Cade glanced at the sea cliff to their left. They’d have to backtrack to reach a place where the horses could go to higher ground, which would risk their boat missing the tide. “Not in the time available. We need to proceed on foot.”
As they dismounted, he studied his three companions. They might not look like a military squad, but he knew that all were gifted and determined. “Is everyone here ready and able to fight?”
Madame LeBlanc reached up into her horse’s saddlebag and pulled out two pistols and two ammunition pouches. She handed one of each to Cade and kept the other pistol and pouch. “Andre is already armed. Lady Tamsyn?”
“I’m not fond of firearms, but I have an experienced knife I can use if necessary,” Tam replied as she flipped back her coat to show a sheathed dagger.
They tethered their horses by a pair of straggly wind-shaped trees. Then those who carried firearms checked that their weapons were primed and ready. But in a situation like this, using their gifts would be even more important.
Cade offered his hand to Tam. “Help me focus.”
Her small, strong hand clasped his and his sensing ability expanded sharply. His feelings for her also flared, and she caught her breath until he could get them under control. Their gazes met in the dim light and he felt the impact of their mutual desire, all the more powerful for being suppressed.
Not now, alas, not now.He felt her wry agreement.
What lay ahead? He sensed pulses of energy. “Four men. Three of them are bored and not very alert. One has a fierce, rather jangled mind. I think he’s the leader and the most dangerous.”
He double-checked his impressions. Yes, what he was seeing was accurate. “I have some stealth ability that should make it possible for us to close in on them without being noticed. With luck, no one will have to die.”
“I sincerely hope not!” Tamsyn murmured.
Cade dug into his carry bag and pulled out lengths of rope suitable for binding men’s wrists. As he passed them out, he said, “I hope you’re all good at tying knots. Now join hands so I can share the stealth energy.”
Madame LeBlanc’s clasp was firm and he was startled by the combined power of the four of them when Tam and Andre completed the circle. Andre was clever and brave and had faced danger in the past, and it was clear that Madame LeBlanc hadn’t spent her life doing embroidery and accounts. Tamsyn, as always, was utterly reliable. Yes, his troops were ready and capable.
He sent energy into the circle, touching each of the others and incorporating their special strengths into the whole. Once the stealth energy was as powerful as they could make it, he said, “We’re not invisible, but now we’re less likely to be noticed as long as we move carefully. There are four of us and four of them, and we should all be able to get close enough to hold weapons to the heads of the ambushers to persuade them to surrender quietly. Tam, once they’re subdued and their wrists are tied, can you do something to calm them down or send them to sleep so they don’t cause trouble?”
“Yes,” she said with no elaboration.
“That felt . . . very interesting,” Andre said with surprise as they released their hands. “Can you teach me how to do it?”
“Perhaps. That depends on your own natural gifts. Once we’re in England we can experiment.” Cade described the locations of the ambushers and how they would need to move to reach their individual targets. The night was dark and the fog had persisted, but with the aid of the stealth energy, they should be safe. “Watch your footing so you don’t fall or crash into anything.”
Quietly they moved forward. The murmuring of the waves covered any slight sounds they made. As they approached their targets, he smelled a whiff of tobacco smoke. Fools.
Since he knew Tam’s abilities, he’d assigned her and himself to the longest route that circled around their targets.
As they moved inland from the sea, he kept mental track of the enemy and his own troops. Cade gestured for Tam to stay behind the first man they reached. The fellow was smoking a clay pipe. Cade continued on to the final man, the alert and surely dangerous leader.
His senses were working exceptionally well tonight, and he was able to determine when his friends were in place. He drew a deep breath, then stepped forward and jammed his pistol against the skull of the leader while he bellowed, “Halt and drop your weapons! You’re surrounded. We’d prefer not to kill anyone, but we will if we have to!”
After a stunned moment, a spate of filthy French curses burst out. There were sounds of scuffling from Andre’s man, which ended when Andre brought him down. There were thuds as other weapons dropped to the ground.
But not the leader’s. He jerked away from Cade and spun around, his own weapon raised and ready.
It was Claude Bastien, and he was aiming his pistol straight at Cade’s heart.
Cade’s gifts included the swift reflexes of a predator, and as he dodged to one side, he grabbed the other man’s wrist and twisted viciously hard until the pistol fell to the ground.
As Cade kicked the weapon out of Bastien’s reach, he said in a hard voice, “If you wanted me dead, you should have killed me when you had the chance.”
“I wish I had!” Bastien agreed, his hands still but his fierce eyes confused. “Are you going to shoot me?”
“Probably not.” A swift glance showed that his friends had disarmed their opponents and were now tying up wrists. “Though I’m tempted.”
He felt a twinge from Madame LeBlanc, who didn’t want to see her nephew killed even if he wasn’t exactly her nephew. She would get her wish as long as Cade didn’t have to kill Bastien to protect his friends.
Bastien frowned, his craggy face perplexed. “You really do look like me,” he said in a puzzled tone. “I find that very annoying.”
