oh, how he missed his wee touch of whisky in the evenings! But there was nothing for it; God had answered his prayer, and so he would now follow his new preacher. He had become an elder and one of the most respected members of the church council. He would follow God’s teachings, no matter what it cost—even his position at Delaford.
“We all must bear witness to the glory of God!” the preacher said. “For it is written: ‘You are the light of the world. Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.’ This is not an easy path.”
McIntosh nodded again.
“But Our Lord did not have an easy path on the road to Calvary! He warned us: ‘Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so men persecuted the prophets who were before you.’”
“Amen,” said Mr. McIntosh.
“Mr. Tucker, Mary, thank you so much for answering my invitation so quickly,” gushed Marianne after her guests were shown into the parlor. She realized that it was not so much an invitation that she issued but a summons.
“We thank you for the opportunity to visit Dorsetshire, Mrs. Brandon. Delaford is lovely, do you not think so, dear?”
Mary smiled. “It is my happy task to add Delaford to the list of beautiful homes I have had the honor of visiting. You are very kind to ask us here, especially on such slight acquaintance.” At Marianne’s look, Mary smiled again. “Forgive me, Marianne, but you know my sisters Jane and Elizabeth much better than you know me.”
“Mary! I have known you for years!”
“Yes, as Elizabeth’s sister. And you know my husband hardly at all.” She gave Marianne a knowing look. “Mr. Tucker and I discussed this on the way here. As much as you and I have enjoyed each other’s company, I do not think this invitation was issued for
Mr. Tucker looked seriously at Marianne. “How may I be of service to you, Mrs. Brandon?”
Marianne sighed. “Well, since I did have you come here under a false premise, the least I can do is to request that you call me Marianne as your wife does.” He agreed and asked that she call him by his Christian name, as well.
That settled, she continued. “I have a problem with my steward.”
Several days later, Mr. McIntosh knocked on the door to Delaford Manor. “Mrs. Brandon sent for me,” he announced to the footman, who left to alert the butler.
This time, McIntosh was showed into the library. There, waiting for him was not Mrs. Brandon, as he expected, but two gentlemen—one a stranger and one he knew.
“Mr. McIntosh, come in, sir!” cried one of the gentlemen. “It is good to see you. And how is your family?”
“My family is well, Mr. White, thanks be to God,” McIntosh told the MP.
“Wonderful!” said the politician. “Allow me to introduce to you Mr. Tucker, solicitor for Colonel Brandon.” It was not a falsehood—Mrs. Brandon acted as Colonel Brandon’s agent in securing Mr. Tucker’s services.
“Sir,” said Tucker formally.
“Come, sit down, sit down,” requested Mr. White.
McIntosh carefully took his seat in the same frail chair, clearly expecting the worst.
Mr. White smiled at the Scot. “There have been some changes at Delaford, and Mr. Tucker and I thought to have you in for a chat, to let you know how things are now.” Mr. White leaned over the desk. “I have been retained by the colonel to oversee all operations of Delaford lands.” Tucker handed a document to McIntosh for his perusal. “As you can see, all work on the farms must be approved by me. Do you have any questions, sir?”
McIntosh looked up from the document, a bit of relief coming to his features. “No, sir.”
“Excellent! We thought it best to have our first meeting here, but in the future, we shall meet at my office in the village—every Tuesday morning. Is that agreeable to you, sir?”
“Aye.”
“Fine. One last thing, McIntosh.” Tucker handed the steward a second piece of paper. “This is my written instruction to you, now that spring planting is upon us, to switch the ratio between the barley and the wheat. Is that clear, sir?” Mr. White looked hard at him.
“Aye, Mr. White.” Tucker thought he saw a smile begin to dance about the steward’s mustache, but he could not be sure.
“Very good. I suppose you wish to get back to your work.”
“Aye. Good day to ye, Mr. White, Mr. Tucker.” Thus dismissed, McIntosh quit the library and Delaford Manor in far better spirits than when he entered.
The two gentlemen made their way into the parlor to join the ladies.
“Well,” asked the mistress of Delaford, “did Mr. Tucker’s plan work?”
Mr. White beamed. “Perfectly, Mrs. Brandon. You shall have no further trouble from Mr. McIntosh.”
“And the crops?”
“The change shall be accomplished.”
“Thank you, Mr. White. May I offer you some tea?”
“Thank you, no. I must be off. Ladies, Mr. Tucker.” Mr. White bowed as he was escorted out by the butler.
“Well, that is that,” began Tucker as he picked up his cup of tea. “Mr. White is not a bad chap—for a Whig.”
“It may be over until Mr. McIntosh finds out who hired Mr. White,” grumbled Marianne, who was drinking coffee instead.
Tucker smiled. “Oh, I think he knows, Marianne. He seemed quite relieved, actually.”
Mary sat on the couch with Princess. “Devotion to God is a wonderful thing—as long as it does not go too far.”
“It still sits ill with me—the cheek of the man! And I had to find
“All is well that ends well, Marianne,” said Mary.
The emperor was back in his palace, but he was not content. Many of his countrymen had flocked to his banner—but not all. Many of the common folk were taking a wait-and-see attitude. As for the military, his success was not universal. Most of his marshals had returned, but he had been abandoned by many in the navy.
The emperor did not have a free hand this time. The deputies actually wanted a voice in policy. He would have to keep his promises of reform, at least for a while.
All these troubles were as nothing compared to the reaction by the rest of Europe. He had sent out pledges of peace, vowing to live up to the treaties that ended the war, but the great powers rejected his overtures. Led by the hated English, they called him an outlaw and set up another Coalition to attack him.
The emperor would have to move quickly. He wanted an army of six hundred thousand to take the field, but that would take the summer to raise, and he knew he did not have that much time. He could not use conscription again, and he had to have a victory. He needed to break the Coalition first.
He began by recalling all undischarged troops and mobilized the National Guard. That would give him nearly 125,000 men. Equipment would be a challenge, but he could not wait.
He had to decide where to attack. The Austrians would not be ready for some time—and the Russians even longer. The immediate threat was from the British and Prussian armies gathering in Belgium.
That was where he had to strike. Hit one or the other before they could link up, and he would destroy them. The other Coalition partners would be shaken, which would give him time. They might actually sue for peace.
