fenwick Cliffs tomorrow at ten in the forenoon. I have asked Osborne to be there an hour later, so Thomas and I will be able to walk the ground together as we discuss the plan. Osborne will be late—he always is—so he will suspect nothing if he finds us at the meeting place ahead of him.”
Lord Strathern said slowly, “How do I know that you will not have the dragoons waiting for Thomas?”
“You must trust me,” Philip said softly.
“Why should I?”
Philip drew a deep breath and answered honestly. “I wish to marry your daughter.”
“And if I told you that would never happen?”
“I love Alysa. If I allow Thomas to be captured or harm to befall Prudence, I would hurt Alysa. I cannot do that.”
Strathern eyed Philip from under his brows. “Is that your only reason for turning your coat?”
Philip flushed. He was not used to hearing himself referred to in that derogatory way. “Lord Strathern, I am offering you my help. Will you take it?”
Slowly, Strathern nodded. “I will, but only because I must.”
Philip nodded. He hadn’t expected that Lord Strathern would be easy to convince, or that he would look happily on the union of his eldest daughter and a Roundhead officer. Persuading him that he should bless the marriage of Alysa and Philip Hampton was a battle that Philip knew he must put aside until a later date. For the present, he had achieved his goal. Strathern would do his part in arranging the meeting at the Fenwick Cliffs.
It was all he could ask. For now.
*
Thomas arrived at the hour Philip had specified and Philip pointed out the entryway to the path, the direction in which Osborne would be coming and the point where Thomas should wait so that when the exchange took place he would be heading toward the trees as he rode to Osborne.
Though Thomas was suitably attentive, Philip noticed something disconcerting lurking deep within his eyes. He thought the expression might be amusement, but he dismissed the idea. How could a man in danger of losing his freedom and worried about a sister who was being held captive be amused? It didn’t make sense.
A little before the appointed meeting time, Philip and Thomas remounted their horses, so that it appeared as if they had just arrived. Philip was careful to position himself away from Thomas so Osborne would not become suspicious. He wanted Osborne to believe that Thomas Leighton was alone, friendless, and therefore vulnerable. That would keep Osborne’s guard down and make Thomas’s escape all the easier.
Osborne arrived late, as Philip had predicted, but he did not honor the terms of the agreement he had made with Philip. With him he brought Prudence Leighton, but she was riding in the middle of the troop of dragoons, led by a very smug-looking Lieutenant Weston. Philip noted that, although she was very pale, she was riding with her head high and her back straight, good indications that she had been frightened by her incarceration, but she had not been molested by her captors. Philip allowed himself to relax a little. Even with the troops here he still believed he and Thomas could carry off his plan. Their timing must be perfect and luck must be with them, but it was still possible.
The troop halted a quarter of a mile away. Philip and Osborne each rode forward to discuss the terms and agreements.
Philip didn’t bother with a polite greeting. Instead, he jerked his head in a peremptory way toward the dragoons. “What is the meaning of this? We agreed that this meeting was to be between the four of us—there was no mention of your soldiers being involved.”
Osborne smirked, apparently well pleased that he had outthought Philip. “I brought the troops as a simple precaution, Hampton. I did not want Thomas Leighton deciding that his horse could outrun mine once his sister was safely in your hands.”
“Then the exchange will not be impeded by the soldiers?”
Osborne nodded his head. “Lieutenant Weston has orders to stay in his position unless something unforeseen occurs.”
“You trust Weston?” Philip retorted incredulously.
“He will do as I order. Now then, shall we get on with it?” He gestured toward Thomas, who was sitting his horse stiffly, his back to the cliffs, his eyes narrowed as he watched the two men talk. “I see you were able to persuade young Leighton to give himself up.”
Philip glanced over his shoulder and shrugged. “Family ties have a way of making a man do what might not be in his best interests.”
“My good fortune, Leighton’s bad,” Osborne said cynically. “Very well, let’s get this exchange over and done with, shall we? I’d rather not linger here any longer than I must.”
Philip nodded. “Leighton is ready to do it now.”
Osborne raised his hand in a prearranged signal, and Prudence was allowed to begin her ride toward her brother’s position. At the same time, Philip looked back at Thomas and nodded. Thomas glanced at Osborne, his look full of loathing; then he concentrated on riding toward his sister while keeping his horse at a slow walk.
Tension mounted as Prudence and Thomas moved closer and closer to the middle ground where they would pass each other. That was a crucial point, for after it Prudence would be increasingly safe and Thomas would simply have to choose his moment to make his escape.
When Prudence and Thomas were within a few yards of meeting, the hush was broken by the sound of galloping hooves. Prudence stopped, unsure what to do. Thomas also stopped, for he would not go on while she was not moving. They stayed that way, frozen, as the swiftly moving horse and rider gradually became larger until it was possible to discern who was interrupting the exchange. It was Alysa.
The thin line of dragoons held their position as she galloped headlong toward them, but they looked uneasily at their officer, waiting for instructions. In his turn, Lieutenant Weston glanced at Osborne, clearly as disconcerted by this change in plans as his men. Osborne made a slight motion with his hand and magically the line of troops parted to allow Alysa through.
She reached Prudence and pulled her mount to a snorting stop. “Thank God, you are safe!” she cried, leaning over to embrace her sister.
“What the devil are you playing at, Hampton?” Osborne snarled, shooting Philip a furious look.
For his part, Philip had no idea what was going on. Alysa had been included in the details of the plot, but because she too would be a valuable bargaining tool, she had been told by her father that she should remain at Strathern Hall. And she had agreed, seeing the sense of his words. Yet she was here. Why?
Alysa gave Prudence a final hug, but she continued to talk in an animated way, to reassure her sister, Philip guessed. Then he noticed Prudence glance surreptitiously at Thomas, then at the forest. Philip almost groaned. Apparently Alysa had decided that Prudence needed to know the details of the plan in order to carry out her part and so had decided to risk everything to speak privately with her sister.
Afraid that Osborne’s thoughts would mirror his own, Philip did his best to distract him. He turned to the Londoner, his mouth set in a grim line. “I did not expect to see Mistress Alysa here today, though I know how close she is to her sister. I must assume that she was desperate with worry and felt she had to come.”
Osborne’s eyes narrowed as he looked at Alysa and Prudence, still talking excitedly. He shook his head. “These Cavalier women are as undisciplined as their men. The lady needs a strong hand to beat her impetuosity out of her.” He snorted, then laughed in a rather evil way. “And the man who plans to wed her will do a good job of that, I wager.”
“Are you speaking of Cedric Ingram?” Philip asked coldly.
“Surely he doesn’t expect that Lord Strathern will allow him to marry Alysa now?”
Osborne laughed. “Lord Strathern’s fortunes are about to take a serious blow, my dear Hampton. His son, the traitor, is soon to be captured, then executed. Strathern himself will be accused and condemned for insurrection. After the estate has been sequestered, the daughters will be glad to take whatever marriages are offered.”
Philip didn’t comment. He kept his eyes on Alysa and Prudence, warily watching for any movement that might put them, especially Alysa, in danger.
Prudence began to cry as she and Alysa separated. She said something as she gestured at Thomas, who shrugged and looked uncomfortable. Clearly she was distraught that her freedom meant his capture. Alysa patted her on the shoulder, but Prudence was not about to be comforted. Thomas looked at Osborne and Philip, frowning. Evidently he did not expect Alysa to get Prudence moving any time soon.
Osborne swore.
“Careful,” Philip drawled tauntingly. “You wouldn’t want word to get back to the Lord Protector that you use that kind of language.”
Osborne laughed. “When old Ironsides was alive, I’d have made sure I didn’t curse aloud. His son—” He shrugged, allowing the implication to make itself. Richard Cromwell was not the man his father had been. Even those intent on keeping him on his false throne knew that. “Come on,” Osborne shouted. “I want this farce over with. Mistress Leighton, move your horse now!”
Prudence bit her lip. She glanced over her shoulder at the soldiers. They had closed up ranks again, creating an effective barrier between the Leightons and freedom. The riders sat immobile, but their horses were clearly uneasy, playing with their bits, tossing their heads or stamping their feet. All were good indications that the riders, too, were far from calm. Prudence said something to Alysa, who also looked at the soldiers.
