‘Yes, Sahib?’
‘We were just leaving, Karim. Do you think these ladies and gentlemen have anything to say against that?’
Turning towards the other passengers, Karim gave them a look. A look at his sabre and pistol, to be precise. I had never seen so many heads shake so fast.
‘No, Sahib.’
‘Adequate. Let’s be on our way.’
Side by side, we strode down the gangplank. Down on the docks, Karim cleared his throat. ‘Should I hail a cab, Sahib?’
‘I think we’ll walk,’ I said before Mr Ambrose could bring himself to pry his lips apart. I winked at him, ‘It’s so much more economical.’
Karim blinked. Whatever he had expected, an order from me definitely wasn’t it. ‘Um…Sahib?’
Mr Ambrose raised one eyebrow infinitesimally. ‘You heard her.’
‘Yes, Sahib! Certainly, Sahib.’
Karim inclined his head, and we started down the street. After a few steps Mr Ambrose seemed to notice the giant grin on my face.
‘What are you so exuberant about, Mr Linton?’
‘Oh, nothing, really. I just realized that once we’re married, Karim will have to do what I say.’
‘Whatever it is you are thinking, Mr Linton—no.’
I heard a sigh of relief from behind me.
‘No? Are you sure?’ I fluttered my eyelashes at him.
It had zero effect.
‘Indeed I am. You shall have to plot your vengeance on my bodyguard another way,’
I realized what he was thinking and gifted him with a brilliant smile. ‘Oh, no, no! I wasn’t g
oing to do anything to Karim.’
‘You weren’t?’
‘No, of course not! I would never make him do a handstand in a tutu, or strap him down and let half a dozen children tickle his feet for three hours, or anything like that!’
‘For something you never intended to do you seem to have spent an inordinate amount of time thinking about it, Mr Linton.’
‘Well, a girl has to amuse herself somehow, doesn’t she?’
Mr Ambrose did not deign to reply to that. For a while, we walked in silence. In my head I started counting down.
Five…four…three…two…one—
‘So…what was it that you were thinking?’
I grinned.
‘Well…I was just running down my list of enemies in my head. There are a few friends of my demon-brood sisters Ann and Maria, for instance, who would really benefit from a visit by a seven-feet-tall sabre-swinging giant. It might improve their character.’
‘Indeed.’