‘Maybe,’ replied Harry. ‘All the same, we’ll ride on for a while.’
Once again no one made the least demur, wanting to put as much distance between them and the scene of the attack as possible. Even though the immediate danger was over Elena still felt the residual thrill coursing through her veins. It had been that way when she and Concha had ridden with Montera’s men. The habit was hard to break.
It was dusk before they eventually stopped. There were still no signs of pursuit but he wasn’t prepared to take chances.
‘We’ll exercise caution until we’re sure,’ he said. ‘No fire tonight and we’ll double the watch just in case.’
‘Right you are, my lord.’ Jack looked at Concha. ‘Do you take t’first one wi’ me, then, lass?’
She returned a cool and level gaze. ‘As you wish—lad.’
Elena caught Harry’s eye and saw the gleam of amusement there. It drew an answering smile from her. Bone-weary now but exhilarated too, it felt as though something in her had awoken after a long sleep. It wasn’t that she relished being attacked by brigands, but rather that the brush with danger made her feel more alive than she had for a long time. Perhaps the present company had something to do with that as well. In any adventure it was important to know that, in a tight spot, one could rely on one’s companions. She’d had no doubts whatever about Concha, but today the two men had proved their worth once more. They were cool-headed, swift to act and prepared to be ruthless when required.
‘Can I offer you something to eat?’
Harry’s voice drew her from her reverie. ‘Oh, yes. I thank you. What is on the menu this evening?’
‘Bread and cheese.’
‘Bread and cheese sound divine.’
‘You are easily pleased, my lady.’
‘I am hungry, my lord, and have eaten far worse.’
He grinned and, having handed her a ration of food, sat down to eat with her. ‘You and Concha handled yourselves well today. Seasoned soldiers could not have done better.’
His praise created a little glow of warmth deep inside. ‘I suppose we are what you might call seasoned guerrillas.’
‘An apt description. You certainly took those robbers in your stride.’
‘It’s not the first time we have met their kind. Concha and I were once taken prisoner by El Lobo.’
‘I have heard of him. An ugly customer by all accounts.’
‘The accounts were true.’
‘How did you fall into his clutches?’
Elena hesitated, regarding him speculatively, wondering whether he would be shocked if she told him the story. On the other hand he already knew a lot of shocking things about her, so perhaps one more wouldn’t make much difference now.
‘We had been out hunting in the hills with a small group of companions. We shot a deer and were returning to camp when, by ill chance, we ran into some of El Lobo’s men. I think they were as surprised as we. Unfortunately there were far more of them than there were of us, and so we were captured and taken to his headquarters. It was a remote hill village that had been abandoned by the inhabitants in the early part of the war.’
‘There were quite a few of those around by the time the French had finished.’ He made a vague gesture with his hand. ‘Forgive me, I’m interrupting.’
‘El Lobo demanded to know where Montera’s hideout was but none of us was prepared to tell. So then our captors entertained themselves by beating one of our companions half to death. Still he wouldn’t talk so El Lobo shot him, as an example. We knew it wouldn’t be long before he killed the rest—the men anyway.’ She hesitated. ‘He announced that he had a very different plan for Concha and me.’
Harry’s eyes grew steely. ‘I think I can guess what that was.’
She nodded. ‘We knew there was nothing to lose by attempting to escape. So, while he and his men drank, we pretended to seduce the guard of the hut where we were confined. It wasn’t hard.’
‘I almost pity him.’
‘When we’d eliminated him we smashed the lamp and set fire to the building as we left to create a diversion.’
‘An effective stratagem, I imagine.’
‘It was. While all attention was on the fire we released our friends. We also discovered that the room next door to their prison was piled high with weapons and ammunition stolen from the French. There were also several barrels of gunpowder.’
‘Let me guess. You set a fuse.’
‘Correct.’
‘A longish fuse, I hope.’
‘Long enough to let us get clear.’ She smiled reminiscently. ‘The explosion was huge—the biggest I ever saw, and deafening. It demolished the entire building and half a dozen near it. Debris was flung over a wide area. There were massive casualties among the robbers.’