Noah shook his head. “I have men in the crow’s nest keeping watch but so far we are the only ones out here. We are going to stay well away from all other traffic out here so I don’t expect to see anyone else. In a way, this is a test.”
“How?” All three men demanded at once.
“Sir Hugo gave me my orders in the War Office. There were only a handful of people who could overhear us. If we are intercepted once we reach Edinburgh then we can narrow down the possible culprits to five people, all of whom work out of the War Office,” Noah explained. “Sir Hugo is waiting to find out what awaits us.”
“Is everyone armed?” Barnaby asked suddenly.
Reg and Ben both nodded.
“Sir Hugo sent reinforcements up to wait for us. Their orders were delivered by Simon Ambrose so the likelihood of any of them being identified and waylaid is remote,” Noah added as he left the table. “Leave it to Sir Hugo. He can deal with flushing the spy out. You concentrate on keeping that woman safe.”
Ben sighed. “I think we need to expect the worst. If everyone is there, and Sayers’ men aren’t, then we need to look at how much has gone wrong and get a proper idea of whether someone is double crossing us or whether it is a run of bad luck. I have to confess that I just don’t see one of the men in the field selling us out.”
Reg looked at him. “It depends on how much money Sayers offers. For the right price, if someone hates this life enough but has no other way out without losing his income then it might be possible that Sayers could buy his knowledge. I wouldn’t stand the cretin’s chances if he double-crossed Sayers, or the Star Elite got hold of him, but we all know we can survive in the most testing of times.”
“It would be the mother of all battles of wits,” Barnaby sighed. He hated to even contemplate having to cut one of his colleagues down but if it meant saving the lives of the wider group of men, then he would. He just hoped it wouldn’t come to that.
“Whatever happens with the traitor, we need to decide on what to do once we reach Edinburgh. You have an extremely valuable witness who needs to be protected from someone within the Star Elite as well as Chadwick and Sayers. We need to make a plan, gentlemen,” Noah declared as he refilled everyone’s rum. “For now, Sir Hugo wants everything kept away from the War Office. We are to trust nobody but the immediate circle here. Everyone else is to be persona non grata for the time being and has to stay that way.”
“Unfortunately, that also means we have to avoid the men waiting for us in Edinburgh,” Barnaby warned.
“How so?” Ben asked, his brows lifted.
Rather than answer, Barnaby looked at Noah. “Where else can we dock? We need to end this journey before Edinburgh and not rely on any other member of the Star Elite. If we don’t turn up, they will come looking for us but we will remain safe. If there is a traitor in the Star Elite, they won’t know where we have gone and will not be in a position to tip Sayers or Chadwick off.”
Everyone nodded. Noah went to fetch a map.
“The coast line is rugged around that area,” he said, pointing to a particular bit of coastline that was marked with beaches. “Basically, gentlemen, pick your area. As long as the place we stop has a beach we can row you to shore on the rowing boat we have strapped to the ship. It is not a problem. Of course, I cannot help you beyond that because once you hit land you will have to find your own transport and accommodation from then on.”
“We can’t use the safe house in Rostermire,” Reg warned thinking of the old hunting house in the foothills of the mountains the men recently acquired.
“I know of somewhere,” Barnaby sighed. “However, it is remote. It is not possible to stay there for the several months it might take to flush out our traitor.” He didn’t add that he couldn’t bring himself to just sit in the remote mountains of Scotland, even with someone as delightfully seductive as Rose, while his colleagues fought to identify the spy. He had to do something to help or he would go quietly out of his mind.
“I know of somewhere, but it is closer to Edinburgh than you might like,” Reg warned. “It will put you in the centre of the action for a while but at least you can help us find out if we have a traitor in our midst.”
Barnaby threw him a grateful look. “I cannot go after Chadwick and look after Rose, though, so we will have to take turns keeping watch.”
“In that case, why don’t you leave her on board here? We can drop anchor out at sea for a while and wait for you. As soon as you have dealt with anyone on the docks waiting for you that shouldn’t know to be there, you can come out to us,” Noah suggested. When Barnaby looked at him, he shrugged. “There are thirty men on board this ship. Nobody is going to get through them to your lady friend, Barnaby. I can promise you that much.”
Barnaby nodded gratefully. “I know she won’t like it but to take her ashore right now feels like asking her to commit suicide. I cannot ask her
to put herself in that much danger. She didn’t ask for any of this, and shouldn’t be put right in the centre of any of our battles.”
“So staying on board while we go ashore is the plan, right?” Reg murmured lifting his brows at each man in turn.
“Right,” Ben muttered, a hard glint in his eye.
“I think it is best,” Noah warned.
“Me too,” Reg added with a firm nod.
Everyone looked at Barnaby.
He reluctantly nodded. He hated to be the one to have to tell her. He couldn’t quite shake off the feeling that he was abandoning her. But, if he had to leave her with anyone it would be Noah, one of the true stalwarts of the Star Elite.
“Right,” Barnaby sighed deeply.
Reg clapped him on the shoulder. “Good luck,” his colleague said solemnly.