After the retreat from Moscow he had been listed as 'missing, believed killed', but while in Paris the previous August he had had his name restored to the pay roll and now had considerable arrears owing to him. Not expecting to be in Paris again until after a peace had been agreed, he drew the whole sum, partly in gold for current purposes, but the bulk in bills of exchange.
Having learned that the Emperor was not in the capital but making a tour of the principal provincial cities to encourage, by showing himself, more ex-soldiers to rejoin the colours, Roger was in no danger of again being caught up in his web, so he decided that as Charles had never before been in Paris, he would remain there for a few days, to show the young man something of the city.
During the past twenty-five years Roger had lived there for so many months that Charles could not have had a better guide; and, now that he and Roger had become boon companions, he immensely enjoyed going with him to the Louvre, to Notre Dame, the Sainte Chapel, the site where the guillotine had stood, and driving out to St. Cloud and Versailles.
It was on the evening of December 30th that Roger told Talleyrand that, greatly as they had enjoyed their stay, he and Charles must now make their way home, and that he proposed to set out on the following day.
The Prince expressed great surprise at this and exclaimed, 'Mais non! Cher ami, how can you even think of leaving Paris now? For many years happenings in France have been the great interest in your life. You witnessed the rise of Bonaparte; surely you do not mean to forgo being present at the tyrant's fall ?'
Roger smiled. 'It will be a great day, Highness, and I'll regret to miss it. Indeed, I'd happily stay on here could it be anticipated in the course of the next few weeks. But that is more than we can hope for. It is your own opinion, and endorsed by many of the prominent men I have talked with while a guest here at your lavish table, that the new army, containing so many tough old soldiers, will put up a most desperate resistance when the Allies invade France. Unless the Emperor agrees to accept humiliating terms—which we both consider unlikely—it will be many months before he can be crushed by sheer weight of numbers.'
'That I admit. But even so you should remain. You are unique in being known and trusted by many men of importance in both camps; so, as a go-between for myself, you could be of immense help in bringing about a cessation of hostilities.'
'No, Highness. In such a way I could be of little use to you. When the Emperor returns to Paris, it is certain he will learn that I am here, so I could not avoid reporting to him. In this past year he has lost so many of his old intimates who knew his ways, that he will instantly seize upon me and require me to accompany him to the front. I've had more than my share of luck in having lived through so many dangers, and I'm determined not to risk death now in further battles.'
'You would have no need to do so. I am happy to know that you are now nearly recovered from your wound, and that it has left you with nothing worse than a limp. But Napoleon is not aware of that. An A.D.C. who cannot ride a horse is of little use in the field. You could easily excuse yourself from further service by pretending to be severely crippled, and your health seriously affected; then remain on here in Paris with me.'
Again Roger shook his head. 'The excuse you suggest might be accepted, but I'll not risk it. I could be useful to him in so many ways that the odds are he would insist on forcing me into some employment. Besides, I am anxious to get Charles home and so put an end to his dear mother's anxiety about his still being alive.'
The Prince shrugged. 'I'll say no more then. How do you propose to get back to England?'
‘I hope, as I have done many times before, to find some smuggler along the coast who will run us over.'
'You'll not find that so easy as you did in the past. Now that the Allies are closing in about us it is feared that the English might attempt to land an army in Normandy or Brittany, so the coast is much more carefully guarded’
'Sir,' Charles addressed Roger. 'I did not put on a uniform merely to strut about in it, but to play my part on active service. It was my intention when we reached England to sail again as soon as possible, in order to rejoin His Grace of Wellington's army. There is an alternative, though. Why should we not travel south direct to it ? That would save me the voyage from England to Spain, and you would have no need to risk yourself with a smuggler. You could go home in safety and comfort in one of our ships sailing from a Spanish port.'
Roger considered for only a moment, then he smiled. 'Charles, you have something there. It is an excellent idea.'
So the matter was settled. Two days later, on New Year's Day 1814, they left Paris in a comfortable travelling coach, generously provided by Talleyrand who, when they took leave of him, handed Roger a letter which he asked him to deliver to Wellington.
They made the journey through France without incident, and on January 11th reached Bayonne, which was now actually in the battle zone. There they put up at a modest hostelry and next morning, having given Talleyrand's coachman a handsome pourboire, Roger sent him back to Paris with the coach. He then bought two good horses and, with their portmanteaux strapped to the backs of their saddles, they took the road east to Bidache.
From time to time Roger had heard news of the war in the south and, as he had expected, Marshal Soult had proved a much more redoubtable opponent than had King Joseph and Jourdan. During the late summer Wellington had driven the French back across the Pyrenees with a loss of ten thousand men, but his advance had then been badly held up by the fortresses of San Sebastian and Pamplona. It was not until the end of the first week in October that he had been able to plant the British flag on French soil, and he had then had to force the line of the river Bidassoa, which Soult had fortified with a chain of strong redoubts.
From there the French had fallen back on a still stronger line along the river Nivelle. It ran through very rugged country which greatly favoured the defence, and during the whole of November the weather had been appalling, which further hampered offensive operations; so it was not until the 10th that, after many desperate assaults, the enemy had been driven from it. Soult had then retired to the river Nive at the mouth of which lay die great fortress of Bayonne. This had placed Wellington at a strategic disadvantage because, further inland, his army was divided by the river into two parts. The able Soult had first concentrated his army on the west bank, hoping to defeat that half of the British force. Failing in that, he had transferred his troops to the east bank and endeavoured to overwhelm the one British and one Portuguese division there under the command of Sir Rowland Hill; but again he had been defeated. By December 13th the whole of Soult's army had been driven back and taken refuge among the ring of forts surrounding Bayonne.
On the evening of their arrival in the city and during the night, Roger and Charles frequently heard the sound of cannon as the British bombarded the forts to the south of Bayonne and the forts returning the fire. It was not until they had ridden several miles along the road inland that the sounds of battle faded in the distance. At an easy pace they covered the twenty miles to Bidache and Roger was
greatly relieved to find that now, ten weeks after the last operation on his leg, riding did not pain or unduly tire him.
They had a meal at an inn in Bidache, and rested for a couple of hours. The little town lay on the fringe of the foothills of the Pyrenees, and that afternoon they took the road south toward the mountains. By making a big detour they had skirted right round the area in which there was fighting, so had seen only a few French troops escorting wagons. Evening found them in deserted, wooded country, some miles south of St. Palais. Noticing a small cave in a ridge of rocks a hundred yards or so off the track, they decided that it would be a good place to pass the night.