‘Captain Rawson is a fortunate man,’ he began, slowly. ‘I’m sure that he realises that. He wrote you a very touching letter.’
‘That was private,’ she said.
‘You no longer have any privacy, mademoiselle. You left it behind you in Amsterdam.’ He saw her glancing around. ‘And before you think of trying to run away, let me warn you that guards are posted outside. There’s no escape.’ He beamed at her. ‘You’re mine.’
‘What do you want from me?’
‘I want you to tell me about Captain Rawson.’
‘There’s nothing to tell.’
‘Then you have a very short memory,’ he chided. ‘Have you so soon forgotten your rescue from Paris? Don’t you remember how the captain managed to release your father from the Bastille? That was a remarkable achievement. I look forward to hearing how it was done.’
‘I don’t know.’
‘Your father must have told you. Emanuel Janssen is one of the very few people who escaped from the Bastille. I’m certain that he must have boasted to you about it.’ Amalia remained silent. ‘Well? What did he tell you?’ Biting her lip, she let her head fall to her chest. ‘You’re not in a very talkative mood yet, I see,’ he continued. ‘That’s understandable. You’re still shocked at being kidnapped. You need time to grow accustomed to the idea.’
‘Where am I?’ she asked, raising her head.
‘You’re in our camp at Braine l’Alleud and I,’ he said, proudly, ‘am the duc de Vendome, commander of the French army.’
Amalia trembled. Because of his aristocratic bearing, she knew that he must hold a high rank but it never occurred to her that she was talking to a duke. Vendome was so slovenly. He looked nothing like the magnificent grandees she’d once seen on parade at Versailles. She couldn’t imagine why she’d been plucked from the streets of Amsterdam to stand before one of the most celebrated commanders in the French army. He noted her confusion.
‘You’ll have plenty of time to think about it, mademoiselle.’
‘I don’t understand.’
‘You have no idea why you’re here, do you?’ She shook her head. ‘It’s because I want to witness a reunion.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘I wish to be there when you and Captain Rawson meet again.’
She was still bewildered. ‘How can you do that?’
‘He’s probably read that letter he wrote to you by now. I had it sent to him. By all accounts, he’s an astute man. He’ll know that you’d never have returned something that was so precious to you. The captain will reach the obvious conclusion — his beloved is in danger.’
Vendome spoke too quickly for her to translate every word but Amalia caught the gist of what he was telling her. She was being used as bait. In order to lure Daniel to the French camp, Amalia was to be held hostage. Her brain was swimming and her heart fluttering. She was consumed by feelings of guilt. Because of her, Daniel would now be imperilled. Because she’d been so unguarded as to let herself be captured, his life might be at risk. It was a devastating thought. Stifling a sob, Amalia brought both hands up to her face.
‘I see that you’ve finally comprehended,’ said Vendome, gloating. ‘Since you won’t tell me how your father escaped from the Bastille, I shall have to wait until I can put the question to Captain Rawson.’
Daniel had hoped in vain that there was another explanation. It was conceivable that his letter to Amalia had been stolen from her or even intercepted before it ever reached Amsterdam. Deep down, however, he knew that he was grasping at straws and, when news came from her stricken father, the truth was unavoidable. Emanuel Janssen’s letter told of his daughter’s abduction and of the inabilities of the Dutch authorities to find any trace of her. That confirmed it. Amalia was in enemy hands. She was being held in the French camp.
‘We can’t be absolutely certain of that,’ said Marlborough.
‘I think we can, Your Grace,’ insisted Daniel.
‘Amalia could be held anywhere in French territory. She may even have been taken back to Paris.’
‘I think that highly improbable. The only use that Amalia has for them is to act as an enticement for me. They’d hardly want to draw me all the way to the French capital.’
‘That’s a fair point, Daniel,’ said Cardonnel. ‘They went to great trouble to arrange the kidnap. It must have taken a lot of planning. Why go to such lengths?’
‘They want me very much,’ replied Daniel.
‘I can’t think why.’
‘I can,’ said Marlborough. ‘It might well have something to do with Daniel’s kidnap of Major Crevel. That must have rankled with the French high command. They may even be aware of his part in the liberation of Emanuel Janssen from the Bastille.’
‘How could they know that, Your Grace?’
‘Ralph Higgins will have told them,’ decided Daniel. ‘Before we caught him, he’d set himself the task of finding out as much as he could about me. I know for a fact that he was aware of my work in the Bastille. The information was volunteered to Higgins.’
‘What happens now?’ asked Cardonnel.
‘I go to Amalia’s rescue.’
‘But you’d never succeed — they’d be expecting you.’
‘Besides,’ said Marlborough, ‘I’m not willing to let one of my most able officers fall into their hands. This requires thought.’
The three of them were in the captain general’s tent. Now that he was convinced of Amalia’s whereabouts, Daniel wanted to get to her as soon as possible. The others were more circumspect.
‘There may be another way out of this,’ suggested Cardonnel. ‘We could request that Miss Janssen is exchanged for one of our French prisoners.’
‘They’d never agree to that,’ said Daniel.
‘They might do if the request came directly from me,’ argued Marlborough. ‘And we do have some high-ranking officers in custody.’
‘It would be pointless even to make the offer, Your Grace. The only person for whom they’d exchange Amalia is me. It’s only a matter of time before they propose it.’
‘We can’t just surrender you, Daniel.’
‘You won’t have to — I’ll devise a plan.
Cardonnel was sceptical. ‘How can you rescue someone when she’s surrounded by a massive French army?’
‘There has to be a way.’
‘If anyone can find it,’ Marlborough commented, ‘then Daniel is the man to do it. On the other hand, this may pose rather more of a challenge than the Bastille. How many men will you need?’
‘I won’t need any, Your Grace.’
Marlborough gaped. ‘You’ll go alone?’
‘I went alone to Paris.’
‘That was different. You could hide among the civilian populace there. It won’t be so easy to get inside the French camp.’
‘I think it will,’ said Daniel, confidently. ‘Though he didn’t realise it, someone has given me a good idea how to go about it.’
‘Really?’ said Cardonnel. ‘Who was that?’
‘Ralph Higgins.’
Amalia was in despair. She wasn’t only afraid of what might happen to her. It was Daniel’s situation that troubled her even more. The love that had brought them together might well turn out to be fatal. She sensed that he couldn’t resist a rescue attempt and that a trap would be laid for him. One or both of them could be put to death. Amalia believed that she’d been safe in Amsterdam but war had suddenly taken on a frightening immediacy for her. She also feared for Beatrix and for her father. When she was hurled into the coach, Amalia had heard the scream of pain from her servant. Had Beatrix been badly hurt or even killed? Either way, Emanuel Janssen would be deeply upset but he’d reserve even more anxiety for his daughter. Amalia was his only child and, since his wife had passed away, he’d grown very close to her, cherishing her, nurturing her and planning for her future. She knew how mortified he’d be by the turn of events.