Soldier of Fortune
General Armand Salignac was still shaking with fury. As he paced the floor of his quarters, he rid himself of a whole series of expletives before rounding on Charles Catto.
'Why did you let him get away like that?' he demanded.
'I was too busy helping my friend, General.'
'You should have gone after the rogue.'
'Frederic had been run through,' said Catto reasonably. 'I could hardly race off and leave him there in that condition. He and I have endured many misadventures these past couple of months. Captain Rawson has been an elusive quarry.'
'I want him caught and brought here!' roared Salignac.
'I'm sure that he will be — in time.'
'What's taking them so long?'
'Augsburg is a big place, General. It has lots of hiding places.'
'I want every one of them searched. I said from the start that we should have sent French soldiers after him. These mutton-headed Bavarians are as blind as bats.'
'They know the city,' Catto told him. 'Our soldiers do not. While we are waiting — and it will not be a long wait, God willing — you may wish to decide on a suitable death for Captain Rawson.'
'I'll have him hanged and left to rot.'
'Would you not prefer to take him on in a duel again? You are far superior as a swordsman and drew the first blood.'
'My wrist is still sore,' said the other, rubbing it gently with the other hand. 'When my sword hit that wall, it sprained my wrist and jolted my arm. Captain Rawson was very fortunate in that duel. He'll have no such luck next time.'
'I'm sorry that Frederic will not be there to see him die.'
'There's someone else I would like to have been present at his execution,' said Salignac, thinking of his wife.
'I kept a full reckoning of our expenses,' said Catto, taking some papers from his pocket. 'Is this a convenient time to give them to you?' 'No, it's not!'
'You told me to keep an accurate record, General Salignac.'
'What I told you to do was to kill Captain Rawson.'
'I felt that you would enjoy that more than either of us.'
'And I would have done,' said Salignac, 'had he not slipped through my fingers like that. On balance, it would have been better if you had obeyed the orders you were given.'
'Catching him alive was more difficult than killing him.'
'But you've not caught him,' said Salignac. 'The man is at large.'
'That was an accident, General.' He held up the papers. 'As for my reckoning…'
'Don't bother me with that now, Charles!'
'You promised to pay our expenses and give us a large reward.'
'The money has to be earned first. Until Captain Rawson has been captured and put to death, you'll get nothing. Put your papers away,' shouted Salignac, knocking them from his hand and sending them floating to the floor, 'and stop bothering me!'
Charles Catto controlled his indignation. 'I'll join the search,' he said and went swiftly out of the room.
Edward Marston
Soldier of Fortune
While darkness made it easier for Daniel Rawson to hide, it also intensified the hunt. More people were involved in the search and the Bavarians had been joined by French soldiers. Carrying torches, they went down every road, street and alleyway, banging on doors, storming into taverns and respecting nobody's privacy. Even the brothels were invaded and inspected. It took all of Daniel's speed and agility to keep ahead of the pack. When he was not diving into dark corners or lying flat behind a water trough, he was taking evasive action of another kind. At one point, with soldiers approaching him from both ends of a street, his only means of escape was to climb up the side of a house and spread-eagle himself on the roof.
It turned out to be his salvation. When the soldiers had finally marched past and the acrid smell of their torches had been dissipated by the cool night air, Daniel was able to take a cautious look across the city. Blazing light told him that he was surrounded by search parties but they all seemed to be moving away from him. The street below was deserted. Before he could climb down, however, he heard the clatter of hooves and saw a rider coming out of the gloom. Daniel obeyed instinct. As the soldier arrived below him, he hurled himself down the roof and landed on the man's back, knocking him from the saddle and staying on top of him as they dropped to the ground.
The soldier was stunned by force of the impact. Though he tried to defend himself, he was no match for Daniel, who pinned him down and got both hands to his neck. Life was slowly squeezed out of the man and he went limp. It was only when he had throttled him that Daniel realised he had killed a French soldier. Of equal importance was the fact that he had just acquired a horse. Startled by the attack, the animal had been too well-trained to bolt and had simply trotted a little way along the street. Daniel soon retrieved it. When he had tethered the horse, he dragged the corpse into a lane and began to strip it of the uniform. He was glad to possess a sword once more.
He could have wished for a bigger man but he took what he had with gratitude. Shedding his own rough garb, he put on the coat, hat and breeches of a soldier in a French cavalry regiment, using the sacking to cover part of the dead body. As he mounted the horse, he realised how tight the uniform was on him but nobody would observe sartorial deficiencies in the dark. Anxious to be out of the city before the dead body was discovered, Daniel headed for the main gate. By the light of the torches, he saw to his relief that Bavarians were on guard duty. Talking his way past French soldiers, while wearing an ill-fitting uniform, might have posed more problems.
Digging in his heels, he cantered along the road to give a sense of urgency then drew the horse in a semi- circle as he came to a halt.
'Open the gates!' he said, speaking in German.
'Why?' asked one of the guards.
'I have despatches for Versailles and must leave post haste.'
'Show us your pass.'
'I'm acting on the authority of General Salignac,' said Daniel impatiently. 'If you insist on holding me up, you'll answer to him.' The guards hesitated. 'Very well,' he went on, turning his horse, 'I'll fetch the general in person and he'll have you all flogged.'
'Wait!' called the guard.
'You are obstructing a royal courier.'
'I am sorry, my friend. We were told to stop everyone. There's a fugitive in the city and nobody must be allowed to leave.'
'The fellow has been caught,' said Daniel. 'When you Bavarians failed to capture him, some sharp-eyed French carabiniers tracked him down. I saw the man being dragged off to General Salignac. Well?' he challenged. 'Do you want to suffer the same fate as the fugitive?'
'Open the gate,' said the guard and two men rushed to obey. 'I owe you an apology, my friend. Take your despatches to Versailles.'
'I will,' said Daniel. 'I bid you all good night!'
Without waiting to hear their farewells, he kicked his horse and went swiftly out through the half-open gate. The city of Augsburg remained full of noise and intrusion as the search continued but the fugitive was never found. Daniel Rawson was riding hell for leather through the night.
Edward Marston
Soldier of Fortune
Having crossed the Danube, the Confederate army established a camp from which it could range into the whole of Bavaria. British soldiers were now further away from home than they had ever been during the war and one of them in particular found it irksome. Henry Welbeck had been drilling his men under the watchful eye of Charles, Lord Churchill. When it was all over, the sergeant sought information.
