“As her escort?” Arch asked.
“Yes, and as a shield,” Renforth corrected calmly.
The word lodged somewhere uncomfortably solid.
“I will require clearer boundaries,” Arch said. “If she perceives government surveillance, she will resist it.”
“You know how to be discreet,” Renforth replied.
Fielding smiled faintly. “Present it as company.”
Baines grinned. “Or admiration.”
Arch ignored him.
“She does not tolerate condescension,” Arch said. “If I attempt overtly to restrict her, she will go further merely to prove she cannot be manoeuvred.”
Renforth regarded him with quiet approval. “Then do not restrict her. Observe. Advise when necessary. Intervene only when required. Gain her trust.”
Stuart closed his notebook. “We will look deeper into Kendall’s correspondences.”
Fielding added, “As well as into the Friends of Liberty.”
Arch finally lifted the brandy to his lips. The warmth calmed him rather than cloud his judgement.
“She believes reform can be achieved through negotiation,” he said.
“Can it, however?” Baines asked.
Arch thought of the field at Waterloo, of how diplomacy had failed until cannon answered. “Sometimes,” he said.
Renforth’s gaze sharpened slightly. “You will keep her safe,” he said. It was not framed as a question.
“Yes,” Arch replied.
The conversation shifted then to actions. Stuart would have a man observe Kendall’s coffee-house meetings in Manchester. Fielding would attempt to trace any unusual transfers within the Vale estate accounts. Baines volunteered to listen where listening was cheapest and most effective.
“You are troubled,” the Colonel said.
Arch gave a faint, humourless smile. “She complicates the matter.”
“In what way?”
“She is not reckless,” Arch said. “She is intentional.”
Renforth considered that. “Intentional people are rarely easy to guard.”
“No,” Arch agreed.
Renforth stepped closer to the hearth. “Do not underestimate her,” he said quietly, “and do not underestimate the men who will attempt to use her.”
“I do not.”
Renforth studied him for another moment. “See that you do not underestimate yourself either.”
Stuart tapped the page with the end of his pencil. “There is something else,” he said.
“Go on.”
