4 Under Siege Read Online Free PDF Page B

grandmother?’
    ‘What about her?’ asked Welbeck.
    ‘I can’t believe you hated her as well.’
    ‘She was family – it doesn’t count.’
    ‘Ah, I see,’ said Rachel, ‘you like all the women who belonged to your family and loathe the rest of us. What about religion? If you’re a Christian, it must mean you love the Virgin Mary, not to mention all those other good ladies in the Bible. The tally is mounting all the time, isn’t it? You don’t hate all women. There are quite a few you like.’
    ‘It’s a fair point, Henry,’ said Daniel, enjoying the exchange.
    ‘Do you know what I think?’ said Rachel.
    ‘No,’ retorted Welbeck, ‘and I don’t care.’
    ‘You’re hiding behind this so-called hatred. The only reason you pretend to detest women is that you’re afraid of us.’
    Welbeck exploded. ‘I detest them because they always get in the way – just as you’re doing right now. Women are a distraction in the army. They turn men’s heads and make them lose concentration. They lie, they cosset, they badger, they deceive, they demand and they talk a man’s ear off. Afraid of women?’ said Welbeck with disgust. ‘The only thing that scares me is that their tongues never stop wagging.’
    ‘Oh, is that all?’ asked Rachel, shaking with mirth.
    ‘Keep away from me,’ he warned.
    ‘You talk just like Will Baggott, though his language was much coarser. It took me a long time to win him over but I managed it in the end.’ She moved in closer to scrutinise his face. ‘You even look a bit like old Will with that same nasty, unfriendly expression. You only ever see it on the faces of poor, cold-hearted men who’ve never been properly warmed through by a woman.’
    Welbeck was pulsing with fury. ‘Can you see now why I hate them so much, Dan?’ he said, rancorously. ‘They’re harridans – all of them. I’ll speak to you later when we’re able to get a word in.’ Turning on his heel, he plunged into his tent. ‘Goodbye.’
    ‘I think you frightened him off,’ said Daniel. ‘There are not many people who can make Henry take a backward step.’
    ‘I didn’t mean to do that, Captain Rawson. It’s just that he did remind me so of my first husband. The only difference is that the sergeant is much better looking than Will Baggott.’
    Daniel gasped. ‘Henry is better looking ?’
    ‘Oh, yes,’ she said. ‘Put a smile on him and he’d look almost handsome in an ugly sort of way. My instincts about men are never wrong. Yes,’ she went on, gazing pensively at the tent, ‘I might have offered my help to you , but Sergeant Welbeck is the one who really deserves it. He needs the magic of a woman’s touch in his life.’

C HAPTER T HREE
     
     
    Marshal James FitzJames, Duke of Berwick, arrived in the camp with his entourage and went straight to the quarters of its commander. He was dismayed to find the Duke of Vendôme reclining indolently on a couch with a glass of wine in his hand while attended by a handsome officer whose uniform was unbuttoned. Vendôme, who was as usual scruffily dressed, did not even rise to his feet to greet his visitor. His one concession to the newcomer was to dismiss his companion with a lordly wave of his hand. Buttoning up his uniform and putting down his glass, the man mumbled his apologies to Berwick and left swiftly. Berwick looked after him.
    ‘He’s rather young to be a captain,’ he observed.
    ‘Raoul Valeran is worthy of his promotion,’ said Vendôme, sitting up. ‘He’s proved himself on the battlefield and is a man on whom I can rely completely. But do sit down, Your Grace,’ he went on, indicating a chair. ‘May I offer you wine?’
    Berwick was brusque. ‘No, thank you.’
    ‘Would you care for some other refreshment?’
    ‘I merely came to discuss military matters,’ said the other, lowering himself into a chair. ‘I expected to find you finalising your strategy, not entertaining a guest.’
    ‘Captain Valeran is a valued