She coloured, looked quickly away from him, and stammered, `I . . . I'd rather not talk about last night. I mean about . . . about what occurred between us. Although my memory of it is a bit blurred now, I know that I behaved abominably. I feel terribly ashamed.'
`You needn't be.' He smiled, cutting her short. `You were really very sweet once we had settled down in the summer house.'
`It was you who were sweet to me. You said you loved me, and I shall never forget that.' Her words came out in a rush now. `I know you don't really, and that you probably said it only to comfort me, but please don't admit it, or protest that you do, out of kindness. You see, you may have really meant it just for that brief time. Anyhow, I'd like to believe so, because it will be a lovely memory to take away with me.'
`Take away!' he echoed. `What on earth are you talking about?'
She extended her hand again. `That is why I want you to have back your ring. I'll have no more use for it now, even for make believe. I thought it all out while we were dozing early this morning. I have repaid your mother's kindness by causing her a night of desperate anxiety about you, and I brought you into a situation where you might have lost your life, or anyhow have been seriously injured. That isn't right. This horrible affair is a matter for myself and my father. If anyone is responsible for me, it is he; so I have decided that the time has come when I must disobey his orders. I am going back to join him in England.'
13
Prison for One
`You can't do that,' John said quickly. `He brought you out here to keep you out of danger.'
Christina nodded. `I know that was his idea; but it has failed. The danger has caught up with me just the same. As soon as our secret enemies discovered my hiding place his plan broke down; so there is no point in my staying here any longer.'
`Oh, yes there is. For some reason we can't yet guess at, they want to get you back to England. To go there would be to play into their hands.'
`You may be right about that, but there is a chance that when Father knows what has happened he may be able to think of a new plan to foil them. Anyhow, I have caused your mother and you more than enough trouble already. You've both been wonderful to me; but I can't let things go on like this. If Father is in no position to help me I’ll go into hiding somewhere and face what is coming on my own.'
`No you won't ! I won't let you.'
`John, I've made up my mind about this, and I am in my right senses now. Please take off your ring.'
He shook his head. `Nothing doing, my dear. While you were distraught last night you declared that it bound you to me. As far as you are concerned I am on the side of the angels, and if you felt that so strongly even in the dark hours, it is a symbol that you cannot yet afford to do with out. So you are going to stay bound to me until we have seen this business through. Afterwards you can give it back to me if you like.'
`All right then,' she sighed. `I'll keep your ring. But that doesn't alter what I said about going back to England.'
`We'll talk about that over breakfast,' he hedged. Then with a sudden grin he held out his arms. `In the meantime you continue to be my fiancée; so come and give me a kiss.'
Her big brown eyes were full of tears as she put up her hands, took his face between them, and said, `Very well then; but this is good bye.'
`No it isn't, silly,' he smiled. `It is only good morning.'
As they kissed another knock came on the door, and `Madame's' voice called, `Breakfast will be ready in about five minutes, Monsieur.'
'Merci, Madame,' he called back, and they broke their embrace; but, seeing that her left hand had made the right side of his face soapy, Christina picked up a towel and began gently to wipe it. As she did so, she murmured
`What a good thing that I didn't mess up the other side. Your poor eye still looks awfully tender.'
`If it is not too repulsive a sight, a kiss on it might help to make it well,' he suggested.
As soon as he had spoken he regretted his words. Christina went scarlet, exclaimed, `How horrid of you to make me remember!' and throwing down the towel, ran limping from the room.
Down on the terrace he found his mother, C. B. and Malouet already assembled; but it was some time before Christina joined them, and when she did he saw that she had been crying. During the first part of the meal she was very silent; then gradually she seemed to forget the episode that had caused her such distress, and responded more readily to the questions Malouet put to her.
Although the previous afternoon now seemed days away to all of them, it was not yet twenty four hours since C. B. had left London, and so far he had had no opportunity to hear Christina's own version of her story; so when the meal was finished he asked her, for his own benefit as well as Malouet's, to tell them all she could about her life from the beginning.
It took her the best part of an hour, and while there was
nothing new to Molly and John in her account, when she had done both the old Frenchman and C. B. agreed with their view, that she was suffering from possession. As John had expected, none of the others would listen to her when she announced that she had decided to return to England; so he felt that he could leave it to their united firmness to dissuade her. They all pointed out in turn that the worst that was likely to happen to her while she remained in France was that the de Grasses might yet succeed in kidnapping her; whereas a far graver danger would threaten her once she had crossed the channel; so it would be absurd for her to go to meet it voluntarily, when they might be able to save her from it altogether.
As she proved very stubborn, a prolonged wrangle ensued, but eventually their various arguments based on the same theme took effect and she agreed to stay on, at least until after the 6th, which appeared to be the target date for whatever was being hatched against her.
However, out of her wish not to expose her friends to further trouble and danger, one new factor of considerable importance had arisen. Previously she had been adamant in her determination that her father should not be informed of what was happening to her, in case any communication by her should jeopardize his own plans; whereas now she had conceded that he was ultimately responsible for her safety as well as his own, and had proposed to go home and tell him what had happened herself. From this it followed that she no longer had any real grounds for objecting to anyone else doing so.
At first she protested, but both Malouet and C. B. pointed out that her father alone held the key to the mystery that surrounded her, and that it was not only unreasonable, but now also illogical, for her to insist on their fighting her battle for her in the dark. C. B. proposed that he should return to England that afternoon, and on his promising to use the utmost discretion in getting in touch with her father, she was persuaded to agree.
The next question was how best to protect her from further attempts by the de Grasses to get hold of her until C. B. returned and, having found out what they were really up against, some new plan could be made.
`Couldn't we stymie the de Grasses by bringing an action against them for kidnapping and assault?' Molly asked.
Malouet shook his head. `I would not advise it, Madame. That is why, having made use of our good friend Sergeant Bouvet, I temporized with, and got rid of, him. Mademoiselle went on board the yacht willingly .and your son clandestinely. Although they were both forcibly detained later, you may be sure that none of the crew would give evidence to that effect. There is the fact, too, that your son knocked out one of the officers who was quite rightly asking what business he had on board. That renders his position most precarious, and would certainly lead to a counter prosecution if we started anything. They are very averse to having the police enquire into their affairs; so I think it most unlikely they will bring an action against him. On the other hand, I am equally strongly of the opinion that he may get into serious trouble unless we let sleeping dogs lie.'