Seurel was resentful. An argument soon flared up and both men raised their voices. Conscious that they were talking about her, Abigail became increasingly frightened. She knew very little French and they were talking so rapidly that it was impossible to decipher more than a word or two. Nevertheless, she sensed what the dispute was about and she shuddered as she glanced across at the bed. At length and with ill grace, Seurel accepted that Catto's decision was final and withdrew into a sullen silence.
'Frederic apologises for his display of bad temper,' said Catto.
'Why did you bring me here?' she asked.
'We needed somewhere to rest. You must get what sleep you can because we'll be leaving before dawn.'
'Where are we going?'
'We have to find another hiding place, Miss Piper. You will be missed and a search will take place. By the time the soldiers reach this inn, we must be miles away from here.'
'My maid will have realised by now that something must have happened to me,' she said, 'and she will have raised the alarm. Captain Rawson will have hundreds of soldiers at his command. There's no way that you can escape.'
'He won't find us in the dark, though I daresay he'll try.'
'Those sentries saw us leaving the camp.'
'I know,' said Catto. 'They were consumed with jealousy. It's not everyone who has the chance to take a stroll with a lovely young lady. You were born to attract envy, Miss Piper. Look at Frederic, for example. He's bubbling with envy at the way I'm talking to you now.'
Abigail turned to Seurel who was gazing at her with an intensity that worried her. Though she hated being the prisoner of anyone, she preferred to have Catto as her captor than his glowering companion. She felt it safer to keep one of them talking.
'You're in the French army, aren't you?' she said.
'We were,' replied Catto.
'Why does an Englishman fight for the French?'
'You'll have to ask the Duke of Marlborough that. He learnt his trade under a French flag and so did I' He took off his hat and began to undo his coat. 'I can stop pretending that I'm a British soldier now.'
'Captain Rawson will catch you, whatever disguise you wear.'
'I look forward to meeting him.'
'He's probably leading a search party at this very moment.'
'I'm sure that he is, Miss Piper,' said Catto easily, 'but he'll not come here. Do you remember that cottage we passed near the fork in the road? Frederic had the forethought to bribe the old man who lives there. If he gets that far this evening, Captain Rawson will be sent off in the wrong direction.'
Edward Marston
Soldier of Fortune
Daniel Rawson took a dozen riders with him, experienced men who were armed with muskets. It had taken him some time to find sentries who had seen a British soldier and a young lady strolling along the edge of the camp. They described Abigail so accurately that it simply had to be her. Since she had monopolised their attention, the details they were able to give about her companion were decidedly sketchy. Daniel had heard enough to lead off his search party. Some of his men carried torches but they could only create small circles of light in the darkness that now enveloped the countryside.
At the fork in the road, they paused to knock on the door of the cottage. The old man was not pleased to see British soldiers. Daniel spoke to him in German and asked if he had seen anyone riding past that evening. Given the chance to mislead them, the old man nodded.
'There were three of them, sir,' he said.
'Was a woman among the three?' asked Daniel.
'Yes, sir — there was one woman and two men.'
'Which way did they go?'
The old man pointed and they did not even stop to thank him. Cantering along the road, they went on for over five miles but the search was in vain. They passed several tracks down which fugitives could have turned and rode through woods in which they could easily have hidden. In the end, Daniel accepted defeat.
'We'll never find them in the dark,' he said, ruing the failure of the search. 'We'll try again at first light.'
Edward Marston
Soldier of Fortune
It was unnerving. Abigail was trapped in a small room at night with two men, one of whom would certainly have molested her had he not been prevented from doing so by the other. Her situation was hopeless. She was in a foreign country with no chance of immediate help. Having lost all appetite, she refused the offer of food but had to watch the burly Frenchman as he gobbled his way through a meal and swilled it down with tankards of ale. The man who had kidnapped her did at least have an acquaintance with table manners. When they had finished eating, they began to talk in French and she had to guess what they were saying by their expressions.
'You can sleep in the other room,' said Catto, putting his plate back on to the tray. 'I'll stay in here.'
'So that's your game is it? I sleep alone and you jump into bed with the girl. No,' said Seurel, gesticulating, 'you're not getting away with that. If you have her, then I have her as well.'
'Nobody is having her, Frederic.'
'Then what use is she?'
'I told you before — we can trade her.'
'We can do a lot of other things with her as well,' said Seurel, running a hand across his wet mouth as he stared fixedly at Abigail. 'She's young and ripe and ready. Let me taste her. Let me teach you how a Frenchman pleasures a woman.'
'You're not touching this one,' said Catto, standing up to confront him. 'The only reason I'm staying is that someone has to guard her. I couldn't trust you to do that.'
'Why not?'
'Go to the other room.'
'This is not fair,' said Seurel, trying to sound reasonable. 'Both of us need sleep and you won't get any if you're watching her all night. Why not share the burden, Charles? You stand guard for a couple of hours then I'll take over.'
'We both know what would happen in that event.'
'I won't lay a finger on her, I swear it.'
'You can't help yourself, Frederic.'
Seurel exploded. 'A man has his needs, for heaven's sake!'
'Miss Piper deserves to be treated with respect.'
'That's exactly what I'll do,' said Seurel, shooting her a glance. 'When I've had my sport with her, I'll be sure to thank her politely.'
Catto opened the door. 'Good night, Frederic.'
'Just let me have ten minutes alone with her.'
'Good night!'
Abigail watched the silent battle of wills. After glaring his defiance, Seurel finally capitulated but he did not leave without one act of bravado. Before Catto could stop him, he suddenly grabbed Abigail and stole a kiss from her. He left the room laughing. Closing the door after him, Catto made a gesture of apology. Abigail did not even see it. She was still recoiling from the foul taste of Seurel's lips and the brutish feel of his hands. Catto resumed his seat.
'Try to get some sleep,' he suggested.
'I'm not tired,' she said, determined not to lie on the bed.
'You're safe with me, Miss Piper.'
She was scornful. 'Is this what you call being safe?'
'Would you rather share the room with Frederic?' Abigail shrank back defensively. 'No, I thought not. I'm the lesser of two evils, I can assure you. Frederic believes that women only exist for one thing but I know that they have much else to offer. Take your own case, for instance. You are a valuable asset. If I had abducted your maid,
