Caleb placed his hand on the small of Simone’s back and led her into the trees. “What is the plan?” he whispered.
“Trust me,” she responded.
Juliette’s voice came from behind them. “That is far enough,” she said. “We can’t go too far into the trees or we won’t be able to hear the music.”
Simone lifted her brow as she turned around to face the French spy. “You have lost, Juliette. Agents are looking for you at this very moment to arrest you and your brother.”
With a chuckle, Juliette said, “I took care of those agents that were searching the gardens. I must admit that I was not impressed at how easily I snuck up on them.”
“When is the killing going to stop?” Simone asked.
“I don’t know, but I will admit it is not as thrilling as my first kill was.” Juliette cocked her head at Simone. “You have killed before, haven’t you?”
Simone shifted in her stance. “I have not. I have never seen the need.”
Juliette looked amused. “A spy that does not kill,” she mocked. “How intriguing. Although, I bet your father will be relieved to hear you say that.”
“I thought you had no intention of telling my father that I was a spy,” Simone said.
“About that, yes, I lied. I do that sort of thing, youknow?” Juliette mocked. “I will admit that your father took the news rather hard that you were spying for England. He had halfway hoped that we could turn you into a spy for France.”
Lord Hungerton stepped out from the shadows and came to stand next to Juliette. “Leave Simone alone,” he ordered.
“I’m afraid we can’t do that, not anymore,” Juliette said. “We need them out of the way when Victor releases the grenades or we can just kill them now and be done with it.”
“If you discharge a pistol now, it will draw unwanted attention and people will come to investigate,” Lord Hungerton mused.
“Good point. We will just kill them when the grenades go off,” Juliette said. “Then we will make our escape.”
Caleb offered them a curious look. “Where will you go?” he asked. “Every agent in England will be looking for you. You will never be free.”
“It is a good thing we are returning to France,” Juliette replied. “We have already chartered our ride home and the ship will depart once we arrive this evening.”
Simone shifted her gaze towards her father. “You are leaving England?” she asked.
“There is nothing left for me here,” Lord Hungerton responded. “Napoleon has offered me a French title in exchange for what we are doing here tonight. I will be avicomte. That is where your inheritance would have come in handy, but Juliette and I will have to make do with what he has graciously promised to bestow upon us.”
Juliette beamed. “Napoleon has offered us a fortune for what we have had to sacrifice.”
Lord Hungerton held his hands up. “Anyone of importance is at the ball this evening, including most of the members of the House of Lords and the Prime Minister. By killing so many influential people, it would cause mass chaos amongst all levels of our government. England would becomevulnerable to outside threats, something which Napoleon intends to take advantage of.”
“You would betray your own country for a new title and some money?” Caleb asked in disbelief.
Lord Hungerton’s eyes grew hard. “What has my country done for me? I will tell you. Nothing. England has done nothing for me but tax me relentlessly. And why? So our Prince Regent can carry on with his mistress and spend money he doesn’t have?”
Simone’s eyes seemed to plead with her father. “You don’t have to do this. You can do the right thing and walk away.”
“If I walk away, I have nothing to show for it,” Lord Hungerton stated. “No, I am in too deep to even entertain such a ludicrous idea.”
Victor stepped out of the trees and stood next to his sister, holding a grenade in his hand. He had a belt tube around his waist, no doubt holding the match for lighting the fuse. “I am ready to release the grenades.”
Juliette looked at her brother with pride. “Victor is one of the most celebrated grenadiers in all of France,” she revealed. “When I heard of our next assignment, I knew we had to bring Victor in to help us, despite the risks.”
“You have this all planned out, don’t you?” Caleb asked.
“We do, especially since we have been working up to this bombing for years,” Juliette said. “We have participated in many bombings all over England.”
Simone glanced between her father and Juliette. “Is that why you hid my mother in Bedlam because she overheard your plans for one of the bombings?”
