Part 15 (1/2)

The Colonel raised the lorgnette dangling from his lapel and inspected Polly, Ben, and the Doctor. 'And who are these vagabonds?'

The Doctor bowed very low, putting on his German accent. 'Doctor von Verner, at your service, Colonel.

Remedies for the ague, warts, the twitch, the colic, and...'

he glanced down at the Colonel's slippered feet, 'for the gout, sir.'

The Colonel leaned back, a little overwhelmed by all this. 'Gout, man? I haven't got gout.'

The Doctor rushed on quickly. 'But that's not why I'm here, sir. Oh no, I wouldn't waste your time with that. A fine healthy gentleman like yourself. It's just, this ring, you see, sir...' He held up the Prince's ring.

Algernon, his fuddled thoughts clearing, now saw an opportunity to get away from the Doctor without compromising himself. 'Uh, perhaps,' he coughed, 'we'd better get back to the game, sir. The night air, you know, and all that.'

'Blast the night air,' said the Colonel. 'Let me see that.'

He s.n.a.t.c.hed the ring from the Doctor. 'By gad,' he said, 'the Pretender's s.h.i.+eld. Where did you get this from?'

The Doctor stood back and waved his hand. Well, sir,'

he said, 'you go up there and over there, and then round to your left, and then a little to the right, and then, vell, we were taking the Lieutenant there, you see.'

Algernon put his hand to his head. 'Uh, the game, sir,'

he said.

'Confound the game,' said the Colonel, 'this is the Prince's ring. Now go with them, Ffinch, there's a good fellow. Take a detachment.'

'Ach, nein, sir, nein,' said the Doctor, putting his finger to his nose.

Colonel Attwood was not used to being contradicted.

'What man?'

The Doctor went on quickly. 'It would alarm the rascals, sir. We are enough to capture him. If we take some soldiers, he will see us coming.'

'Hmmm,' the Colonel considered for moment. 'You're right.' He turned around. 'What are you waiting for, Lieutenant, you have your orders.'

Algernon saluted weakly. 'But sir, this wench here,' he pointed to Polly, and as he did so, Polly, who was wearing Algernon's identification disc around her neck, started pulling it out. 'No, sir,' Algernon went on. 'No, sir, very good sir, very...' Again Algernon saluted, turned, and started moving off with Ben and Polly on each side.

The Doctor paused for a moment. The Colonel turned to him. 'Oh, when you have him...' he said.

The Doctor nodded and winked. 'Ve must bring him straight to you. Right, sir?'

The Colonel smiled and nodded. 'Good chap,' he said.

'Good chap.'

The Doctor touched his hat and scurried off to the others.

'Oh,' the Colonel had one final thought. He called after the Doctor. 'You don't play whist by any chance, do you?'

The Doctor turned back. 'Ach, unfortunately no, sir.

Vhy?'

'Oh, nothing, never mind. Later, perhaps.' And the Colonel turned around and went back into the barracks.

17.

A Return to the Cottage Several hours later, having retraced the weary miles from Inverness to Culloden Moor, the Doctor and his friends, still with Lieutenant Ffinch in tow, arrived back at the cottage. Polly, who felt that Algernon was her special charge, had tried to make the Lieutenant's load lighter by keeping up a ceaseless flow of chatter, only a quarter of which Ffinch had comprehended. But Ben and the Doctor noticed that while he resented taking orders from them, Polly could, as Ben put it, twist him around her little finger.

They arrived back at the cottage just as the early sun was warming the air on the moor. As they stood outside, Jamie and Ben looked up at the ropes still hanging from the tree.

'I won't forget this place in a hurry,' said Ben.

The Doctor turned to Algernon Ffinch. 'I don't know how we can ever thank you, Lieutenant. We could never have made it without your help.' Indeed, there had been four brushes with English patrols, at each of which the Lieutenant had concocted a story that enabled them to go on their way.

'I told him all about Mr Grey's activities,' said Polly.

Ben nodded. 'Yeah, you better nab him quick. He's slippery, that geezer.'

'In that case,' said Algernon, 'I had better start looking for the detachment I left down here under Sergeant Klegg.

Leave the British soldier too long to his own devices, and lord knows what can happen.'

Polly came forward, took the Lieutenant's identification disc from around her neck, and then rather tenderly brought out the lock of his hair from her pouch. 'Here,' she said, 'you deserve these back now.'

'Ah, yes,' said Ffinch. He took the identification disc from her a little embarra.s.sed, then handed her back the lock of hair. 'If you'd like...' he began.

Polly nodded, her eyes bright. 'I'd love to,' she said. She took the lock of hair and tenderly placed it back in her pouch, just as a line of red-coated soldiers appeared from around the side of the cottage with Grey at their head.

Jamie and Ben reached for the pistols stuck in their belts, but the Doctor stopped them quickly. Resistance was useless. The troops who had been concealed around the cottage, now came out of hiding, some twenty of them with levelled muskets. The Doctor put his hands up in the air, followed by Ben and Jamie.

'I thought you would return here, Doctor,' Grey's voice was precise and silken with menace.

He bowed to Algernon with just a touch of irony in his manner and voice. 'May I congratulate you on having caught these rebels, Lieutenant. I'm sure it will lead to promotion for you.'

The Sergeant in charge of the detachment came over and saluted. 'Lieutenant Ffinch, sir.'

Algernon looked at him. 'Ah, Sergeant Klegg, I'm glad to see you.' He looked around. 'And my men,' he said.