For Love Alone (A New Adventure Begins - Star Elite 8)

‘I hope he is. He will realise that nobody is above the law in this country,’ Phillip replied.

‘What were you doing in Cliff House?.’

Phillip stopped walking and turned to face her. ‘I was involved in the gun battle. I was pinned down and had men coming at me from all directions. If I had stayed where I was I would have died. The only route out of the place I was hiding in was via the sea. I ran for my life but was scratched by a bullet or two before I jumped in. I swam to safety. Thankfully, the tide didn’t carry me out to sea. I was lucky enough to make it to the beach just down from Windwidger. At the time, I had no idea that Smidgley had somehow fallen or jumped into the sea as well and had ended up on the same beach. I had no idea that he had even survived the gunfight. More importantly, I don’t know if any of my colleagues survived. The last I saw of them they were being over-run by Smidgley’s men. It was brutal; by far the worst gunfight I have been in since the war. What I do know is that when I left that harbour last night I left seven very good men, good friends, behind me.’

‘Let’s go and find the horses,’ she murmured.

Phillip took her hand in his and together they resumed their march through the village. He expected her to ask him more questions. Instead, she remained quiet yet thoughtful. She seemed to sense that he didn’t want to talk. She had picked up on the tension that thrummed through him and had decided to let him contemplate what he wanted to do.

‘Do you want to go and look at the harbour?’ she whispered when they arrived at the top of one of the roads leading down to the boats. She could see several still bobbing in the water. ‘Your friends might be there.’

‘I doubt the bodies will still be there if they died,’ Phillip replied sadly.

He remained tense and nervous as they crossed the road and entered a narrow alley running along the back of the shops on the main street. At the far end of it, they found a narrow cart track that led toward a small copse and open fields beyond it.

‘Damn,’ he whispered when they entered the copse and saw the horses still tethered to the trees the men had tied them to last night. His heart sank to his toes. All he could do was stare at them for several moments and try to steady his rocking world. He had never been more stunned in his life. It was difficult to know what to do; to say; to think.

Carlotta slid her hand into Phillip’s and stood shoulder to shoulder with him while she studied the horses. Half of them were waiting patiently to be released. The others appeared to have gone to sleep, their heads lowered, one hoof resting at an angle.

Phillip ran a hand down his face and forced himself to focus on the practicalities of the situation.

‘Might there be another reason why they are here? I mean, does it look like any of them might have been used and brought back here since last night? Would your colleagues have then ridden them back here to come and look for you?’

‘They don’t look like they have been moved,’ Phillip replied. ‘They are exactly as we left them. Callum left his at the end of the line. Jasper was beside him. They are all here. All in the same place.’

‘Do you want to wander around the village? You may be able to see them, or they might see you and come and find you.’ Carlotta stepped toward him. Her eyes were gentle when she met his stunned gaze. ‘It might help if we try to find out where they have put the bodies. You need to look for them.’

‘Let’s go,’ Carlotta urged when it became apparent that Phillip was lost in his thoughts. She steered him back toward the village, to the harbour at the bottom of the hill.

As they walked they both studied the bullet holes in the walls of the properties they passed. The fishing boats bobbed about in the harbour as they usually would. It was only closer inspection of them that revealed the shattered windows and holes in the hulls which made them unseaworthy. Men were already removing the damage, but it was going to be many days before all the boats were repaired. It was going to be far longer before the village returned to normal.

Carlotta took one look at the otherwise too quiet and calm harbour and knew the bodies had gone. ‘Wait here.’

‘Carlotta,’ Phillip growled but it was too late. She was striding toward the closest fishing boat upon which an old fisherman was coiling some rope.

Phillip studied the harbour; the places where he knew his colleagues had been hiding last night. In fact, now that he came to contemplate where he was he realised that he was in the same place where Oliver had been fighting last night. The house he had fallen into was now closed. The damaged door barred by a large piece of wood. Even from the other side of the harbour, Phillip could see the bullet holes, the small round flashes of sunlight, in the dark wooden walls of the large warehouse he had been hiding in. Now that he could see the damage in broad daylight he had to wonder how he had managed to survive. It was a stark warning that he should expect the worst because his colleagues had taken up positions that had made them more vulnerable than he had been.

I had the sea right next to me I could jump into. They didn’t.

Carlotta approached the fishing vessel and did her best to look distraught. ‘Please, sir?’ she called to the fisherman. He immediately stopped coiling the rope in his hand and turned to scowl at her. His boat didn’t seem as damaged as the others in the harbour, but that didn’t mean he was any more approachable. ‘I think my husband was in the skirmish here last night. He works with the magistrate. Have you seen the magistrate? Do you know where the bodies of his men might be?’ She batted her eyelashes and pretended to dab at her eyes.

The man frowned. ‘The dead have been taken to the church. The thugs the magistrate’s men were fighting have all be taken by this tall fella. No idea who he is. He said the criminals had to be identified and that they couldn’t be touched. You will need to go and talk to the vicar.’

Carlotta thanked the man and hurried back to the alley. When she reached Phillip, she turned him away from the harbour and deeper into the shadows of the alley.

It was then that he stopped her and hauled her into his arms. Carlotta knew she didn’t need to ask him if he was all right. She doubted he would be until he found out about his friends.

‘We have to go,’ she whispered reluctantly.

Stepping back to look up at him, their gazes met. Without hesitation, she gave him the comfort his eyes pleaded for. He never said a word but in that moment he looked so vulnerable, Carlotta had no hesitation stepping toward him and pressing a kiss to his lips. She had no idea why she did it. It was a terribly bold thing for her to do. It also was a natural thing to do. She couldn’t imagine ever doing it with anybody else. Passion wasn’t what compelled her to kiss him. It was the need to offer him comfort; physical contact; a gentle touch; a sweep of reassurance that she was there for him. She wanted him to know that she would do what she could to help him. That was supported by the embrace she wrapped him in.

Phillip lowered his head to her shoulder and savoured the moment. He had never experienced anything like this before. It was humbling that, despite her problems, she was there for him. That was what her embrace told him. It was comfort. Support. Affection. That brought forth a deep and abiding respect for her. Despite his fear for his friends, Phillip felt something warm and rather wonderful start to build deep within his chest. He struggled to know what it was because it was something he had never felt before. Further, it was difficult to understand given the other emotions he was battling. What he knew was that within his turmoil, that one feeling, that one softer emotion took root and remained solid. It was his anchor, his strength, his determination. It created a rope, a cord that kept him calm and made him strong enough to face the problems that challenged him. It gave him hope.

‘We have to go to the church,’ she whispered eventually. It was with great reluctance that she stepped away from him. ‘The fisherman said that someone, a tall man, ordered everyone to leave the bodies at the back of the church so they could be identified. The rest of the men, the magistrate’s men, were taken into the church.’

Phillip nodded. ‘I need to see if any of the Star Elite are considered the magistrate’s men. If they aren’t there, it might be that Sir Hugo has arranged for the men to be taken away before they are buried here by the locals and potentially lost to their families.’

Minutes later, they let themselves into the cold, empty church. They had no sooner stepped through the door than a small clergyman stepped out of a small anteroom.