Honour and the Sword by A. L. Berridge

Author:A. L. Berridge
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
ISBN: 9780141941691
Publisher: Penguin Adult
Published: 2009-11-06T00:00:00+00:00

Colin Lefebvre

News had gone ahead with the signal team, men rushing out all over when we got back, eager to see who’d made it and who hadn’t. They fell back smart enough when they saw the look on Jacques’ face, then Ravel coming up slowly at the rear with our Seigneur in his arms. Knew what was up then all right, and the silence we rode into was thick as fog. Men took off their hats in respect.

That set old Jacques off again straightaway. ‘He’s not dead,’ he said, ‘he’s only wounded, isn’t he, Stefan?’ True enough in its way, Seigneur was stirring as they lifted him down, but Ravel said ‘He’s shot in the back, what do you think I can do?’ Then Jacques shouted. ‘I don’t know,’ he was shouting. ‘Whatever it is, just bloody do it.’

Poor old Jacques. I tried to explain to people they’d got to make allowances, right, it was the whole of his future he was looking at losing, his whole life wrapped up in that bundle Ravel was carrying into the Hermitage, small wonder he was upset. Leroux gave me a nasty look at that, but then he’d no sensitivity, Leroux. Man’s got to defend his friends, and me and Jacques went back a long way.

Other things on people’s minds too, and as evening drew on a few of us took cider into the outhouse to talk things through. Fact is, look at it how you like, the dons were lying in wait. They knew we were coming, and what we wanted to know was how. Seemed to me we’d got a traitor somewhere, and not far to look for him neither, not with young Pepin out on his first ever action, not to mention him being dark and swarthy as he was, might be gypsy, might be Spaniard for all we knew, and no one with the smallest idea where he’d sprung from.

Leroux flushed right up at that. Said there was no way the kid informed, he saved the lot of them, not to mention being in danger himself throughout. Said if we’d got a traitor at all it was more likely someone safe on the other side of the road, maybe someone doing business with the dons on their own account. Now I wasn’t having that, not taking that from anyone, and things were looking to get nasty when suddenly there’s a shadow at the door, and Ravel himself standing watching us. Didn’t say a word, just stood in silence and took out his smelly old pipe. Made everyone very tense.

‘Well?’ said Leroux.

Ravel fumbled out his tinder box. ‘Libert’s all right. Two balls I’ve taken out of him, and he’s sitting up drinking soup, man’s not human. Rouet’s fine, chipped ribs, that’s all.’

‘And André?’ said Leroux bluntly. ‘Is he dead?’

‘Not yet,’ said Ravel bitterly. He lit his box, sending a great shower of sparks flying off into the dark. ‘Not yet.’

We all felt more subdued after that. Leroux said wearily ‘There is no traitor, Lefebvre, not a man among us would risk André.

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