Since he had decided what to do about his wife, it was time to make amends to Francis. He began working his way through the crowd toward his cousin. When Francis saw him, the younger man’s lips tightened and he deliberately turned back to his discussion with a man from the Foreign Office.
Gervase waited for a break in the conversation, then said in a low voice, “Could you come out in the hall for a moment?”
Francis gave him a stare that could have chipped ice. “Afraid I’ll contaminate your guests?”
“No! Please, just come.” Apologizing was going to be hard enough without having an audience.
Together they made their way through the milling, good-natured crowd.
* * *
The entrance passage to the maze was short. Then it turned to the right and split with paths to both right and left. Without stopping to consider, Diana ran to her left over the short-clipped velvety grass, hoping she could be out of sight before Veseul reached the intersection. Another intersection, another turn to the left. This one led to a dead end, and she raced back the way she had come, hoping her scream would bring Geoffrey to her without alerting Veseul to the fact that a third person was present.
When she was halfway down the passage, Geoffrey appeared at the far end and dashed toward her. He was about to call out when she put her finger to her lips in a frantic demand for silence.
He was surprised but obedient, and in a moment Diana was beside him, dropping to her knees and putting her lips by his ear to speak in a breathless whisper, “Geoffrey, there’s a bad man behind me in the maze. Do you know the way well enough to lead us through and out the other side without any wrong turns?”
He considered, then whispered, “No.” He was intrigued by her words, not yet fearful.
Diana thought rapidly. If she and Geoffrey stayed together, it was likely they would both run into Veseul and neither would escape alive.
Her glance fell to the base of the thick green hedge. The heavy yew branches grew almost down to the ground, but at the very bottom there was a little space between the hedge and the earth. Not enough for an adult to wiggle through, but adequate for a small child. With a swift prayer that Veseul would not appear, she asked urgently, “Could you crawl under the hedges and get out of the maze the shortest, quickest way?”
After a quick look, Geoffrey nodded. “Yes, but I might ruin my clothes.”
“That doesn’t matter!” Diana caught at the note of hysteria in her voice, wanting her son to be alert but not panicky. “Go as quickly as you can and try not to let Veseul see you. He’s a very, very wicked man. If he catches you, shout and I’ll come. When you’re outside, run as fast as you can to the house and bring back help. Do you understand all that?”
Geoffrey nodded, his eyes wide. Beginning to realize the danger, he threw his arms around her for a quick hug before burrowing under the hedge nearest the perimeter.
Sending a fervent blessing with her son, Diana lifted her skirts to ankle level and ran, her thin kidskin slippers silent on the grass. At the next intersection she turned left again. The sky above was still sunlit, but here in the maze all was cool shadow as dusk approached.
There was still no sight of the Frenchman, but she heard a rustling sound on the far side of the right-hand hedge. In his confidence, the count moved at a leisurely pace, scorning both silence and speed.
Wanting to distract him from any chance of hearing Geoffrey, Diana gave a small gasp, just loud enough for him to hear before she plunged down the new path.
A thick, evil chuckle followed her. “I am so glad you are trying to escape,ma petite.It is more exciting this way.” His voice was a confident, threatening hiss, like his golden serpent come to life. “You will not succeed, you know. It is merely a matter of time until one of your turns will bring you right into my arms.”
The frightened whimper she gave was only partly for effect. Was Geoffrey out yet? Pray God he wouldn’t come back to investigate! Another dead end, the dense green hedge a blank barrier in front of her. She turned and ran back.
At the next junction she stopped and listened. She heard heavy breathing and the soft rustle of a body brushing the shrubbery, but within the tangled pathways of the maze it was impossible to tell where the sounds came from.
Veseul could be almost anywhere. He might be ahead of her and lying in wait, or he might be as close as the other side of the hedge. The uncertainty was almost as terrifying as his actual presence.
She moved down the next aisle. The maze seemed much larger inside than it had from the outside, The fragrance of a late-summer garden was an ironic contrast to this nightmare game of hide-and-seek. How long until she came to the center and found the path out? If she could escape the maze with even a minute’s head start, she could win free of the Frenchman.
She paused again at the intersection, listening intently as her lungs struggled for breath. Then, with shocking suddenness, a black-clad arm shot through the dark yew wall and grabbed her upper arm with vicious strength. This time there was nothing calculated about her scream.
* * *
Geoffrey wriggled out from under the outside hedge, leaving his coat tangled in the yew branches. As he sprang to his feet, he heard his mother’s terrified cry, and he instinctively moved toward the maze entrance. Then he stopped. He couldn’t fight the bad man alone. He must go for help as Mama ordered.
Running as never before, he cut through the formal rose garden toward the main house. The gardens were too large, the house impossibly distant.
A stitch stabbed at his side and he was gasping for breath but he refused to slow down. As he came to the edge of the gardens, he felt a tugging on his forehead, the invisible rope that would pull him backward into an epileptic seizure.
* * *
The Frenchman’s grasp was cruelly tight. His other hand emerged from the hedge and fumbled blindly at Diana’s body, squeezing viciously when he found her breast. The clawing hands revolted her, and her only comfort was knowing that the hedge temporarily blocked his passage.
