Roswell escorted her to the carriage and assisted her in. Once she was situated on the bench, he claimed the seat next to her.
The carriage jerked forward and Anette placed her hand on the side of the coach to steady herself.
Octavia held the brim of her hat as she looked up at the sky. “It is a lovely day, is it not?”
“It is,” Mr. Barnard readily agreed.
Anette didn’t wish to talk about the weather, but as she tried to think of something clever to say, Roswell spoke up. “When do you return to the Continent?” he asked, directing his question to Mr. Barnard.
“Once my assignment has been concluded,” Mr. Barnard replied.
“When will that be?” Roswell pressed.
Mr. Barnard shrugged. “I’m not rightly sure.”
Roswell crossed his arms over his chest. “Surely Wellington is missing you.”
“I do not presume to know what Wellington is feeling,” Mr. Barnard said. “Besides, he is surrounded by his most trusted advisors.”
Octavia interjected, informing her, “Mr. Barnard is friends with my brother, Fredrick.”
Mr. Barnard bobbed his head. “When I defected from the French army, Fredrick was assigned to guard me until I could prove my allegiance to the British,” he explained.
“That must have been hard to turn your back on the French,” Anette remarked.
“It was a difficult decision, to be sure, but I could stay quiet no longer,” Mr. Barnard said. “The economy was in shambles, industry was declining and there were rising prices of bread. There were riots all over France, but we couldn’t garner enough support to revolt.”
“I daresay that England is in a similar situation,” Anette said. “Sadly, it is the poor that appear to have suffered the most from the war.”
“It always is,” Mr. Barnard agreed. “Once I was able to prove my loyalty to Wellington, he allowed me to fight alongside his troops. When Fredrick was injured—”
Octavia cut him off. “Fredrick was injured? How? When?” she asked, her voice panicked.
“He was shot in the shoulder, and spent many days in the infirmary,” Mr. Barnard explained. “The surgeon wasn’t sure if he was going to make it, but he underestimated how stubborn your brother was.”
“That sounds like my brother,” Roswell muttered.
Mr. Barnard grew solemn. “I owed your brother a great debt so I stayed by his side until he recovered. Fredrick took the bullet that was meant for me. He shoved me out of the way, putting himself in harm’s way.”
“I am glad that you are both all right,” Octavia said.
“As am I,” Mr. Barnard responded. “Despite us being friends, Fredrick never told me who he truly was until I was to depart for this assignment. I had no idea that he was the eldest son of a marquess.”
“Would that have made a difference?” Roswell asked.
“Not at all. In fact, I have even more respect for Fredrick now,” Mr. Barnard replied. “He left his life of leisure to fight for what he truly believes in.”
Octavia pointed towards a rider in the distance. “Is that Caleb?” she asked. “Why is he following us?”
Anette turned her head and caught her brother’s eye. “He is just ensuring that I am safe,” she explained.
“Do you truly think someone would attempt to abduct you in Hyde Park?” Octavia asked.
“I certainly hope not,” Anette replied. “But my brother is just overly cautious, given the circumstances.”
Octavia shifted her gaze towards Mr. Barnard and explained, “Someone attempted to abduct Anette from Vauxhall Gardens a few days ago.”
“Were you alone?” Mr. Barnard asked.
