Shadows in the Night

  * * *

  After a near sleepless night she awoke heavy eyed and listless. The weather felt clammy and thunderous. Smithers eyed her suspiciously as she poured the morning chocolate.

  ‘You need some fresh air, Miss Julia. You look a trifle peaky. After breakfast, why not do some drawing in the garden while the weather’s still fine.’

  ‘Yes, perhaps I might.’

  For some reason though, she could feel no inclination to even get out her drawing utensils. The mocking face of Gerald Hamilton seemed to keep coming before her eyes, and in desperation she contrived to visualise Philip Stratton’s handsome features, but without success. Her mood seemed to have permeated the whole household, as discussions with Mrs Knight found that lady unusually quiet and abstracted while Ridges seemed nervous and on edge. Molly, too, was not her cheerful self and as the day progressed, even Smithers seemed about to burst into tears at any moment. Of Gerald Hamilton, there was no sign.

  It was a very worried looking Ridges who ushered in her visitor the next day, and as Julia rose to greet him, she could not help but notice her manservant’s disapproval.

  ‘Why, Lieutenant Wareham, this is a surprise.’

  ‘I’m sorry, Miss Farraday, if I have come at an inconvenient time.’

  ‘No, no, not at all. Please sit down.’

  The lieutenant did so, carefully placing his legs encased in dusty boots directly in front of him. After a few pleasantries, Julia waited for him to come to the reason for his visit and it wasn’t long in coming.

  Leaning forward, in a quiet confidential voice he inquired, ‘Miss Farraday, may I ask if you have heard any further reports of an impending run?’

  Lenore’s words sprang into her mind and it took her only a second to nod in agreement.

  ‘Do you know when?’ His voice dropped to an undertone.

  ‘No, only that a run is due soon.’

  ‘May I ask how you found this out?’

  Julia was in a quandary. The thought of Gerald’s involvement caused a shiver to run down her spine, and she did not want to betray Lenore’s confidences.

  ‘I really cannot say.’

  ‘Can you find out any more information?’ He straightened up in his chair and held her gaze. ‘It would be of vital importance to the service. We must stamp out this evil trade.’

  He lowered his voice and looked back towards the door. ‘I would not want you to take any unnecessary risks, for these are dangerous men who don’t hesitate to murder at will. Remember that. However, I know the service would give you protection and any other assistance you may require.’

  There was silence for a moment, then he stood up and made his farewell. As she escorted him to the door, he added in a grim whisper, ‘I thought you would like to know that the service has received confidential information from the Government that a suspected Bonapartist agent has arrived here seeking sanctuary. It would appear to be the same man who used Mr Farraday’s barouche and is now being given shelter by some personages in high places.’

  Julia looked suitably shocked.

  ‘It seems that the man was a French colonel who had served in the French settlement of Pondicherry in India, under General Raymond, who became a Bonapartist supporter after the Revolution. Of course, Mr Farraday had spent considerable time in India, although he is not the only one in the district to have lived there,’ and he looked questioningly at her.

  Julia’s mind was racing as her knowledge of the globes came back to her. Her great uncle had done most of his trading in Bombay, while Madras, where Gerald had stayed, was not too far distant from Pondicherry. With as calm a demeanour as she could muster, she merely nodded at the lieutenant.

  He went on quietly. ‘I know that you will not repeat this information, and if you hear anything at all, please contact me. Just send a message, or better still come yourself.’

  After his departure, Julia reflected on the situation. His visit would have been noted and disapproved of, which already meant she was in a vulnerable position. Was Gerald linked to this French colonel or was it merely a coincidence that he had lived in Madras?

  Besides, when he was in India, the French had already been defeated there many years earlier. To gain any more information would mean a visit to Lenore to try and elicit more facts.

  There was no guarantee that Lenore would be forthcoming, and remembering the officer’s words of warning regarding the smugglers, Wyatt’s evil face suddenly sprang into her mind. With a shudder, she decided to sleep on the matter and consider what she must do in the morning.