Redemption of a Fallen Woman (7 page)

Chapter Eight

W
hen they made camp that evening Elena and Concha tended their horses and then set about collecting wood for the fire. When they had amassed a suitable pile Concha laid the base and then took out tinder and flint from the leather pouch on her belt. Within a short space of time she had the fire started.

Jack, who had been watching quietly, nodded approval. ‘You’ve done that before, haven’t you?’

‘Once or twice,’ said Concha.

Elena grinned and handed her some more sticks.

‘Can you use that pistol an’ all?’ he continued.

Concha glanced up and met his eye. ‘With perfect accuracy.’

‘Oh, aye? Shot many men, have you?’

The scepticism in his tone was not lost on his audience. The two women exchanged glances.

‘Yes,’ replied Concha, ‘but not nearly enough of you.’

Jack grinned. ‘Frenchies, I’ll be bound.’

‘Frenchmen, of course, though nationality does not always govern the choice of target. I’d be just as willing to shoot an annoying Englishman.’

Harry’s eyes gleamed. ‘You’d best take heed, Jack, if you want to keep a whole skin.’

‘Aye, my lord. I’m trembling in me boots here.’

‘Nice boots too,’ replied Concha. ‘If anything untoward were to happen to you, I’d get a good price for those.’

Elena turned away to hide welling laughter. ‘I’ll go and fetch some water.’

‘Let me help you.’ Harry picked up the spare pan. ‘A mug of tea wouldn’t go amiss just now.’

The stream was only a short distance away and the pan wasn’t heavy, but Elena made no demur for the thought of his company was not displeasing.

‘I think Jack may have met his match there,’ he observed when they were out of earshot.

‘Don’t be in any doubt about it. I’ve never seen Concha bested.’

‘Is her nature really so warlike?’

‘No more than mine, but we can defend ourselves when we have to.’

‘That role falls to me now,’ he replied.

She shot a look his way but his expression was perfectly serious. The notion sat oddly with her.

‘It may take some time to adjust to that idea.’

‘Is it not a husband’s first duty to protect his wife from harm?’

‘So tradition has it.’

‘Well, then.’ He paused. ‘Will you trust me so far?’

‘I trusted a man once before but on that occasion my trust was misplaced.’

‘He has much to answer for, but I hope to restore your faith in our sex.’

‘That may take some time.’ It was an understatement: she wondered if she would ever be able to trust in that way again. While she felt an instinctive liking for Harry and he had behaved in a gentlemanly fashion thus far, would he stand by her
in extremis
? Would she be able to rely on him or would he too prove to have feet of clay?

‘No matter. We have plenty of that, and I know how to be patient.’

His gaze met hers and held it. There was no discernible trace of arrogance or mockery, only quiet certainty, and it sent a tremor through her that had nothing to do with fear.

Later, after they had eaten and Jack had gone to take first watch, the others turned in. Elena was weary now. Quite apart from the day’s ride, she had slept little the previous night. Of course, there had been considerable distraction then even though her fears came to nothing. It would be some time before she and Harry shared a chamber again and it was unlikely he’d initiate any kind of intimacy while they were on the road. She was safe enough for the time being.

* * *

Over the next few days the little group of travellers settled into a routine. Harry soon discovered that his marriage to Elena had not altered the original
modus vivendi
within the group as a whole: she and Concha still undertook their share of the chores with good grace, they took their turns on watch and neither of them complained about cold rations, long days in the saddle or hard ground at night. Both rode well and were knowledgeable about the care of horses. He never had to remind them of anything. Thus far the arrangement was working out better than he could have hoped. It seemed he wasn’t the only one to think so since Jack had privately confided that he thought both ladies regular troopers.

‘I’ve not heard one complaint so far,’ he went on, ‘which same does surprise me, being as how they’re women an’ all.’

‘Men do their share of complaining,’ replied Harry. ‘Remember Private Digby?’

‘Couldn’t ever forget t’cove, my lord. Blighter could’ve moaned for England.’

‘Actually I think he did.’

Jack nodded. ‘It were a relief to all concerned when he finally stopped a bullet at Talavera. I expect he’s still complaining to t’devil about it now.’

‘Very likely.’

‘T’ladies could teach him a thing or two about fortitude, eh, my lord?’

‘Yes, they certainly...’ Harry broke off as a flash of light caught his eye on the hillside ahead. ‘Did you see that?’

‘Aye, my lord. Sunlight on metal. Musket barrel?’

Harry reined in. ‘My thought exactly.’

It seemed they weren’t alone in noticing the phenomenon. Elena pulled up beside Harry. ‘Bandits do you think?’

‘Quite possibly.’

‘What do you want to do?’

Before he had time to answer a shot whined past his ear. Harry swore under his breath.

‘Take cover among those rocks.’

They needed no urging, nor did they show any signs of panic, reacting much as trained soldiers would have done. In less than half a minute they had reached shelter, dismounted and armed themselves. They were only just in time as more lead shot whined past and ricocheted off stone. It was followed by shouts and a thunder of hooves.

‘Here they come,’ muttered Concha.

Elena checked the priming of her pistol. ‘We’ll give a good account of ourselves anyway.’

Squinting round the edge of the sheltering rock she saw ten horsemen hurtle down the slope and thence along the dirt road towards them. Even from a distance there was no mistaking who the riders were.

‘Bandits, definitely,’ said Jack.

Concha nodded. ‘Idiots too, if they think to cross such a large area of open ground unscathed.’

‘Quite right,’ said Harry. ‘Let’s take advantage of their stupidity, shall we?’

He lined up his rifle and squeezed off a shot. Almost simultaneously Jack’s gun spoke. Two of the oncoming riders fell.

‘Not bad,’ said Concha.

While the others reloaded Elena took aim. A man cried out, swaying in the saddle and clutching his shoulder. Harry glanced her way and smiled.

‘Well done.’

‘You also,’ she replied.

Concha levelled her pistol and fired, bringing down the leading horse. It fell like a stone, catapulting its rider over its head and causing others to swerve around it. Hurriedly she reloaded while Harry and Jack opened fire. Elena heard cries of pain. She ignored it, knowing that sentiment had no place here. If they were captured the best they could expect was to be robbed of everything. In the worst-case scenario... Cold-eyed, she fired and reloaded, her hands moving automatically and with practiced ease. Then she took a deep breath, took aim again. The riders were closer now and thus easier targets. Concha was right, she thought. They were not competent strategists. Montera certainly wouldn’t have let himself get caught in the open like that. She smiled grimly, picked her target and fired. A man clutched his chest and toppled sideways, dead before he hit the ground.

And then, without warning, the remaining riders veered away. For a second or two the significance escaped her. Then she heard Concha’s voice.

‘They’re running! The cowards are running!’

Jack grinned. ‘They got more than they bargained for, I’ll warrant.’

Elena leaned back against the rock and let out the breath she had unconsciously been holding.

‘Are you all right?’

She opened her eyes to see Harry. ‘Yes, quite all right, I thank you.’

‘That was good shooting. Well done.’

The words cheered her immeasurably, like the hand squeezing her arm. She smiled wryly. ‘You weren’t so bad yourself from what I could see.’

He returned the smile. ‘High praise.’

‘No, just the truth.’

Before he could say more, Jack intervened. ‘The question is whether they’ve gone for good or just to fetch reinforcements.’

Harry nodded. ‘I think we should leave while we can.’

No one needed telling twice. They remounted and rode fast. Elena urged her horse to a gallop, leaning low over its neck, glancing back from time to time, half expecting to see a larger group of riders behind. The road was empty. Even after several miles there was still no sign of pursuit.

‘Maybe just a small group of opportunists, after all, my lord,’ said Jack when at length they pulled up to rest their blowing horses.

‘Maybe,’ replied Harry. ‘All the same, we’ll ride on for a while.’

Once again no one made the least demur, wanting to put as much distance between them and the scene of the attack as possible. Even though the immediate danger was over Elena still felt the residual thrill coursing through her veins. It had been that way when she and Concha had ridden with Montera’s men. The habit was hard to break.

It was dusk before they eventually stopped. There were still no signs of pursuit but he wasn’t prepared to take chances.

‘We’ll exercise caution until we’re sure,’ he said. ‘No fire tonight and we’ll double the watch just in case.’

‘Right you are, my lord.’ Jack looked at Concha. ‘Do you take t’first one wi’ me, then, lass?’

She returned a cool and level gaze. ‘As you wish—lad.’

Elena caught Harry’s eye and saw the gleam of amusement there. It drew an answering smile from her. Bone-weary now but exhilarated too, it felt as though something in her had awoken after a long sleep. It wasn’t that she relished being attacked by brigands, but rather that the brush with danger made her feel more alive than she had for a long time. Perhaps the present company had something to do with that as well. In any adventure it was important to know that, in a tight spot, one could rely on one’s companions. She’d had no doubts whatever about Concha, but today the two men had proved their worth once more. They were cool-headed, swift to act and prepared to be ruthless when required.

‘Can I offer you something to eat?’

Harry’s voice drew her from her reverie. ‘Oh, yes. I thank you. What is on the menu this evening?’

‘Bread and cheese.’

‘Bread and cheese sound divine.’

‘You are easily pleased, my lady.’

‘I am hungry, my lord, and have eaten far worse.’

He grinned and, having handed her a ration of food, sat down to eat with her. ‘You and Concha handled yourselves well today. Seasoned soldiers could not have done better.’

His praise created a little glow of warmth deep inside. ‘I suppose we are what you might call seasoned
guerrillas
.’

‘An apt description. You certainly took those robbers in your stride.’

‘It’s not the first time we have met their kind. Concha and I were once taken prisoner by El Lobo.’

‘I have heard of him. An ugly customer by all accounts.’

‘The accounts were true.’

‘How did you fall into his clutches?’

Elena hesitated, regarding him speculatively, wondering whether he would be shocked if she told him the story. On the other hand he already knew a lot of shocking things about her, so perhaps one more wouldn’t make much difference now.

‘We had been out hunting in the hills with a small group of companions. We shot a deer and were returning to camp when, by ill chance, we ran into some of El Lobo’s men. I think they were as surprised as we. Unfortunately there were far more of them than there were of us, and so we were captured and taken to his headquarters. It was a remote hill village that had been abandoned by the inhabitants in the early part of the war.’

‘There were quite a few of those around by the time the French had finished.’ He made a vague gesture with his hand. ‘Forgive me, I’m interrupting.’

‘El Lobo demanded to know where Montera’s hideout was but none of us was prepared to tell. So then our captors entertained themselves by beating one of our companions half to death. Still he wouldn’t talk so El Lobo shot him, as an example. We knew it wouldn’t be long before he killed the rest—the men anyway.’ She hesitated. ‘He announced that he had a very different plan for Concha and me.’

Harry’s eyes grew steely. ‘I think I can guess what that was.’

She nodded. ‘We knew there was nothing to lose by attempting to escape. So, while he and his men drank, we pretended to seduce the guard of the hut where we were confined. It wasn’t hard.’

‘I almost pity him.’

‘When we’d eliminated him we smashed the lamp and set fire to the building as we left to create a diversion.’

‘An effective stratagem, I imagine.’

‘It was. While all attention was on the fire we released our friends. We also discovered that the room next door to their prison was piled high with weapons and ammunition stolen from the French. There were also several barrels of gunpowder.’

‘Let me guess. You set a fuse.’

‘Correct.’

‘A longish fuse, I hope.’

‘Long enough to let us get clear.’ She smiled reminiscently. ‘The explosion was huge—the biggest I ever saw, and deafening. It demolished the entire building and half a dozen near it. Debris was flung over a wide area. There were massive casualties among the robbers.’

‘I have no doubt of that.’

‘One of the victims was El Lobo himself— impaled through the chest by a huge splinter of wood.’

‘I don’t suppose that grieved you too much.’

‘It didn’t grieve me at all.’

‘How did you get away?’

‘In the confusion we stole some horses and set the rest free. Then we rode fast.’

Harry shook his head, torn between astonishment and admiration. ‘I’ll wager you did.’

‘I’m afraid I have shocked you again.’

‘The shocking thing is that women should be forced to such extremities as a consequence of war.’

It wasn’t what she had been expecting at all and she eyed him curiously. ‘No matter what you learn about my past you never judge me, do you?’