The determined expression on Gus’s face told her she wasn’t going to sway him from his demands. “Paris it is then, but we go today. As soon as Jodoc and you are able to get Gobain ready, we should leave.”
She was tired and wrung out. The prospect of a long sleep in one of the beds upstairs whispered sweetly in her ear, testing her resolve. It would be so easy to give in and find rest.
By remaining here, she was putting Jodoc and his family at grave risk. They were good people; they didn’t deserve to get dragged into the mess she had created. Vincent’s men would be on the hunt for her today. In the daylight they would be sure to make ground.
If she was going to have to stand and fight them, it most certainly shouldn’t be here. Downing the last of her coffee, Evangeline got to her feet. She stared Gus down. Two could play at the game of stubborn wills. Years of negotiating with smugglers and brigands over contraband had taught her well. “We leave for Paris, and you are not in charge. This is my country; I make the rules.”
He followed her out to the stables, his soft laughter still ringing in her ears.
Chapter Nineteen
Jodoc made his protests loud and clear. Evangeline was in no condition to be undertaking the long journey to Paris. He even offered for her to come and live at his house. It was no surprise when his generosity was politely refused. She could be stubborn.
Having an iron will, can be a good thing, but in some situations, you have to yield. Bend not break.
Gus wisely stayed out of the argument. He was saving himself for more strategic battles farther down the road. Two hundred and seventy miles with Evangeline wasn’t going to be easy.
She was stubborn, yes, but no more than he was. Of greater concern was her lack of tears over Armand. Gus suspected she was still in some form of shock. He had to be there for Evangeline when the dam finally broke. If their relationship was already fractured by dissent, it would make his job all that more difficult.
He was still trying to come to terms with the nature of their relationship. And while Armand had said he wished for Gus and Evangeline to marry, had that really been what he wanted? Getting her to safety may well have been his true motivation. But Gus understood the societal expectations of both France and England. As a gentleman, he would be compelled to offer Evangeline the protection of marriage.
An English smuggler might not have been Armand’s first choice of husband for his niece, but he had little choice.
Mid-morning, they set out from the house. Gus huffed as Evangeline pointed her horse’s head toward the north. And while he didn’t know the country that well, Jodoc’s map had given him somewhat of an idea as to where the major towns were and also the general direction in which one had to travel in order to find Paris.
He dug his heels into his mount and caught up with her. “Why are we going this way and not back toward the road leading from Saint-Brieuc? It seems a much more direct route.”
She gave him a haughty glare. “As I told you, Dinan is our destination. After there we will travel across country and meet with the main road which leads to Paris. I am not going anywhere near Lamballe. After the events of yesterday, can you just imagine the reception we would receive?”
Gus gave a brief nod, but he still wasn’t convinced. If he was Vincent Marec and a well-respected local gentleman had died in his presence, he would be keeping a very low profile. Biding his time until he could safely move to seize Château-de-La-Roche.
But Evangeline would know this, so her reasons for making them travel the narrow back roads to Dinan didn’t quite make sense.
She is hiding something.
Secrets were one thing. He and the rest of the rogues of the road traded in them. It was the unknown and unexpected that had a nasty habit of sneaking up on a chap.
And putting a shot in him.
He rubbed at the sore spot on his upper chest. Just the thought of that day in the woods below the château had his wound giving him trouble. He hadn’t seen Marec’s man until it was too late. “I think Vincent will have other problems to worry about right at this minute. But if you are determined to go this way, we will. Can we at least discuss the planned route once we get into Dinan tonight?” he replied.
Following behind her on his horse, Gus got a clear view of Evangeline throwing her head back in obvious frustration. “Yes, alright. We can talk tonight. Once we find somewhere to stay. I, for one, would love a bed and a long soak in a bath.”
Gus let the argument drop. The thought of their travel and accommodation arrangements suddenly presented a larger, more pressing problem. One he hadn’t thought of until now. How were they going to present themselves when they reached any of the towns en route to Paris? An unwed couple sharing a room would not pass muster.
We could pretend to be man and wife.
The thought pulled Gus up sharp. They were currently headed to Paris, but nothing was certain. And who knew what lay ahead for Evangeline at the end of that long road if they even made it?
He had a horrible suspicion that Louis La Roche wouldn’t be welcoming his penniless cousin with open arms. Someone had to be there for her when she realized that the only thing waiting for them in the French capital was more bitter disappointment.
Gus wanted to be the one she could turn to for comfort.
If Louis cannot help, she will be left with few options. Whatever money he gives her will eventually run out. What skills does a noblewoman smuggler have to offer?
He would be damned if Evangeline was going to end up working as a servant, or worse still, forced to marry some stranger in order to put a roof over her head.
The future they were both headed toward was unknown. With luck, the next few days would bring some answers. He needed a plan in place for when they eventually reached Paris. One which Evangeline could accept.
