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.Because had he seen those qualities, admirable in a man with whom one will fight a war, but daunting in a woman with whom one would share a bed, he would doubtless have turned and run.And proved himself a fool.For is not all life a war? Against age, and poverty, and disease.and other people who are also seeking their share? And would a woman, lacking those qualities, be worth having?'I will second you, Lilian,' he said.'Thank you.Presumably Marguerite will supply the pistols.Do you think I should practise?' She smiled at his bewilderment.'I think not,' she said.'An unsuccessful rehearsal might dispel what confidence I possess.I will please Papa by spending the evening in prayer.''Your father knows of this madness?'She shook her head.'No doubt he will learn of it, in due course.But he at the least will not try to stop me.He considers me nothing more than a daughter of the devil in any event, and searches his own past for the unthinking sin which could have produced me from his loins.But I would prefer not to distress him more than necessary.Do you remain at Mr Parke's house, and I will come to you at dawn.'Kit hesitated.It cannot be, he thought.I cannot let this happen.But I cannot stop her.Even supposing I could, that would be to destroy her all over again.For this truly is the only solution she could ever have come to.'Aye,' he said.'I will wait for you, at dawn.'He flicked the whip and the trap rolled away.He cantered beneath the archway and into the yard of the rented Government House, threw his reins to the waiting slave, and ran up the inner staircase.Colonel Parke was in the downstairs gallery with Mr Wolff.'Kit,' the Governor cried.'Great news.Wolff tells me everything is in place.''Why, so it is,' Kit agreed.'I have just come from there.''Then we shall move up the hill on Monday.Thank you, Wolff.That is splendid news.'I did the best I could, Your Excellency.' The engineer bowed to Kit and hurried for the door.'And indeed he has done well.' Parke leaned over the plans."And then, then we shall see what we shall see, Kit.I have been soft with these rapscallions.I have been too aware that while living here in the centre of their schemes I have been open to ambuscade and annoyance.But when I sit in that citadel, looking down on them, with the fort commanding the harbour at the other extreme, by God, sir, then will I call some of them to account.You'll know they have written letters to London, demanding my recall?''I had not heard,' Kit said.'But how.?'Parke laid his finger alongside his nose.'The captain of every ship that trades here is in my pay.Why, should they not humour their governor and principal employer? I took care of that aspect of the situation before I ever left England.So they take care that such of the letters as may be of importance to me are made available.''You mean you have confiscated them?''I am not that shallow, Kit.I but make myself acquainted with the contents, and then they may go their way.Thus forearmed, I am able to forestall their machinations.So they plead for my recall, and more, for my arrest on grounds of tyranny and misconduct.As long as I may inform the Queen that they will follow these lines, and before their letters reach their destinations, they are doomed to failure.As they deserve.Oh, make no mistake about it, soon enough they will have to come out into the open and declare their opposition to me, rather than have their people sneaking about in the dead of night attempting murder, or sending clandestine complaints home to England.'Kit frowned at him.‘You wish to provoke this?''Indeed I do.For when they oppose me, they oppose the Crown, and all the majesty of the Crown.Then may I call upon them to stand up and be counted, and then may I take overt measures against them.And then shall I need your strong right arm, Kit.'Kit sighed.'And no doubt you shall have it.Although I must say again I find it a strange way to set about governing a people, first to set them at your throat.''I will set them at their own throats,' Parke explained, and smiled.'Nor is the concept as sinister as you would make it sound.For how may a surgeon set about curing a man shot through with ball? Why, first of all by causing the patient yet more pain while cutting away the diseased flesh and removing the afflicting lead.This is no more than I seek to do with these people.''Aye,' Kit said.'No doubt politics of this nature are a shade too deep for me.I would speak to you on another matter, one which is a great deal closer to my heart.Lilian.''Is pregnant.Say no more.I have expected the news almost daily.And you are distressed, for mother and child.So he will be a bastard.There can be no criticism of that, Kit.Where or how a man is born is of no account whatsoever.It is what he inherits from his parents that matters, in the way of character and personality, and your son will ever possess the best of both.Why, should you ask me to stand godfather, I would be flattered, and I accept, here and now.'Kit sometimes felt that talking with Daniel Parke was like trying to walk a lane with his arms round a wild horse.'Lilian's not pregnant.At least, not to my knowledge.She has found a way, she supposes, to resolve her difficulties, to expiate her humiliation.'Parke's turn to frown.'She has challenged Marguerite to a duel,' Kit said.'And her challenge has been accepted.They meet with pistols on the beach, at dawn tomorrow.'Parke's frown slowly cleared; it was replaced with a look of blank amazement.'Two women, I beg your pardon, two ladies, mean to fight a duel? With pistols?''Exactly,' Kit said.'A more preposterous idea has surely never been heard.''Preposterous,' Parke said.'Oh, indeed, it is preposterous.Why, it is." he burst into a peal of laughter.'By God, Kit, but you will have to excuse me [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
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.Because had he seen those qualities, admirable in a man with whom one will fight a war, but daunting in a woman with whom one would share a bed, he would doubtless have turned and run.And proved himself a fool.For is not all life a war? Against age, and poverty, and disease.and other people who are also seeking their share? And would a woman, lacking those qualities, be worth having?'I will second you, Lilian,' he said.'Thank you.Presumably Marguerite will supply the pistols.Do you think I should practise?' She smiled at his bewilderment.'I think not,' she said.'An unsuccessful rehearsal might dispel what confidence I possess.I will please Papa by spending the evening in prayer.''Your father knows of this madness?'She shook her head.'No doubt he will learn of it, in due course.But he at the least will not try to stop me.He considers me nothing more than a daughter of the devil in any event, and searches his own past for the unthinking sin which could have produced me from his loins.But I would prefer not to distress him more than necessary.Do you remain at Mr Parke's house, and I will come to you at dawn.'Kit hesitated.It cannot be, he thought.I cannot let this happen.But I cannot stop her.Even supposing I could, that would be to destroy her all over again.For this truly is the only solution she could ever have come to.'Aye,' he said.'I will wait for you, at dawn.'He flicked the whip and the trap rolled away.He cantered beneath the archway and into the yard of the rented Government House, threw his reins to the waiting slave, and ran up the inner staircase.Colonel Parke was in the downstairs gallery with Mr Wolff.'Kit,' the Governor cried.'Great news.Wolff tells me everything is in place.''Why, so it is,' Kit agreed.'I have just come from there.''Then we shall move up the hill on Monday.Thank you, Wolff.That is splendid news.'I did the best I could, Your Excellency.' The engineer bowed to Kit and hurried for the door.'And indeed he has done well.' Parke leaned over the plans."And then, then we shall see what we shall see, Kit.I have been soft with these rapscallions.I have been too aware that while living here in the centre of their schemes I have been open to ambuscade and annoyance.But when I sit in that citadel, looking down on them, with the fort commanding the harbour at the other extreme, by God, sir, then will I call some of them to account.You'll know they have written letters to London, demanding my recall?''I had not heard,' Kit said.'But how.?'Parke laid his finger alongside his nose.'The captain of every ship that trades here is in my pay.Why, should they not humour their governor and principal employer? I took care of that aspect of the situation before I ever left England.So they take care that such of the letters as may be of importance to me are made available.''You mean you have confiscated them?''I am not that shallow, Kit.I but make myself acquainted with the contents, and then they may go their way.Thus forearmed, I am able to forestall their machinations.So they plead for my recall, and more, for my arrest on grounds of tyranny and misconduct.As long as I may inform the Queen that they will follow these lines, and before their letters reach their destinations, they are doomed to failure.As they deserve.Oh, make no mistake about it, soon enough they will have to come out into the open and declare their opposition to me, rather than have their people sneaking about in the dead of night attempting murder, or sending clandestine complaints home to England.'Kit frowned at him.‘You wish to provoke this?''Indeed I do.For when they oppose me, they oppose the Crown, and all the majesty of the Crown.Then may I call upon them to stand up and be counted, and then may I take overt measures against them.And then shall I need your strong right arm, Kit.'Kit sighed.'And no doubt you shall have it.Although I must say again I find it a strange way to set about governing a people, first to set them at your throat.''I will set them at their own throats,' Parke explained, and smiled.'Nor is the concept as sinister as you would make it sound.For how may a surgeon set about curing a man shot through with ball? Why, first of all by causing the patient yet more pain while cutting away the diseased flesh and removing the afflicting lead.This is no more than I seek to do with these people.''Aye,' Kit said.'No doubt politics of this nature are a shade too deep for me.I would speak to you on another matter, one which is a great deal closer to my heart.Lilian.''Is pregnant.Say no more.I have expected the news almost daily.And you are distressed, for mother and child.So he will be a bastard.There can be no criticism of that, Kit.Where or how a man is born is of no account whatsoever.It is what he inherits from his parents that matters, in the way of character and personality, and your son will ever possess the best of both.Why, should you ask me to stand godfather, I would be flattered, and I accept, here and now.'Kit sometimes felt that talking with Daniel Parke was like trying to walk a lane with his arms round a wild horse.'Lilian's not pregnant.At least, not to my knowledge.She has found a way, she supposes, to resolve her difficulties, to expiate her humiliation.'Parke's turn to frown.'She has challenged Marguerite to a duel,' Kit said.'And her challenge has been accepted.They meet with pistols on the beach, at dawn tomorrow.'Parke's frown slowly cleared; it was replaced with a look of blank amazement.'Two women, I beg your pardon, two ladies, mean to fight a duel? With pistols?''Exactly,' Kit said.'A more preposterous idea has surely never been heard.''Preposterous,' Parke said.'Oh, indeed, it is preposterous.Why, it is." he burst into a peal of laughter.'By God, Kit, but you will have to excuse me [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]