Drums of War

'Where are we going?' asked Janssen.

'Well, it won't be to Beauvais,' replied Daniel, 'I can tell you that much. We need to strike north-east. Since I'll ride one of the horses, the load will be lightened somewhat. We can press on harder.'

'I can ride as well, if need be, and Amalia is a very competent horsewoman. Riding is one of the few things we did together.'

'I enjoy it,' she confirmed. 'It was something I missed in Paris because Father was too busy. I'll be glad to take one of the horses.'

'That will speed us up considerably,' said Daniel. 'Kees will be our coachman and Beatrix his only passenger. The coach will be much easier to pull.' He indicated the three animals. 'Choose any horse you wish.'

Janssen went off to do so but Amalia lingered beside Daniel.

'I haven't been able to thank you properly,' she said. 'You saved me from that awful man. I hated what you did but I admired your courage in doing it.'

'I'm sorry you had to be there when it happened.'

'None of us had any choice in the matter.'

'We'll take care not to be caught like that again,' he said.

She looked over her shoulder. 'What about those men?'

'They'll never catch up with us on foot, Amalia.'

'They might find other horses somehow,' she said, 'then they'd be certain to come after us.'

'They'd be very foolish to do so,' said Daniel. 'We have their weapons and ammunition. In any case,' he added, folding up his map, 'they'll be riding in the wrong direction altogether. They think we're going to Beauvais.'

Tom Hillier was looking forward to the experience with an uneasy mixture of timidity, excitement and trepidation. At first he tried to get out of it, providing endless feeble excuses. Hugh Dobbs refused to accept any of them, insisting that he joined the three of them who intended to visit the town that night. Hillier was committed. He liked girls but had had very little to do with them when working on the family farm. It was only at dances and harvest festival celebrations that he spent any real time in female company and he'd always felt awkward in doing so. It was one thing to share ribald jokes with his new friends but quite another to go to bed with a woman. The possible fear of failure tormented him.

Some armies allowed prostitutes to travel with the troops or gave them ready access wherever they pitched camp. The Duke of Marlborough had done his best to stamp out such practices, believing that soldiers fought best when not distracted by pleasures of the flesh. Women did accompany his army with the baggage wagons but they were the actual or common-law wives of particular individuals and, as such, were not seen as posing any threat. Marlborough had fought in armies where venereal diseases had disabled some of the men and he didn't want his own soldiers to be affected in that way. Lust, however, could never be wholly controlled, especially in virile young men. Those eager for sexual passion would always find it somewhere.

As the hour for departure drew near, Hillier lay on his back in the tent with his hands behind his head, wishing for a thunderstorm or some other obstacle to prevent them from leaving. Dobbs rolled over and shook him by the arm.

'It won't be long now, Tom,' he said.

'You'd better go without me, Hugh. I don't feel well.'

'I was as sick as a dog before my first time but she made it so easy for me. My head was in the clouds for days.'

'What if we're caught leaving the camp?' asked Hillier.

'We won't be.'

'I still think it's too risky.'

'The only risk you take is of catching something nasty between the sheets and that won't happen here. The women are as clean as can be. What you'll be getting is healthy recreation.'

'I'm not sure that I'm old enough, Hugh.'

'Of course, you are,' said Dobbs. 'I was only fifteen.'

There was no escape. Resigning himself to the inevitable, Hillier brooded on what lay ahead. Two of the other drummers were joining the escapade. As he listened to them trading memoirs about previous visits to brothels, Hillier felt even more unready for the challenge. The time eventually came for them to set out. The camp was in darkness. Dobbs took the lead because he'd already reconnoitred the position of the picquets. They followed him in single file with Hillier at the rear. Dodging between the bushes, they reached the stream and paddled across it. Hillier caught up with his friend.

'My breeches are soaked, Hugh,' he complained.

'They'll have plenty of time to dry when you take them off,' said Dobbs. 'Now stay close and keep your voice down.'

Only when they were well clear of the camp could the four of them relax and talk freely. Hillier still worried about the consequences of leaving camp without permission but the others were obsessed with what lay ahead. Their language became cruder, their expectations more colourful. Hillier was made to feel like a callow outsider. Dobbs poked him with a friendly elbow.

'Don't worry, Tom,' he said. 'If you lived on a farm, you probably fucked a sheep or two in your time,' he added jokingly.

'We kept dairy cows.'

'Then you must have seen them mounted by a bull. What they did was only natural. It's the same with a woman. You're the lusty young bull mounting a warm, welcoming cow with lovely udders to play with and suck. I'll wager that you love every second.'

Hillier did not share his confidence. When the town was at last conjured out of the gloom, his mouth went dry and sweat broke out on his face. Dobbs clearly had an excellent memory. He picked his way through the streets as if he'd been raised there. Candles flickered in some windows but most houses were dark. Dobbs stopped outside one where a finger of light could be seen between the shutters.

'This is it,' he announced, rubbing his hands.

Hillier looked up at it with apprehension. The house was large. Built of local stone, it had a thatched roof with prominent eaves. From inside they could hear the sound of muffled voices. As if in proof of its credentials as a brothel, the door suddenly opened and two soldiers tumbled out, laughing happily as they did up their uniforms. They rolled off down the street on their way back to camp.

'There you are,' said Dobbs, 'I told you they always give you what you want. Knock the door, Tom.'

Hillier quailed. 'Me?'

'You must be first.'

'I'd rather wait, Hugh.'

'Stop arguing and knock the door.'

'Yes,' said one of the others, 'we want our money's worth.'

Hillier stepped forward and tapped on the door, scared of what he might find on the other side of it. The door was opened by a woman holding a candle. He could see that she was fat, middle- aged and raddled. She wore a silk dress with a low decolletage and bared her snaggly teeth in a welcoming grin.

'Don't just stand there, Tom,' said Dobbs, pushing him over the threshold. 'Manhood awaits you.'

For the second time in a row, Daniel chose to spend the night sleeping upright in the coach. It stood beside the stables in which their horses had been stalled. The inn was fairly remote but he took no chances. Two loaded pistols were at hand in case of nocturnal intruders. The brush with the highwaymen had been unpleasant but it had yielded rewards. They now had three horses at their disposal and had found a substantial amount of money in the saddlebags. Daniel was sitting on top of it.

He came awake periodically to check that all was well then returned to his slumbers. It was when he opened his eyes for the third time that he thought he glimpsed movement in the darkness. He reached for one of the pistols and stared through a window. Nothing was there yet he was convinced he'd seen something. Deciding that it must have been a dog or even a fox, he put the pistol aside. Almost immediately he snatched it up again as he heard footsteps.