The Wrath of the Lizard Lord (22 page)

Dakkar pulled up a chair and began to tell Blizzard everything from the beginning. He omitted any mention of Cutter’s Cove, saying that he’d managed to get Oginski to Lyme on his own. By the time he’d finished his tale, Blizzard sat stroking his chin.

‘I must confess, Dakkar,’ he said, ‘you’re a superb storyteller, and were it not for the strange bird sitting on my table I would have difficulty believing you. So old Boney an impostor, eh?’

‘But we must hurry to Brussels,’ Dakkar said, running his fingers through his hair. ‘Count Cryptos will be assembling his forces near there.’

‘By all accounts, he’s had a few weeks to get organised,’ Blizzard said, frowning. ‘He will have had plenty of time.’

‘Then we can’t waste any more,’ Dakkar said.

Blizzard pursed his lips. ‘You’re right, of course. Come, we’ll set a course immediately.’

Georgia folded her arms. ‘I suppose you think that’s funny,’ she said.

‘I don’t know what you mean?’ Blizzard stared at her, his eyebrows raised.

‘You’ve no more intention of taking us to the Low Countries than I have of sprouting wings and flying to Philadelphia!’ Georgia snorted.

‘Young lady,’ Blizzard said, wincing a little at her tone, ‘I’m not at all sure of
your
intentions. I suspect they were somewhat hostile when last you came near one of my ships. If you do intend to sprout wings, could you forewarn me? I’ve had enough surprises for one day. In the meantime, come with me and I will explain.’

Blizzard led them out of his quarters and on to the main deck. The cold air struck Dakkar and he shivered. Men scurried about, securing ropes and shouting incomprehensible orders to each other. Dakkar remembered his last jaunt with Blizzard, spending half the time as a prisoner and the other half scrubbing decks. But he’d ended up saving Blizzard’s life and he suspected that he had a true ally in the commander.

‘Welcome aboard the HMS
Slaughter
,’ Blizzard said, making a theatrical gesture.

‘Lovely name,’ Georgia muttered, still blushing from Blizzard’s stinging rebuff.

‘These men are hand-picked,’ Blizzard continued. ‘Signed up for life, sworn to secrecy and totally loyal to me. It’s Britain’s answer to Cryptos. Our orders come from the highest authority. We are to track down any activity by Cryptos and we answer to nobody but the King himself. If we are caught, nobody will help us. If we succeed, no honours will be given. As far as the navy is concerned, we don’t exist. Secrecy is our strength. This is Project Nemo.’

‘One ship?’ Dakkar said, looking dubiously at Blizzard.

‘If it were just one ship, I would share your scepticism,’ Blizzard said, patting the mainmast as if it were a horse. ‘But Project Nemo is well armed and has many facets.’

‘Why are you telling us this if it’s all so secret?’ Georgia said, narrowing her eyes.

‘Because I hope it shows that I’m serious when I say we are heading for Brussels now,’ Blizzard said. ‘And I hope that, one day, you’ll join us.’

‘Well, we’re kinda stuck on your ship,’ Georgia said. ‘And I don’t suppose you’ll let us hop into the
Liberty
and sail away.’

Blizzard laughed. ‘Miss Fulton,’ he said, ‘if you wish to leave on your craft, please feel free to do so. Such is my faith that our causes are very closely entwined.’

‘You’d just let us go?’ Dakkar said, astounded.

‘We are sailing at full tilt for Ostend, Dakkar,’ Blizzard said, clenching his fist. ‘We are fighting a common enemy. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to find out more about your undersea craft but there are more pressing matters. One day you may share your secrets for the good of all, but for now we have Cryptos to defeat.’

Dakkar bit his lip, looking from Georgia to Blizzard. ‘Very well,’ he said.

‘Don’t trust him,’ Georgia snapped. ‘He just wants to get his hands on the
Liberty
.’

‘If I wanted to get the
Liberty
, I could have had you shot back at that hovel on the island.’ Blizzard’s pale cheeks actually reddened. ‘I could have had you thrown overboard an hour ago.’ He took a breath and turned to Dakkar. ‘I promise that none of my men will go near your precious submersible.’

‘It’s not his – it’s mine,’ Georgia said.

‘Georgia, that’s enough,’ Dakkar said, losing patience himself. ‘We must focus on the job at hand. Cryptos will be rallying his forces.’

‘Our sources tell us that Napoleon is building his army,’ Blizzard said, staring out to sea. ‘They will be ready to strike within days.’

The journey to the Low Countries was a flurry of activity. Dakkar gave Blizzard as much detail as he could about how the Cryptos Riders were armed, their tactics, the size of the lizards they rode.

Blizzard shook his head. ‘I don’t think I’ll actually believe you until I see one of these creatures myself,’ he said.

‘The fear they strike into the hearts of their opponents is half their danger,’ Dakkar said, shivering a little at the memory of them.

Georgia remained aloof, keeping close to the
Liberty
, which now sat on the main deck draped in tarpaulins. All around her, marines sharpened bayonets, checked powder stores or practised loading drill.

‘The faster they load, the more enemies we can bag before we resort to close combat,’ Blizzard remarked.

Mary kept to Blizzard’s quarters, avoiding the prepar­ations for battle. ‘I’m not a fighter,’ she said. ‘And if you could drop me off at Lyme before you go chargin’ off, I’d be most grateful.’

Dakkar pursed his lips. He would relish the chance to go and check on Oginski. The thought that he might be dead gnawed at him all the more, the closer they got to their destination. Rounding Land’s End, Dakkar could see the familiar rocky cliffs.
I’m so close to the castle
, he thought.
I wish I could be there now, with Oginski helping me dismantle a steam engine or a clock – or anything, in fact
.

‘If only we could,’ Blizzard said to Mary. ‘But every minute counts.’

‘You can look after Gweek,’ Dakkar said, feeling stupid the moment the words left his lips.

‘Yeah,’ Georgia muttered. ‘You kind of suit each other.’

‘That’s enough,’ Dakkar said, staring intently at Georgia.
What has she got against Mary?

Much of the time was taken up with poring over maps of France and the Netherlands, trying to figure out where Cryptos may be hiding.

‘If we knew how many men and animals he had, that would give us a chance,’ Blizzard said, looking hopefully at Dakkar for what seemed like the tenth time.

‘I know,’ Dakkar sighed. ‘Many of the lizard riders were embarking when I set off the explosives but how many got to the surface
.
.
.?’ He shrugged.

‘I suggest we search the area here.’ Blizzard stabbed the map with his finger. ‘There are a number of large farm buildings that may house this infernal cavalry.’

‘It may be that a lot of livestock has been taken from around his camp,’ Dakkar said, thinking aloud. ‘The lizards would take a lot of feeding.’

‘You’re right,’ Blizzard said, nodding his approval. ‘Our scouts will question locals wherever possible.’

The port grew closer and Dakkar looked longingly out to sea, where England lay.
To think I’d ever miss the place
, he thought.
I used to hate it
.

The coast of Belgium grew ever nearer and ships thronged the English Channel.

‘They bring supplies, men, weapons,’ Blizzard said, his scarred face looking grim. ‘All the things needed to wage war.’

The arrival of the HMS
Slaughter
went largely unnoticed amid the bustle of Ostend port. The stone quay was lined with ships of all sizes. It bristled with masts and yardarms and teemed with soldiers, marines, sailors and dockers. Gangs of white-whiskered dock workers hurled sacks of grain from the sides of ships while carts rattled up and down the cobbled walkways. The smell of tobacco and meat cooking mingled with tar and the sea. Dakkar leaned over the side of the ship and listened to the strange languages drifting up from the crowd of men. He could pick out bits of French and some German too. The dock workers spoke a language with which he was unfamiliar.

Blizzard requisitioned some carts and his men began to load them up. Dakkar watched as more and more supplies came out of the hold. Within a few hours, Blizzard stood at the head of a column of a hundred marines and several carts carrying powder, food and trailing cannon.

‘Right,’ Blizzard said, turning to Dakkar and Georgia. ‘Let’s go and hunt some lizards!’

Chapter Thirty-two

Terror in the Dark

A day’s march brought them deep into the countryside. Dakkar couldn’t see much difference between this land and England. True, in Cornwall, the lanes lay deep between high hedges and it was a much more rugged landscape. Here, the land undulated and fields formed a patchwork across the rolling hills. The sky hung above them like a sodden grey rag, threatening to wring its moisture out over their heads at any moment.

‘When do we stop?’ Georgia muttered to Dakkar.

‘I did suggest that you stay at the ship with Miss Anning and Dakkar’s strange bird,’ Blizzard said, overhearing her. There had been something of a scene at the quayside when Blizzard had suggested that Georgia stayed behind. Mary had cheerfully agreed, hurrying to the commander’s quarters, but Georgia had stood with her hands on her hips.

‘In a sow’s eye I will!’ she’d declared, squaring up to the commander.

‘I’d trust Georgia with my life in combat, sir,’ Dakkar had cut in, trying to diffuse the situation.

Blizzard had pursed his lips and walked away without comment but he made no objection when Georgia walked alongside him and Dakkar.

Now they stood, footsore and weary, in a cold field.

‘Here’s as good as anywhere to set up camp,’ Blizzard said, looking at the map. ‘We’ll wait for the carts and supplies to catch up.’

By dark, they were huddled around a campfire, supping on a thick stew. It tasted good to Dakkar, warming him after the day’s long march. Sentries kept watch just beyond the glow of the fire. The summer sky hadn’t truly darkened but the thick cloud cast a gloom of its own.

‘We travel due south tomorrow,’ Blizzard said, stirring his spoon in the bowl of stew. ‘That will bring us into the region where Bonaparte told you Cryptos may be based. If nothing else we’ll be well placed to stop them attacking Wellington’s forces from behind.’

‘Wellington?’ Dakkar frowned. ‘I had forgotten he led the Alliance’s forces.’

‘You don’t sound too enamoured, Prince Dakkar,’ Blizzard said, a mischievous grin on his face.

‘He fought my uncle, the Sultan Tipu, at Seringapatam many years ago,’ Dakkar said. He felt an ember of anger flare in his stomach.

‘Ah,’ Blizzard said.

‘What’s that meant to mean?’ Georgia said, her voice thick with stew. ‘Seringapa
.
.
. what?’

‘The Duke of Wellington defeated the Sultan,’ Blizzard explained. ‘In India, some years ago. Before you were born.’

‘He killed him,’ Dakkar murmured. ‘It was a dark day for my family.’

‘All’s fair in love and war,’ Blizzard said, staring at Dakkar. ‘So they say.’

Dakkar stalked off to his tent. He sat inside, unable to sleep.
Why am I even here?
he thought.
What do I care if these dogs eat each other?
Then he thought of Gog straining to hold up the ceiling, buying vital seconds with his life. He thought of Oginski lying on his deathbed and Napoleon’s cold, stone tomb. He thought of the promise he had made to stop the count. He lay down and stared out of the tent into the night.

Sleep must have come to Dakkar at some point because he awoke to the sound of screaming and the bitter chill that seems to settle just before dawn. He leapt to his feet and staggered out of the tent. Rain pelted down on the camp, rattling on the canvas covers. The whole area swarmed with half-dressed marines. Men shouted and musket fire split the air.

Dakkar rubbed his eyes. Two sentries lay dead on the grass just beyond the tents. A reptile rider, in resplendent blue French uniform, charged straight at him through the middle of the camp. The Rohaga’s mount strode on two huge back legs, churning up the sodden ground. Its small front ones hung uselessly in front of it. Armour shielded its face and breast but its belly was exposed. It thundered towards him.

A few marines fell back, wide eyed at the sight of the ferocious beast. Blizzard stepped out from the line of tents and brandished his sword.

‘Come on, lads!’ he bellowed. ‘You’ve seen worse than this. Form ranks and prepare to fire!’

Enough of the soldiers, although ragged from sleep, formed a line and loaded their rifles. Dakkar noticed a few fumbling at the musket barrels and dropping powder. He snatched up his own empty rifle, holding it like a club, and stood crouched, ready to defend himself. His heart pounded as he shook the rainwater from his eyes. The rider’s polished breastplate shone behind the snarling head full of teeth that hurtled towards him.