The Regency (22 page)

‘
Not at all, my lady.' He looked as though he were about to
say more, perhaps embark on some confession he might later regret; but they were interrupted. There was a sound of bolts
being drawn, the great door opened, and a large grey figure
came bounding out to fling itself on Héloïse in frantic, tail-
thrashing, silent joy.

‘
Kithra, you fool! Get down!
Zut, alors,
you will knock me
over!’

Kithra's rapture at having her back, however, was beyond
the confines of discipline, and while his mistress was attempting
to remain upright under the onslaught of love, Barnard,
with a small smile, put out his cigar and made his escape back
into the kitchen.

 
On 30 June, news reached England of a crushing defeat
inflicted by Bonaparte on the Russians at Friedland. Far from
being overcome by his set-back at Preuss-Eylau, Bonaparte
had rallied, somehow raised a new army of conscription, and
marched back into Prussia, to meet the Russians on 14 June,
while the English reinforcements were still waiting to embark.
The Russians were utterly defeated; Prussia had instantly
capitulated; thousands had been slain; and the Csar, who had
led the battle in person, was said to have sat down amongst
the Russian dead and wept.

Within days further news arrived, of a new treaty between
France and Russia. Bonaparte had sought out his vanquished
foe and offered peace on his own terms. The two emperors
had met on a raft tethered in the middle of the river Nieman
— the Russian frontier — and sworn eternal friendship. The world henceforth was to be divided between them, and ruled
by these 'natural brothers', Russia holding the north and east, France the south and west. England now stood alone, the last
country which still resisted the world's most successful
soldier.

London was stifling hot, but because of the news, people
were delaying going down to the country. Lucy left the
children at Wolvercote and came back to Town. Calling at
Chelmsford House, she found Colonel Taske giving a lecture,
with globes, on the current situation, to an audience of
Roberta, Mr Firth, Bobbie, and his cousin Marcus Morland.

‘
What do you suppose will happen next?' Lucy asked. 'I
have never heard so many rumours in one day.'

‘
Most of them false, I dare say,' the Colonel replied. 'No
layman understands the military mind. I could have told
'em Boney would move this summer. He had enough of the
Prussian snows last year; didn't mean to leave anything to do
next winter.'

‘
I imagine France will help Russia to overrun the Turks
and the Swedes,' Mr Firth suggested more helpfully, 'and
Russia will help Boney expand his empire in the other
direction.'

‘What other direction?' Colonel Taske said sharply.

‘
Spain and Portugal — the Iberian peninsula, sir,' Firth
said.

‘
What? Cross the Pyrenées? Nonsense! Boney may be a
rogue, but he's a soldier, and he's got more sense than that.'

‘
But he is unfailingly ambitious, sir, and that is the obvious
next move,' Firth said apologetically. 'He's conquered every
thing else.'

‘
Except England,' Bobbie put in proudly, 'and he knows he
can't beat us, not while our navy rules the seas.'

‘
Certainly not; but can we beat him?' Lucy put in. 'As
Cousin Héloïse says, there'll be no peace in the world until we
d
o.’

Firth exchanged a glance with Roberta, and said, 'That's
enough of Boney for today, I think. If you will excuse us,
ma'am, sir, we had better be off, or we shan't get a good place
at the front.'

‘
Are you sure you don't want to come, Mother?' Bobbie
asked. 'They say it is
amazingly
lifelike!'

‘
You can tell me all about it,' Roberta laughed. 'I don't
think I could bear to be jostled in all this heat.'

‘
I shall leave you too, m'dear, and walk down to my club,'
Colonel Taske said. 'Your servant, ma'am!’

When they were alone, Lucy asked her, 'Where are they
going, to be jostled?'

‘
To see the new panorama of the battle of Trafalgar,'
Roberta said. 'Mr Firth thought it would be a good way to
keep Marcus's mind off things: he's very worried about his
papa.'

‘Why? What's happened to Horatio?'

‘
He was with Lord Cathcart's expeditionary force, the
advance guard to Rugen. Of course they set off before the news arrived about Friedland, and no-one knows yet what
has happened to them. If they have landed, they are very
exposed.'

‘And that's why Marcus is here?' Lucy asked.

‘Well, not entirely,' Roberta said, a little awkwardly. 'The
fact is, Lady Barbara suggested again that it would be nice for Marcus and Bobbie to do their lessons together, and of course
she's right —'

‘
Fustian!' Lucy snorted. 'You mean she wants to save
herself the expense of keeping and educating her own son,
and she's managed to foist him onto you. Confess, now — it
isn't just lessons, is it? You've taken him in.'

‘
Well, yes, he is living here at the moment. It seemed silly
for him to go back and forth each day, and Bobbie does like
having company.'

‘
Lord, you make things easy for Lady Barbara!' Lucy said.
‘And are you to be saddled with Barbarina, too?'

‘
No, she stays with her mother. But really, Lucy, I don't
mind having Marcus here. The expense is nothing to me, and
it helps Bobbie to have someone to share his lessons. And
they get on so well together. Besides, you are in no position
to criticise — you look after Hippolyta for Captain Haworth,
and you've offered to have Bobbie often enough.'

‘
That's different. You know that Lady Barbara's one ambi
tion — beyond saving money of course — is to have Marcus
inherit the title. This plan of hers is just the first foothold.’

Roberta looked ruffled. 'Goodness knows what harm you
think it can do to have him here! Do you suppose she's
instructed Marcus to poison Bobbie?'

‘
I wouldn't put it past her. But Marcus, to do him credit,
seems a nice enough boy, though he and his sister always
remind me of two white mice. Well, as long as you're a willing
victim — for you know you'll never get rid of him, don't you?
Now tell me — do your papa and your Mr Firth really not
know what's going on? I came for instruction, for everyone I
know who has a minister's ear has suddenly become tight
lipped and refuses to gossip — which is suspicious in itself.'

‘
I wish you wouldn't keep calling him "my Mr Firth". And
I don't know what you think he could have learned that you wouldn't have heard first,' Roberta said, still a little ruffled.
‘He doesn't hob-nob with admirals and Members of Parlia
ment like you.'

‘
No, but he knows a lot of senior military men,' Lucy said
with a grin, 'and everyone knows that soldiers are much
worse gossips than sailors. Come, Roberta, don't be cross with
me. Has your revered papa not told you anything? Where are all these soldiers off to, who are assembling at Yarmouth?'

‘
Papa doesn't know. Castlereagh's orders were issued in
complete confidence,' Roberta said, relenting, 'and there's a
strict embargo on all ships, too, in case it should leak out that
way. All Papa knows is that Sir Arthur Wellesley's to be put
in charge of the expedition. Whatever is happening, no word
of it must be allowed to reach France.'

‘
Well, that will be a novelty, at all events,' Lucy said.
‘Usually they know our plans before we do.’

Two days later, Lucy had just returned from exercising her
team in the park, when Hicks announced a visitor, and her brother-in-law, Captain Haworth, walked in.

‘
Lucy, my dear!' They exchanged an embrace, and he
stepped back to look at her critically. 'You are looking better.
How are things with you?'

‘Oh, I go along pretty well,'she said cautiously.

‘I heard about your race. You madcap! And cross-saddle, I
understand? How can I make a lady of Africa, with her aunt's
example always before her?'

‘
I won two thousand guineas on it,' Lucy pointed out. 'But
how on earth did you hear about that, all the way down in
Southsea?'

‘
News travels, particularly news about you. Tales about
Lady Aylesbury are meat and drink to the senior service,
don't you know that? Africa boasts far more 1bout having you
for an aunt than having me for a father.'

‘
What nonsense,' Lucy said. 'When were sailors ever
interested in horse races?'

‘
Actually, it was young Morpurgo who told us,' Haworth
admitted. 'He'd been staying with relatives in Oxfordshire,
and he called on us on his way to Portsmouth to join his new ship. I like that young man enormously: if the war only goes
on long enough, he will make a fine admiral one day.'

‘
Judging from the news, there is every chance it will,' Lucy
said.

Haworth smiled. 'At all events, I wish he could have
delayed a few days more, then I could have taken him with
me.

‘
You have a new command? You sly thing! But I thought
you had decided to come ashore for good.’

He shrugged. 'You can't refuse, when the admiral asks for
you in person. Even if it is Dismal Jimmy.'

‘
Admiral Gambier asked for you personally?' Lucy's face
lit. 'Haworth! It's the secret campaign — you are to be part of
it!’

Not so secret, if you know all about it,' he said ruefully.

‘
But I don't. Oh, everyone knows there are transports and
troops at Yarmouth, but no-one knows where they are going.
I've never known the Government keep such secrecy.'

‘
It's vitally important that the whole exercise is kept
secret,' Haworth said. 'All I can tell you is that we sail on the
twenty-sixth. I'm hoisting my pennant as Commodore in the
Rochester.'

‘
Commodore! A promotion! Dear Haworth, I'm so pleased
for you! Is that what you came out of your way to tell me?'

‘
Not so far out of my way. The
Rochester's
lying at London
Pool, so naturally, as I was so near, I felt I must call on you.
Dipton has taken Africa direct to the ship.'