Having finally arrived, the two men weren’t in the least surprised to discover almost no passers-by in the streets at that early period of the small hours, but still they pressed on undeterred. Obviously searching for something in particular, they walked along, conversing quietly but intently with one another as if trying to determine which direction to walk or on which street corner to turn. Things went on like this for a short time until the pair happened upon a couple of drunkards stumbling around a corner from a cross street. They were almost comically striving with might and main to prop one another upright despite their mutual intoxication and lack of equilibrium, laughing ridiculously the entire time. These men were rough-looking and boorish, but appeared quite pleased and satisfied with the night’s bout of drinking and the lofty heights of insobriety to which it had taken them. Despite the threatening appearance of the pistols and knives they openly carried on their persons, t

“That’s the truly great part. While I can’t personally vouch for the fate of those people, I heard some terrific stories about what happened after we rescued them. Some were said to have stayed here on Martinique; can’t say I’ve ever met up with any of them since that day, though. Others supposedly made their way back out into the world, many with designs on furthering the Jacobite cause however possible. I heard that some of them traveled all the way to France, where they could more easily negotiate for the release of friends and family still imprisoned. It’s said more than a few continue to scheme and plot against the Hanoverian monarchy with the backing of French nobles. I’ve even heard that a handful of these people might actually have been brave enough to return to Britain or any of her colonies under assumed names to carry on the rebellion in other ways.”“The ripening fruit?” Brossard asked with more than a hint of cynicism.“Yes, exactly!” Rougebec answered as if never cogniza

It proved to be more than many of the knaves and blackguards in that establishment could ignore, and the majority quickly lost interest in the prospect of punishing the strangers so as to fight over their valuable coins. With a loud cacophony of shouts and yells that was horrible to hear, men were suddenly jostling, shoving, swinging and kicking to get at the treasure that had just been dropped before them. Others were rolling on the floor, wrestling and even biting for the chance to scoop up what they could.Brossard and Guiteau wasted no time in bolting for the door. After leaping over the bodies of several men who were wrangling with one another to get at the coins scattered about the wooden floor, they discovered that not quite everyone had been distracted by their desperate gamble. Brossard had to swing his pistol by the barrel and brain one onrushing assailant to get by him while Guiteau threw his shoulder into another, knocking him down to barge his way past. Then the wide door

“You’ve both performed superbly, as evidenced by the information with which you’ve returned. However, the problem we now face with the two of you being more recognizable to local inhabitants requires a form of mitigation. After some deliberation, I’ve decided that you are in fact quite right about the language difficulty inherent in sending other men. For that reason one of you – that is you Henry – will have to return. I am not unmindful of the dangers this entails, so it would be advisable for you to vary your attire and outward appearance as much as you can manage.”The two officers listened obediently, but their discomfiture with the new arrangement was palpable. Allison expected nothing less, and he went on to address the concerns that he knew troubled them.“William, you are by a wide margin the most experienced and practiced in these matters, but given the additional precautions I have decided to enact, your talents will be needed in a different capacity.”Allison now turned

Caldwell shook his head. “We can’t have more than three hours of darkness left to us at this point... but I’ll be buggered if I simply turn about and run off with our task undone. I couldn’t so much as face the Captain if we did that.” He then lifted his head and looked intently off into the darkness to the East.James grasped his thinking almost immediately and he didn’t like it one bit. “Oh... oh no! Not again! Henry, are you daft? I’d swear our last trip through the rills and ridges out there made me bleed far more than that splinter in the arm ever did!” He held out the still bandaged forearm to which he referred.“There’s no help for it, I’m afraid,” Caldwell told him. “Anyway, I do believe there’s another rise just east of here that will more than suit our purpose. It should be an easier ascent than the first ridge we scaled, at least at initially, and we should be able to move up onto higher ground by concealing ourselves on its southern slope and moving under the trees.” He r