taken a lot of planning. Why go to such lengths?’
‘They want me very much,’ replied Daniel.
‘I can’t think why.’
‘I can,’ said Marlborough. ‘It might well have something to do with Daniel’s kidnap of Major Crevel. That must have rankled with the French high command. They may even be aware of his part in the liberation of Emanuel Janssen from the Bastille.’
‘How could they know that, Your Grace?’
‘Ralph Higgins will have told them,’ decided Daniel. ‘Before we caught him, he’d set himself the task of finding out as much as he could about me. I know for a fact that he was aware of my work in the Bastille. The information was volunteered to Higgins.’
‘What happens now?’ asked Cardonnel.
‘I go to Amalia’s rescue.’
‘But you’d never succeed — they’d be expecting you.’
‘Besides,’ said Marlborough, ‘I’m not willing to let one of my most able officers fall into their hands. This requires thought.’
The three of them were in the captain general’s tent. Now that he was convinced of Amalia’s whereabouts, Daniel wanted to get to her as soon as possible. The others were more circumspect.
‘There may be another way out of this,’ suggested Cardonnel. ‘We could request that Miss Janssen is exchanged for one of our French prisoners.’
‘They’d never agree to that,’ said Daniel.
‘They might do if the request came directly from me,’ argued Marlborough. ‘And we do have some high- ranking officers in custody.’
‘It would be pointless even to make the offer, Your Grace. The only person for whom they’d exchange Amalia is me. It’s only a matter of time before they propose it.’
‘We can’t just surrender you, Daniel.’
‘You won’t have to — I’ll devise a plan.
Cardonnel was sceptical. ‘How can you rescue someone when she’s surrounded by a massive French army?’
‘There has to be a way.’
‘If anyone can find it,’ Marlborough commented, ‘then Daniel is the man to do it. On the other hand, this may pose rather more of a challenge than the Bastille. How many men will you need?’
‘I won’t need any, Your Grace.’
Marlborough gaped. ‘You’ll go alone?’
‘I went alone to Paris.’
‘That was different. You could hide among the civilian populace there. It won’t be so easy to get inside the French camp.’
‘I think it will,’ said Daniel, confidently. ‘Though he didn’t realise it, someone has given me a good idea how to go about it.’
‘Really?’ said Cardonnel. ‘Who was that?’
‘Ralph Higgins.’
Amalia was in despair. She wasn’t only afraid of what might happen to her. It was Daniel’s situation that troubled her even more. The love that had brought them together might well turn out to be fatal. She sensed that he couldn’t resist a rescue attempt and that a trap would be laid for him. One or both of them could be put to death. Amalia believed that she’d been safe in Amsterdam but war had suddenly taken on a frightening immediacy for her. She also feared for Beatrix and for her father. When she was hurled into the coach, Amalia had heard the scream of pain from her servant. Had Beatrix been badly hurt or even killed? Either way, Emanuel Janssen would be deeply upset but he’d reserve even more anxiety for his daughter. Amalia was his only child and, since his wife had passed away, he’d grown very close to her, cherishing her, nurturing her and planning for her future. She knew how mortified he’d be by the turn of events.
Thinking about others helped to distract her from contemplating her own predicament. Her confrontation with Vendome had been truly harrowing. Amalia had never been looked at in such an unashamedly lecherous way. The memory of it was enough to give her a hot flush. She was at the mercy of a man who might have dark designs on her and she was completely vulnerable. Though she was no longer bound and gagged, she was being held in a tent with guards outside. Escape seemed impossible. Against two armed men, she stood no chance. Against the lustful Vendome — should he take advantage of her — she’d have no defence. Amalia had never felt so alone in all her life.
When she heard raised voices outside the tent, she drew back instinctively, afraid that someone was coming to get her. In fact, the guards were not interested in Amalia. They’d taken charge of someone else. The tent flap was opened and an attractive young woman was pushed roughly into the tent. Her hair was tousled, her dress torn and her arms wrapped protectively across her chest. Her large, brown eyes were pools of dread until they noticed Amalia. The newcomer stared at her in surprise.
‘Who are you?’ she asked.
Councils of war with his Dutch allies were often tedious affairs and the Duke of Marlborough approached them without enthusiasm, knowing that any strategy he recommended was likely to be criticised, amended and delayed. On this occasion, however, he found the Dutch generals in a more cooperative mood. This was largely due to the influence of their commander-in-chief, General Overkirk, who could always be relied upon to support Marlborough. When the meeting broke after comparatively short deliberation, Adam Cardonnel was pleased. He watched the last of them leave the tent.
‘Why can’t it be like that every time?’ he asked. ‘Everybody was of the same mind for once.’
‘It makes things so much easier,’ said Marlborough. ‘I was bracing myself for endless arguments over some trivial detail. Yet here we are with the whole matter settled.’
‘Then we need to deal with the correspondence, Your Grace.’
Marlborough grimaced. ‘Must we?’
‘I know we’re both tired but it has to be done.’
‘You’re right, Adam. Grand Pensionary Heinsius will expect an account of the latest developments — not that there’s much to report. Then there are dispatches to be sent to England.’
‘I think that we need to respond to General Vendome first.’
‘Why?’
‘You were too engrossed in the council of war to see the letter that was passed to me. It bears Vendome’s seal.’
‘Then let me see it,’ said Marlborough, taking it from him.
‘I think we both know what it will contain.’
‘You’re right,’ said the other, opening the letter and reading it. ‘An exchange is being offered.’
‘We can have Amalia Janssen in return for Captain Rawson.’
‘Yes, Adam — Daniel warned us that the offer would be made.’
‘What do we do, Your Grace?’
‘Well, we certainly won’t comply with the request.’
‘It’s impossible to do so,’ said Marlborough. ‘Daniel has already left camp.’ After thinking it through, he handed the letter to his secretary. ‘That must be our response,’ he went on. ‘Tell Vendome that we can’t consider his offer because Captain Rawson is unavailable. That will at least buy us some time.’
‘At least we know for certain where Miss Janssen is.’
Marlborough sighed. ‘I just hope that no harm has come to her.’
‘I was tricked,’ said Sophie Prunier, mournfully. ‘One of the officers befriended me and invited me to look at the camp. He was charming until we actually got here. Then I realised my mistake.’
‘What happened?’ asked Amalia.
‘I was taken to see the duc de Vendome.’
