The Blacksmith's Daughter: A Mystery of the American Revolution Read Online Free PDF Page A

a standstill this moment,
and I'm sorry for it, but those Indians can be capricious.   They decide daily whether they'll honor
treaties and alliances."
    Betsy let out a slow breath of
relief.   Thank the heavens the redcoats
didn't know Sophie and David had escaped.
    Sheffield cleared his throat.   "I expect Major Hunt's account of the
events culminating in Havana within a week.   We've interviewed residents from Alton.   Everyone we've spoken with insists that neither your mother nor uncle
were rebels.   Frankly I'm puzzled as to
their motive for taking up with the rebels."
    She considered the rationale David
had implied the day before.   "Perhaps, sir, they didn't take up with the rebels but were simply
concerned for my grandfather's well-being.   They followed him to Cuba and became entangled in his schemes."
    Sheffield scratched his chin.   "Your aunt advanced a similar theory,
but she's known for supporting rebel viewpoints."
    Betsy smiled.   "Aunt Susana talks a great deal, but I
doubt she'd throw herself wholeheartedly into the rebel cause."
    "Why is that?"
    "Promise you won't repeat
this."
    "You have my word."
    "She has a dramatic flair that
obscures a lack of backbone."
    "Ah.   But your mother and uncle do possess backbone?"
    "Yes, sir."
    Sheffield nodded.   "Mr. Sheridan's support of His Majesty
is known in Augusta.   But tell me,
madam, where are your loyalties?"
    She held his gaze.   "I won't take sides.   Parliament and the Congress are doing a poor
job of listening to each other."
    Annoyance squeezed from Sheffield's
lips.   "Neutrals.   The townsfolk claim your mother and uncle
are neutrals."
    "I've heard them remark on the
pig-headedness of both sides, yes."   She maintained a cool eye on the captain.   "In my mother's recent letters to me, she mentioned that
Major Hunt had begun spending time with her."
    Shrewdness twitched Sheffield's
eyebrows.   "Gossip says they were
courting.   Hardly the actions of a woman
dedicated to the rebel cause."   He
studied her reaction.
    At first she expected him to
explain away Major Hunt's actions with a statement such as, "Your mother
must have been a spy who set out to dazzle and deceive him."   But he remained quiet.   If he felt the major's reputation tarnished
by the liaison, he didn't hasten to polish away the smudge.   He must have concluded that Sophie Barton
was a decent woman and Edward Hunt was in full command of his faculties.   She respected Sheffield for that.
    After a moment, he stirred.   "Neutrality is a difficult and often
dangerous position to maintain."
    "There are plenty of neutrals
out there, sir."
    "Yes, I'm aware of it.   So is Parliament.   A grievously untapped resource for His Majesty."   He inspected their teacups.   "More tea?"   Betsy and Clark extended cups at the same
time, their eager expressions eliciting a chuckle from the captain.   "Could I win over a neutral simply by
serving tea, I'd give my next month's pay for a crate of the stuff."
    Finnegan reappeared with hot water,
and Sheffield replenished their tea.   Conversation turned apolitical.   Betsy watched Clark manipulate anecdotes from the captain about his
boyhood in Yorkshire.   Sheffield's
hearty laugh filled the room.   Not in
his wildest dreams did the captain suspect her husband stuck secret messages in
boots or dealt with enemy Spaniards.   No, indeed, there were two John Clark Sheridans, and Betsy, with
growing unease, wondered which she'd married.
    At the conclusion of tea, Sheffield
crushed Clark's hand in another handshake, kissed Betsy's hand with a
gentleness that surprised her, and held up his forefinger.   "Before I forget.   You want to know about your escort back to
Augusta on the morrow."
    "Stoddard heading it up
again?"   Clark grinned.   "An excellent officer, and good company
on the road."
    "Er, no.   The lieutenant serving beneath Major Hunt
has been concluding business in Alton since his return from Havana.   He leaves