Fredrick approached them and met Anette’s gaze. “Thank you for saving my life.”
Anette’s eyes darted towards Mr. Barnard’s body on the ground and her eyes held a sadness to them. “If I hadn’t shot him, then I know someone else would have.”
“That doesn’t diminish what you did,” Fredrick replied.
“I didn’t mean to kill him.”
Fredrick’s eyes crinkled around the edges. “I know, which makes what you did that much more heroic.”
Roswell didn’t like how Fredrick looked at Anette. It was with admiration and a newfound respect.
“I am no hero, my lord,” Anette said.
“It is Fredrick, if you don’t mind,” he replied, “and I do believe you are selling yourself short.”
Octavia ran over to Fredrick and threw her arms around him. “I am so glad that you are here and that you came to save us!”
Fredrick returned the embrace before he addressed Roswell. “If you don’t mind me asking, what was your plan, Brother?”
Roswell gave a slight wince. “It kind of unraveled when I discovered Mr. Barnard wasn’t who he claimed to be.”
“That was careless of you,” Fredrick admonished. “It is a good thing that we were here to save the day.”
“It was,” Octavia readily agreed.
Caleb approached the group and held his bound hands up. “Can someone help me with these?” he asked.
Octavia held up a rusty nail. “I can help you.”
“Where did you get the nail?” Fredrick asked.
“It was the only weapon that I could grab on such short notice,” Octavia explained as she went to help Caleb.
Roswell watched as one of the agents forcefully led an injured Mr. Wilson out the door. “I will never understand why Wilson turned on his country.”
“Greed is a powerful incentive,” Fredrick remarked.
Kendrick approached the group and shared, “It shouldn’t have gotten as far as it did with Wilson. I started suspecting him when coded documents went missing. I just didn’t want to believe he was capable of such underhandedness.”
Turning towards the ladies, Kendrick continued. “You have my deepest apologies for what has transpired and I assure you that you are safe now.”
Octavia had a mischievous gleam in her eyes as she remarked, “Now that it is all over, I have to admit that it was rather exciting.”
Kendrick chuckled. “It can be rather addicting, I’m afraid.”
“Can I be a spy?” Octavia asked. “I’m sure there is some training to it, but I am up for it.”
The smile left Kendrick’s face. “Perhaps we take one day at a time.”
Fredrick placed a hand on his sister’s shoulder. “I forbid you from becoming a spy,” he said in a firm tone.
“That was the wrong thing to say to her,” Roswell muttered.
Octavia brushed off Fredrick’s hand. “I daresay you are worried that I will make a better spy than you.”
“Why would you think I was a spy?” Fredrick asked.
“Come now, you do not think I am truly that naïve,” Octavia replied. “I must surmise that is why Mr. Barnard hated you as much as he did.”
