An Infamous Army (Alastair-Audley Tetralogy 4)

He nodded, and passed on. The cotillion came to an end soon after, and as Barbara walked off the floor Colonel Audley went forward to meet her.

She held out her hand to him. ‘Wretch! Do you know how confoundedly late you are?’

‘Yes. Have you kept my waltzes?’

‘Oh, I am in a charming humour! You may have as many as you please.’

‘All, then. How do you do, Lavisse? How do you go on in your neighbourhood?’

The Count shrugged. ‘Oh, parbleu! We watch the frontier, and grow excited at the mere changing of an advance guard. And you? What news have you?’

‘Very little. We hear of the Russians approaching Frankfort, and of General Kruse being at Maestricht. Hallo, Harry! More leave?’

Lord Harry Alastair had come up to them, and replied to this quizzing remark with a grin and a wink. Having decided upon first meeting him that Audley was a very good sort of a fellow, he had lost no time in making him feel one of the family. He had several times borrowed money from him, which, however, he generally remembered to pay back, soon treated him with affectionate respect, and had even asked his advice on the conduct of an alarming affair with a Belgian lady of easy virtue. The Colonel’s advice had been so sound that his lordship declared he owed his preservation to it, and opined darkly that Audley must have learned a thing or two worth knowing in Spain.

Barbara coolly referred to this affair, enquiring: ‘How is the opulent Julie, Harry?’

‘Lord, didn’t I tell you? I got clear away. It was a near thing, I can tell you. All Charles’s doing. He’s a man of wide experience, Bab, I warn you!’

‘Charles, how shocking! Spanish beauties?’

‘Dozens of them!’ said the Colonel.

‘Depraved! What is this they are striking up? A waltz! I am yours, then.’

He led her on to the floor. She gave a sigh as his arm encircled her waist. He heard it, and glanced down at her. ‘Why the sigh, Bab?’

‘I don’t know. I think it was voluptuous.’

He laughed. ‘Abominable word!’

‘You dance so delightfully!’ she murmured. ‘Where have you been hiding these last days?’

‘At Headquarters, when I was not laming my horses on these shocking roads. By the by, had you to create a scandal in my family?’

‘It seemed as though I had to,’ she admitted. ‘Did it come to your ears?’

‘Every word of it. You stirred up a great deal of unhappiness, Bab.’

‘What, by permitting poor bored Perry to gain a little experience? Nonsense! I behaved charmingly to him. Oh, you are recalling that I said I would be a sister to him! Well, so I was, until his ridiculous wife chose to challenge me. I won that encounter, however, and will sheathe my sword now, if you like.’

‘I wish you had never drawn it, Bab. Lady Taverner wasn’t a worthy foe.’

‘Ah, that’s charming of you! Well, I will engage to let him out of my clutches. I don’t see him tonight: is he not coming?’

‘No. He is going back to England.’

‘Going back to England? He told me nothing of this!’

‘It has only quite lately been decided. Brussels does not agree with Lady Taverner. I am charged with a message from Peregrine: his apologies for not being able to take his leave of you in person.’

She was staring at him. ‘It is your doing, in fact!’ He nodded. Her breast heaved. ‘Insufferable!’ The word burst from her. ‘My God, I could hit you!’

‘Why, certainly, if you like, but I don’t recommend you to do so in such a public place as this.’

She wrenched herself out of his hold, and walked swiftly off the dancing floor. He followed her, and took her hand, and drawing it through his arm held it there firmly. ‘Calm yourself, Bab. If you want to quarrel with me you shall. I daresay Sir Charles would be plea

sed to lend us his morning-room for the purpose.’