“Perhaps, but Lady Withnall has probably trained them well by now. It is just as likely they will give out no information whatsoever.”
“That is wishful thinking on your part, Octavian. Oh, dear. What if the cur is there when your messenger arrives with my letter?” Her eyes widened. “What if he steals that letter? I told her everything about our destination and our plan to marry.”
“Syd, you are allowing your fear to get the better of you. Her butler will not allow him to touch her letters, nor will Sir Henry think to do so since he is going there because he believes you are sleeping over at Lady Withnall’s home. So why would you write her a letter if you are already there?”
She let out a breath. “I see your point. But will he grab it once he knows I never showed up at her home? Her head butler must be over one hundred years old and will fall over if anyone merely blows on him.”
“Syd, he is elderly but still has his faculties. You are grasping for reasons to alarm yourself. Lady Withnall has footmen who are young and strong enough to haul even me out of her house if she bade them. Sir Henry does not know you are with me andprobably has yet to realize you are leaving London, so just calm yourself.”
She leaned forward and grabbed his hands. “Octavian, if he does come after us…if he catches us and draws a weapon on you, then do not fight him. You must promise me this. He is vicious and will shoot you.”
Gad, did she not get it yet?
He was going to protect her even at the risk to his own life.
He arched an eyebrow and regarded her with a look of boredom. “Fine, I will save my own hide and let him carry you off.”
Her mouth formed a little “O” of surprise. “You will?”
He snorted. “Of course not. He can follow you into the bowels of hell with an army and I will be there ready to fight them to the last man.”
“All of a hundred men?”
“Sir Henry is not going to travel with an army. Nor are we marching into the bowels of hell. We are only going to Gretna Green and then on to Greenock so I can complete my work on behalf of the Admiralty. You may have noticed I am wearing my uniform. It is because I am on official naval duty.”
She emitted a breathy sigh. “You look splendid in it.”
“Thank you, but that isn’t my point. At best, Sir Henry will bring along five or six men, but no more. It becomes too unwieldy to move fast with many more men, not to mention the expense of feeding them all and difficulty in finding lodgings for them without advance planning.”
“He will hire cheats and scoundrels, men no doubt used to being on the run. They can set up camp anywhere.”
“Those men might, but Sir Henry is not going to sleep in a meadow, wash up in an icy stream, or dine around a campfire. He is used to his luxuries. But that raises a good point. We may have to abandon this carriage and our belongings and go on therun if Sir Henry catches up to us before we reach Gretna Green. Can you manage sleeping under the stars or eating whatever we can scavenge?”
“Sleeping outdoors? Eating…what exactly is scavenged food? But I’m sure I can.” She leaned forward and gave his hands a light squeeze to emphasize her point. “I will manage. You’ll just have to tell me what to do.”
He sighed. “So, you’ve never camped out before?”
A blush stole up her cheeks. “I’ve gone hungry a time or two when my father had us running from creditors, but never for more than a day, and we always had a decent roof over our heads when we slept.”
“So that’s anoto all of it. All right. We’ll come up with something if and when the situation arises.”
She pursed her lips and frowned at him. “Should we not plan ahead for this eventuality? Especially since I am inexperienced in this matter.”
“No. Besides, for a smart girl, you are inexperienced in many ways.” Some more important than simply going on the run. He was thinking of the bedchamber, but quickly abandoned the thought because Syd would not appreciate that discussion. “I will show you what to do if ever we have to rough it outdoors. Stop looking for reasons to fret. This is not likely ever to come to pass. I’m sending this carriage back to London once we reach Oxford. We’ll ride the rest of the way to Scotland in a hired coach.”
“Is that supposed to make us less obvious?”
“Yes. I’ll also use other stratagems to keep him off our trail.”
“I hope they work,” she muttered. “Sir Henry is quite dogged.”
“I’ve noticed he seems to have developed an unhealthy fascination for you. Even so, he will have to get through me in order to get to you. He may be a dog, but I am a big ox and he willnever get past me.” Since she had yet to release her light hold on his hands, he traced a thumb across one of her small hands in the hope of soothing her. “Syd, whatever happens between here and Greenock, know that I will be with you.”
She nodded unconvincingly, so he kept talking. “My first priority is to keep us out of sight as much as possible.”
“That won’t always be possible, especially if we are stopping at coaching inns.”
“True, but I am never going to let down my guard. What we do in the unlikely event he finds us will depend on the circumstances. My battle training has prepared me for any eventuality. I’ll use whatever resources available to protect you. The terrain, the weather, the proximity to friends who can hide us if Sir Henry manages to catch up to us before we are married. There is nothing to concern ourselves about right now. So, will you please stop fretting?”
