by Rebecca King
‘You saw what they were doing but you couldn’t either stop them from robbing us or follow them when they chased after us? They were right there in front of you,’ Clarissa cried, pointing to the dead man. She carefully ignored the fact that they had managed to kill one of the thieves.
‘Ma’am, in our defence, we couldn’t chase them through the open fields. It would be a fool’s game, even if we could catch them. They know the area, we don’t. It is dark. There are plenty of places to hide out in the fields,’ Morgan explained.
‘Are you afraid of being out in the dark by yourself?’ Clarissa taunted. ‘God, what kind of lawmen are you that you would watch someone get robbed and not do anything to stop it?’
‘We did do something,’ Elias replied with a nod at the corpse.
‘Well, he is going to tell you a lot about where they live, isn’t he?’ Clarissa snorted disparagingly. It annoyed her that she was so rattled by them all, yet they were completely unperturbed at finding a lady in her undergarments. They were chatting to her as if they had stopped to catch up by the side of the road and talking to her as if there was nothing unusual about her situation.
‘Where are you going?’ Zach asked hoping to dispel the brewing argument by nodding at the carriage and getting her to think of her journey rather than the Star Elite’s failings.
‘Oh, well, once I heard that we had highwaymen in the area, I thought we could take a nice, leisurely drive through the countryside, and put on a show for the world to see. I mean, I have nothing else to do with my life than sit out here all night in my undergarments,’ Clarissa replied sarcastically.
‘We were going home but then got accosted by the blighters,’ Frederick replied.
‘We have injured at least one of them,’ Zach informed the young woman. He kept looking at her because of the delightful vision she made despite being annoyed with them. ‘As my friend has just told you, we would have achieved extraordinarily little had we chased them. It is dark. If you had been able to avoid them in the carriage, they would have avoided us just as easily. We have the ability to follow their trail.’ He pointed to several spots of blood next to the corpse. He knew that he had shot at least one more of the highwaymen but wounded him so they would have a trail to follow. ‘We will find them,’ he assured her firmly.
Clarissa didn’t doubt that the man would. What concerned her the most was how many unfortunate souls had to suffer the indignity she had endured tonight before the Star Elite managed to catch up with the elusive highwaymen.
Which they don’t seem all that inclined to do. They appear to be paying us more attention than they are focusing on trying to catch criminals.
Aware that the mysterious rider’s gaze had dropped to her undergarments, barely visible beneath the billowing folds of the long cloak, Clarissa tugged the edges of the cloak together and held them at her neck as she glared angrily at him. He smiled as if finding her outrage amusing. Consequently, when she spoke to him her voice was icy with disdain.
‘They have been robbing people for weeks and you haven’t caught them yet, have you? Moreover, you had them right here, right in front of you, yet you couldn’t stop them from chasing us. If that wasn’t bad enough, you have just admitted to watching us being robbed yet you didn’t intervene. How did you know that they weren’t going to kill us?’
Zach mentally cursed. ‘Because the highwaymen have habitually killed their victims before they were robbed.’ He leaned forward in his saddle and squinted suspiciously at her but doubted she could see the changing expressions on his face because of his hat. ‘Now, do you care to tell me why they chose to spare you?’
‘Spare me?’ Clarissa cried. She glared at him and waved a hand at her attire. ‘Does it look like we have been spared to you?’
Zach shrugged. ‘You are alive, aren’t you?’
‘And likely to freeze to death if you don’t get out of our way!’ Clarissa snarled. ‘Now move. I am not going to sit here for another second discussing your failings with you while we freeze to death. Get out of our way at once!’
‘You cannot go anywhere, miss.’ To prove it, the man at the head of the horses grabbed the reins to stop her getting the carriage moving.
‘And why not?’ Clarissa demanded sternly. ‘I have done nothing wrong. I don’t see why I should be the one who is stopped from going about my business for a second time this evening while you allow the highwaymen to run rampant.’ She gathered the reins tighter. ‘We are not your prisoners. Now get out of my way.’
‘Miss, it is impossible for you to leave. You are going to have to stay with us,’ the man persisted.
‘We are going home,’ Clarissa snarled with more determination than ever.
In the back of her mind she began to wonder whether her initial judgement of these men had been right in that they were the real highwaymen. They knew that none of the carriage’s occupants had any valuables on them but couldn’t allow them to go on their way because they had seen the highwaymen. Despite not knowing who the real thieves were, Clarissa was determined that she wasn’t going to be robbed for a second time this evening, especially of her life.
‘We are not going anywhere with you, nor are we staying with you, not now, not ever. I don’t care what you want. Unless you can prove to us that you are Star Elite, I strongly recommend that you all get out of our way. We have done nothing to you. If you are Star Elite, you should be ashamed of yourselves for waylaying us like this when we have already been robbed and are ill prepared to stay outside. Regardless of what we are doing, you have two women in their undergarments yet you quite clearly expect us to linger here while you subject us to interrogation when we have already been subjected to one heinous crime tonight. How dare you be so despicable?’ she raged. ‘I shall be writing a strongly worded letter to the War Office over this. They are the ones who are supposedly in charge of the Star Elite. I think they should know about your ungentlemanly conduct, and how appallingly you treat the victims of real crime. If your behaviour toward us wasn’t bad enough, you had the highwaymen right in front of you yet you accost us in the street and carefully ignore our dire situation so you can waylay us even longer. You are all disgraceful. Now, you can either get out of our way or I am going to force you to move because we are not stopping here any longer.’ With that, Clarissa flicked the reins on the horses.
The rider holding the carriage horses steady was nearly unseated when the carriage suddenly jolted forward, and the stomping carriage horses began to trot. He cursed roundly and was forced to move to one side so his horse wasn’t hurt. Before he could try to grab the horses again, the carriage began to move down the street with more speed than was wise.
Clarissa wasted no time getting the carriage moving and threw the mysterious rider a filthy glare before she flicked the whip and guided the jolting carriage into a side road. Within minutes, the carriage had left the village and was racing through the darkened countryside once more. She braced her feet against the footboard to stay in her seat and allowed the horses to run. Thankfully, the moonlight had emerged from the thick overhanging clouds and lightened the inky night enough for her to see the road ahead, but even if she couldn’t have seen where she was going, the horses knew where they were. They had walked these roads every day for years and knew exactly where to find their stables and so needed little guidance through the winding country lanes.
When Clarissa flicked the whip again the horses readily complied and increased their pace. With each mile that passed, the horses ran faster. Clarissa checked the area behind her several times but couldn’t see anybody following them. Even so, she didn’t relax and enjoy the ride.
It wasn’t until they were a mile or so away from the village that she eventually noticed a rider following them. He was hanging back, staying within the darkest of the shadows, but was there.
‘Damn it.’ Clarissa knew that it was the mysterious stranger who had spoken to her earlier. He was riding through the countryside with a skill that was startling.
His horse, as black as he was, vaulted over the low stone walls bordering the fields with an ease that warned Clarissa that both man and horse would be difficult to shake off. Even so, Clarissa was determined to try.
‘What are you going to do?’ Frederick called when he felt the carriage increase in speed.
‘Find a way to lose them,’ Clarissa replied grimly. It took all her strength to keep the horses under control, and the carriage away from the low stone walls. Clarissa knew that if the wheels brushed against the walls they would be damaged and there would be a nasty carriage accident.
‘How?’ Frederick demanded. He cursed when he looked at the passing hedgerow and realised just how fast Clarissa was driving. ‘You need to slow down.’
‘I know what I am doing.’ Clarissa glanced at the rider who appeared beside her. He was waving frantically at her. While she couldn’t hear what he was shouting because of the loud rumbling of the carriage wheels, she knew that he wanted her to slow down. What he didn’t know was how well Clarissa knew these roads. She had been travelling them since she had been a young girl and knew them better than the roads where her father lived. About a quarter of a mile up ahead, there was a T-junction in the road. The road to the right would take her on a long, winding route back to Simmerton. The road to the left would take her straight home to Feckleham Hall, their destination.
But he doesn’t know that. He also doesn’t know that Farmer Henry has just ploughed the fields alongside the road leading to my house. It is going to be impossible for him to ride alongside us then.
With a spiteful smile, Clarissa turned her attention to the road and began to slow the horses down.
‘You could take the back route,’ Frederick suggested suddenly. ‘If you go through the main gates he will know where we live. We need to lose them in the countryside. If we can lose the highwaymen, we can lose that lot as well.’
Frederick leaned further out of the window to get a better look at his surroundings. He cursed fluidly and sighed when Rosamund emitted a squeal of dismay when she saw more than she ought to see. ‘Damn it, woman,’ he snarled, snatching up a shawl to wrap it tightly around his waist. ‘I don’t have time to pander to your delicate sensibilities. Look out of the other window.’
‘It’s not my fault,’ Rosamund wailed.
‘Look out of the other window then,’ Frederick snapped again with an angry glare.
‘Frederick?’ Clarissa cried desperately before the coachman could descend into an argument with Rosamund. ‘Where do you suggest?’
‘You could take the back route. The woods should help,’ Frederick offered. ‘You are going to have to drive more slowly but the noise of the carriage will be blocked by the trees and the softer ground. If you slow down there is less chance that they will be able to see us or hear us.’
Clarissa shook her head. ‘Won’t it be too wet to take the cart track? It rained yesterday.’
‘The only other way onto the estate is through the front gates. We have no proof that these blighters aren’t highwaymen and want to know where we live to pay us a visit later. They will be angry that one of them has been killed. I don’t want to frighten you, but they may want revenge. I don’t think it is a good idea that any of them know where we live, do you?’
‘No, I most certainly do not,’ Clarissa bit out.
‘We have to lose them. The only route we can take is the back route. Do you want me to drive?’
‘I can do it. I know the way,’ Clarissa said. She used the road on her morning rides on Horace.
With a route firmly planted in the back of her mind, Clarissa focused on getting enough distance between the carriage and the mystery riders as she could. As soon as she guided the carriage onto the road that would take them home to Feckleham Hall, she flicked the reins again. The horses began to canter when they recognised the road. The woods to the right of the road forced all the men into the fields on the left side of the road, all of which had recently been ploughed. The uneven surface made all the riders slow down and they quickly fell back and disappeared as they battled to get out of the field. Two of the Star Elite were determined enough to be able to stay directly behind the carriage, but the road wasn’t wide enough for them to pass so they had to follow.
‘You can’t outrun them,’ Frederick warned, trying to keep his voice low enough so that the riders couldn’t hear, but Clarissa could.
‘Do you have any ideas?’ Clarissa cried, struggling to keep control as the carriage swayed around another tight bend in the road.
‘Take the old track,’ Frederick growled.
‘But I have to slow down. How do we get rid of them?’ She glanced at the riders and suspected that they could hear what was being said.
To her disbelief, Frederick poked a gun out of the window and aimed it at the closest rider who immediately swerved to avoid being shot. When Frederick fired the weapon, the rider’s horse reared in protest. The rider was immediately plunged into a battle with his horse, which danced around in the road as it objected to being forced to run toward the danger rather than off into the night. Frederick reloaded his gun but when he pointed it out of the opposite window at the second rider, he saw that the horseman had jumped into the field and began to fall behind because of the uneven surface.
‘Right. Go,’ Frederick ordered, his voice laden with satisfaction.
Clarissa spied the gap in the stone wall up ahead. It was going to be impossible to get through it at speed. The only way to get the carriage through a ninety-degree turn was to slow it down to a walk, but thankfully the riders were still struggling through the ploughed field. She had a few precious moments before the horsemen regained control of their horses and could catch up.
‘Whoa there,’ she soothed, easing the horses onto the old track. It was barely visible in the darkness, but the horses picked a path along the hedgerow which led toward a large copse.
Determined to run for home, they tossed their heads and tried to run again but Clarissa held them back until the carriage was closer to the trees. Once she could be certain that they weren’t going to be dragged into the ploughed fields on either side of the track, Clarissa allowed the horses their heads.
‘Are you all right?’ Frederick called when Clarissa swore.
She was panting with the effort it took to keep the horses from galloping. Now that they knew they were nearly home they wanted to run, but the carriage was bouncing and jostling around so alarmingly that Clarissa knew it was dangerous to go any faster.
‘I am exhausted,’ she cried. She shook from head to toe and almost dreaded having to look over her shoulder for fear of seeing one of the mystery riders. ‘We are going to be in a lot of trouble if they are Star Elite.’
‘Do you think they are?’ Frederick snorted. ‘Don’t you think they are going to be in more trouble for not helping us? They are going to be scorned when people learn that they were there when we were robbed but did nothing to help us.’
‘Shush. They will hear you,’ Rosamund chided.
Clarissa slowed the carriage to a walk but only so she could listen for the noise of the riders. The only sound she could hear was the jangle of the carriage harnesses and her own heavy breathing. Her arms shook from the force of having to guide the headstrong horses for so long. She felt sick with nerves as she battled to quell the panic that threatened to overwhelm her. All sorts of thoughts flickered around in the back of her mind but she daren’t focus on any of them. For now, all she dared let herself think about was getting everyone home.
‘Where do I go?’ she called to Frederick when she saw the end of the cart track but could see nothing before them but hedgerow. ‘How do I get onto the back route?’
While she had ridden through the woods on many occasions on Horace, she knew the route through the trees wasn’t wide enough for the carriage.
‘Here, let me drive,’ Frederick grunted.
‘Ew!’ Rosamund wailed.
‘Oh, close your eyes,’ Frederick snorted.
&n
bsp; ‘I am,’ Rosamund snapped with a disgusted huff.
Frederick cursed and clambered down when Clarissa hauled the carriage to a stop. Clarissa quickly stood up and removed the wonderful warmth of the cloak. She held it out to Frederick while peering warily into the woodland beside her.
Frederick snatched the cloak off her and draped it around his shoulders before hauling himself into the driver’s seat. ‘Get inside,’ he ordered Clarissa.
‘I’m going to stay up here.’ She picked up the gun and lay it across her lap.
‘Let’s get home,’ Frederick murmured quietly. He flicked the reins and guided the carriage onto a new track with an expert ease that gave Clarissa the opportunity to take a good look at their surroundings.
‘Do you think they were Star Elite?’ she asked quietly.
Frederick didn’t answer for a moment. Clarissa looked sharply at him only for him to throw her a dark look.
‘I cannot see any credible lawman watching a group of highwaymen rob innocent travellers and not step in to do anything, can you?’ he murmured. ‘If that second group were real highwaymen, they knew it was useless to rob us because we have nothing.’
‘They were well spoken,’ Clarissa frowned.
‘Posh people can rob people just as easily as poor people can rob the poor. Remember that. Crime isn’t reserved for the poorer class of society. Everyone can commit crimes,’ Frederick warned.
Clarissa gasped when she saw shifting shadows inside the woods. ‘I think they are in there.’
‘Then we are going the other way. Do you see that gap between the woods and the hedgerow?’ Frederick murmured.
Clarissa studied it and nodded.
‘The highwaymen have to cross that and will be visible. Keep an eye out for any of them following us,’ Frederick muttered before flicking the horses into a trot.
Clarissa turned in her seat and kept her gaze trained on the woods. A worrying sense of disquiet settled about her that not just one or two of the horsemen had vanished, but all of them had simply disappeared the second the carriage had turned off the main road. Clarissa suspected that they had failed to outrun the horsemen, whoever they were. What concerned her now wasn’t just being able to get home safely, but if her home was now all that safe.