“You seek to betray me. Just like Marec and his men. Get out of my sight.”
Gus stood stunned. This was not the Armand La Roche he had known for many years. The man who had laughed as he helped to row brandy out to theNight Windin the middle of a raging storm when it was too dangerous to attempt to come up the Gouët river.
A tearful and chastised Evangeline quickly fled the room, closing the door loudly behind her.
Armand huffed, raking his fingers through his salt and pepper flecked hair.
“Armand, she . . .”
“I know.” He held up a hand, stopping Gus from finishing what he was about to say.
The angry, manic expression disappeared from Armand’s face, replaced by something close to sadness. “I didn’t want you to come to France because I need somewhere to send Evangeline. My plan was to put her on a boat to England. To send her to you.”
You could have knocked Gus down with a feather. This was not anything he had ever considered. “But you could send her to Paris. To your son, Louis.”
Armand shook his head. “Paris is a long way from here. She would never make it that far. Marec is a more determined and dangerous man that you realize. He and Evangeline were friends once. But she has crossed him one too many times. If I lose the war against him, he will come for her.”
Come for her?
That could mean a number of different things, all of which Gus feared.
“What are you not telling me?” he replied.
“Marec has threatened me with exposure to the authorities in Paris. If I don’t hand the château over to him, he says he will bring charges of sedition and consorting with the enemy against me.”
France and England had still been at war when the rogues of the road and Armand had first struck up their bargain to move contraband between the two countries. The money-making enterprise could be seen by some as treason. The penalty for those found guilty, death.
Many people on both sides of the English Channel had been involved in smuggling goods during the long hostilities. All knew the risk they were taking. A shilling here, a franc there had kept palms greased and lips shut. But there was always the chance of betrayal.
Armand will kill himself rather than be arrested.
“Marec wants me to break any agreements that you and I have. He will forge new ones with his other partners. We are to be cut out of the smuggling trade along this part of the coast.”
The news of Marec pushing to take over the operations was of little surprise to Gus. The past year had seen many new players enter the smuggling business; things were getting crowded. Trade was still lucrative for those who could manage the means of supply and distribution. The RR Coaching Company and the La Roche family ran a reliable operation.
“Well, that’s what Marec thinks is going to happen. I sent word offering to meet with him here later this week. The arrogant fool will probably expect me just to hand over the keys to my home and stroll out the front door. He is going to be in for a nasty surprise,” snorted Armand.
Gus finally got his first glimpse of what Evangeline had been talking about. Armand was up to something big, and he didn’t want anyone else knowing about his plans.
He narrowed his eyes at the Frenchman. He was determined to get answers. “What are you planning? It is bad enough that you are hurting Evangeline in the name of keeping her safe. But, Armand, you can’t do that with me.”
What he really wanted to say was that Evangeline was not a little girl and shouldn’t be kept in the dark, but an argument with his old friend wouldn’t solve anything.
“Please. Let me help you.”
Armand scrubbed at his face with his hands. He oozed fear and irritability. From the bags under his eyes, Gus hazarded a guess that the Frenchman had not seen a decent night’s sleep in quite some time.
“Thank you, my friend, but this is my war not yours. You shouldn’t have to risk your life for me.”
“I want to help.”
“Alright,” Armand sighed. “I am to meet with Marec later in the week. Perhaps he might have second thoughts if you are standing alongside me. In the meantime, you can be of use. If you could take theNight Windup the coast to Binic and pick up a shipment of brandy tomorrow, I would be most grateful. Marec has made things difficult dealing directly with the merchants in Lamballe, so I have had to make some changes. Do you know Binic?”
“I have sailed past it many times. It’s only a short way up the coast from Saint-Brieuc.”
Armand gave the merest of nods.
Gus wasn’t going to make mention that not only did he know the village of Binic well, having slipped ashore there a number of times during the war, but that he and Captain Grey had already agreed to send theNight Windthere if things went awry in the fight against Vincent Marec and his men.
