Camp Follower: A Mystery of the American Revolution Read Online Free PDF Page B

from backcountry
rebels, the British Army wasn't amenable to straightening out such a mix-up.   With time and money invested in David, the
Army wanted his hanged corpse swaying in the wind, his face purple and tongue
protruding.
    At least with
the Committee of Safety in Wilmington, the redcoats couldn't just storm through
the city and arrest David — Helen caught herself.   David's pursuit had followed him into the tavern that
evening.   Good heavens.   Another British agent wandering
Wilmington in civilian clothing.   Dozens
of them could be slinking around town, each dressed as a civilian and thumbing
his nose at the rebel government.
    "Yes,
they're hunting me.   My hellhound is a
redcoat, Lieutenant Fairfax.   You see
why it's prudent for me to make this visit short."
    Her blood
heated.   Scant tenderness had she
received in her life, and David had provided most of it.   She stood and stamped her foot.   "You're exhausted.   Stay here and rest a day.   Everyone knows Enid and I are
Loyalists.   This is the last place a
rebel spy would hide."
    "This
fiend, this parasite never gives up on a scent.   He tracked us to Havana."
    "So he's a
prideful, pompous ass, eager for promotion —"
    "No, you
haven't understood me!"   David's
expression went rigid.   "He tried
to violate my sister in East Florida —"
    "Oh,
David, come now —"
    "— and he
shot a friend, someone I've known my entire life, in cold blood in Havana.   Gods, Helen, listen to me, please believe
me!"
    Still carrying
his hat, she went to him and gripped his hand in hers, hoping to convey calm
and safety, despite the alarm spiking her heart.   True, the British Army had its bad material — rank and file who
plundered, raped, and murdered.   But
never had she heard of a regular officer of His Majesty who'd committed the
vile acts of which David had spoken.   Rules of war: commissioned officers were of a different cut than the
men, supposedly even within the Continental Army.   Were solid proof of such a crazed officer's activities leaked to
the rebels' propaganda machine, any pretense of civility and protocol between
the rebel and Crown forces would evaporate.
    Her heart
sank.   Weeks on the run had unhinged
David.   "Darling, I'm
listening.   You know I'm here for
you.   You're safe.   I've no traffic with rebels.   Your 'hellhound' cannot intrude in my house with the Committee standing in his way.   Stay here tonight.   Tomorrow
night, too.   You look like a wraith, for
heaven's sake."
    His gray-eyed
gaze bored into her before his shoulders relaxed.   "I don't want to cause you more trouble, but I'm so damned
tired."
    "Of course
you are.   Can you find safety outside of
Wilmington?"
    "Yes, with
my sister."
    "Back
home, in Alton?   Aren't they looking for
you in Georgia?"
    "No,
Sophie, the other sister, the one who went to Cuba with me.   She's hiding among the Cherokee in western
South Carolina.   Her daughter, Betsy,
too."   Pride firmed his mouth
"I shall be a great-uncle before Yule."
    Helen warmed to
his joy.   "You must be among family
when your niece delivers."   How did
it feel to belong to a family whose members sheltered each other?   How did it feel to share in the joy of
marriages and births?   Charles knew, as
did Enid and David.   "We shall see
you rested and fed, and after a few days set you back upon the road.   Where's your gelding?"
    "In your
stable."
    She tossed her
head.   "I sold my team years
ago.   If someone snoops, it will be
obvious that I've a visitor.   Enid shall
sneak him into Mr. Morris's stable and at first light board him in a public
stable."
    "That's
far too much effort on your part."
    "Hush."   In light of her persuasion, she sensed
resistance ebbing from him.   Good.   He sounded irrational, and she couldn't envision
his success at finding safety until he'd rested and recovered enough clarity to
not regard his pursuit in supernatural terms.   She suspected that he'd projected