Forever Young Birth Of A Nation (3 page)

The Anglican Bishop of New York asked
everyone to stand as he offered a prayer. General Gage then bade
everyone be seated as wine was brought around to each guest. After
all were served, they waited expectantly. When Gage stood all stood
with him and he offered a toast with the words “God Save the King”
to which all responded likewise and drank. Gage was disturbed by
the constant news of colonials rebelling against the Crown and even
while artfully talking with the guests nearest him, he pondered
what besides the hostilities he might offer for a topic of
conversation that evening. The young Major who was a friend of
Captain Andrew Norris came to him and whispered something.

Supper was nearly through when General Gage
stood and using his fork he made a pinging noise on the crystal
goblet he held. The conversation died down as he said “Some eight
years ago a Scottish trading vessel in the Mediterranean was
attacked by two pirate ships. That crew defeated the pirates in a
brilliantly fought battle and as a result, the daughter of the
Spanish Ambassador to France was saved from being sold into
slavery. She and a companion had been captured at sea by these same
pirates who murdered her aunt, uncle, and the entire crew of their
ship. It has just been brought to my attention that we have with us
tonight one of the men who rescued the daughter of the Spanish
Ambassador to France from those pirates. Ian McCloud, would you
please stand up for everyone sir?”

Embarrassed, Ian stood uncomfortably to
scattered applause as General Gage said “Mr. McCloud, would you do
us the honor of relating that story after dinner. I am sure that
there are more than a few of us who would love to hear your
account.” Ian nodded and sat back down. Norris leaned over saying
“Ian I am sorry. I shared your adventure with my friend and it
appears that he told Gage.”

“Oh, think nothing of it Andrew. It’s not as
if I have not had to tell it before.”

Nearer to General Gage sat Colonel Grundy,
and with him sat Colonel Matthew Davis and his daughter Rebecca.
Her attention shifted to Ian when he stood and she found herself
staring at him in fascination even after he sat down. As the meal
drew to a close and dessert had been offered, she was stealing
glances his direction as often as she could without being obvious.
She thought
he looks as if he could be Mediterranean in
nationality but for those piercing blue eyes. My, but he is
handsome! I must dance with him tonight if at all possible.
She
sat pondering how to accomplish that without offending Grundy and
certainly without herself asking him. All the while she conversed
adroitly with Grundy and her father.

Dinner being at an end, Gage and no small
gathering were at one side of the ballroom floor when he caught
Ian’s eye and beckoned to him, smiling broadly. In under a minute
Ian was relating the harrowing battle at sea with the pirates that
had happened some eight years earlier. He kept it to a minimal
commentary and instead just let whoever was curious to ask
questions. There were nearly as many women as men listening to the
story unfold. Several of the men present allowed as how they had
heard the account and had wondered if it had been only a maritime
legend after all. Andrew then chimed in and mentioned the storm
that had hit Ian and his shipmates only five days after the battle
so Ian had to relate the story of the storm. Several men present
were naval officers and had heard of the storm because of its
unusual ferocity. All were amazed that Ian and a crew of only eight
others had survived the storm and had even had the prize ship
restored and sold for a handsome profit.

The music had started by then so General
Gage and his wife took the floor to begin a minuet by themselves as
the guests of honor. It turned out that the entire British military
compliment had collaborated to honor the Gages and had all chipped
in to pay for the gala. Grundy waited patiently until Gage beckoned
and then with Rebecca, he joined in the minuet with many of the
guests. A few of the naval officers stayed gathered about Ian
questioning him about details of the storm and the battle for the
duration of two songs. As the ladies prompted the men to dance
then, Ian saw a chance to make a polite escape. He had noticed a
group of young girls gathered nearby, so he walked to the group and
deliberately chose the youngest of them, a girl of only twelve
years age. After they had properly introduced each other, she shyly
smiled up at him, curtseyed properly, and taking his arm followed
him to the dance floor.

Rebecca had followed this with some
interest. All of the single men at the ball had gone directly to
seek out attractive single ladies, whereas Ian and his companion
had gone to dance with the children.

Ian danced the minuet with her, conversing
politely all the while and complimenting her on her dancing skills.
Soon she was at ease and laughing, having a good time with this
dark handsome stranger. When that dance ended Ian properly escorted
her back to her companions, complimenting her on her dancing skills
in front of them all and thanking her. He asked another one to
dance as a tune written by Vivaldi began to be played. By then
Andrew had followed Ian and James’ lead and both had asked young
girls from the same group of eight to dance. As Rebecca noticed
that her esteem grew for the tall Scot and his companions.

Ian had reasoned that this was the best way
to ensure that he did not ruffle any man’s feathers over some lady.
Besides that he thought that the children at least deserved to
dance at least once that evening instead of only watching others or
dancing with their fathers. Soon others including boys of that age
group had begun to seek dance partners from the group. After
dancing with five of the eight girls there, Ian saw that all were
taken for the next dance so he made his way to where he could have
a drink of fruit punch. Liquor had been excluded from the
refreshments due to the presence of children at the event.

He had gotten a glass of punch from the
white-gloved attendant when he was approached by Gage himself,
accompanied by a ravishing young brunette with large beautiful
hazel colored eyes. Gage introduced her to Ian, saying “Ian, meet
Rebecca Davis, daughter of Colonel Harold Davis. Rebecca, meet Ian
McCloud, banker and pirate-killer extraordinaire.”

“Enchanted Miss Davis” Ian said as he bowed
in a courtly fashion, kissing the back of her hand.

“Charmed, Mr. McCloud” said Rebecca as she
curtsied, flashing Ian a dazzling smile. “How exciting to meet a
man known to be a pirate killer!”

Laughing, Ian said “There were well over
thirty of us that were pirate killers that day, Miss Davis. In fact
we had done the same in the South China Sea several months before
that as well.”

“Oh my! You have fought pirates in the seas
of China as well? What took you there, Mr. McCloud?”

“Trade. I can tell you that it is not a
glamorous past time. And banking pays a lot better too.” She
clapped her hands and laughed delightedly.

“Ian, please take this young lady to the
dance floor for me. I have just completed some eight dances now and
I need a rest.”

As they made their way to the dance floor,
Rebecca said “Mr. McCloud, you hardly look like any banker that I
ever saw.” Ian chuckled and said “Please Miss Davis, do call me
Ian. I was a sailor all of my life before becoming a banker.”

They began to dance then, a minuet but one
with some more exacting moves called for. Ian silently thanked
Marie Lafayette for her endless patience in teaching him every
method of dance known in Europe. He performed them flawlessly, and
really better than Rebecca. She was duly impressed and said so.

“Not many do this particular dance well,
Ian. You are quite skilled in dance.”

“Thank you, Miss Davis. I had a wonderful
teacher.”

“Ian, however did you end up going from
being a merchant seaman to being a banker?” Ian told her a
carefully constructed story that he had used throughout Europe
whenever asked. Vampires were of course, omitted. He told of being
attacked by a bear while in France and of being nursed back to
health by the Lafayettes, where he met Cosette, who he fell in love
with and married.

“So you are married after all?”

He detected the slightest disappointment in
her voice, but he related to her the carefully constructed story of
Cosette’s death. There had been a fire around that time in which
some children had died in a large building in Arles as Henri had
learned some time later. They had all agreed to pick that incident
as the one in which Cosette had died, should any of them ever be
asked. This was only a precaution in the unlikely event that
someone might be curious enough to check out the story. Certainly
they could not go about telling anyone that she died when they
raided the home of a Satanist who had seventeen vampires on his
payroll.

“I am sorry to hear that Ian. So you have
remained a bachelor ever since then?”

“No, Miss Davis. I was married again not two
years ago to Alandra Vasquez, the lady who I helped free from the
Pirates. She was killed accidentally less than three months
ago.”

Showing genuine concern and sympathy in her
large beautiful eyes, she then said “Oh, Ian! I am so sorry! I did
not mean to bring up such a painful thing. How clumsy and
thoughtless of me!”

“Nonsense; how could you have known?”

“Ian, please do call me Rebecca. I am
embarrassed beyond my ability to say it that I have brought up such
a thing. You are by far the most interesting person I have ever met
at one of these affairs. I… I was only eager to learn more about
you.”

“Please Rebecca. Say no more.” After saying
that, he lapsed into silence and simply danced with her, however he
did smile kindly at her from time to time. As the dance ended they
were far across the floor from where her group was, and she turned
to him with a sorrowful look on her face. “Ian, please accept my
apology. I am so sorry to have caused you grief.”

He turned to her and stood holding both of
her hands, a sympathetic but sad look on his face. “There, there
lass. No grief over this thing now, please. I…Look…..I…I came to
this land to forget those sorrows. I hoped that by staying busy, I
could avoid thinking about it. You’ve done nothing wrong. I…look;
it has been my delight to dance with you, Rebecca. Please promise
me you will save me a dance the next time we are at one of these
affairs.”

Oh my! I want to dance all of this night
with this man! I do love his voice and those eyes, how striking! He
has a way about him…. what is it about him?
She brightened
noticeably then and nodded enthusiastically, saying “Oh yes, Ian! I
promise to save you a dance the next time.” She thought
I would
save every dance for you if only you knew it!

Flashing a dazzling smile then he said “I
had better be taking you back to your group, lest they think I have
kidnapped you.” She thought
I might not mind that at all!
Rebecca! Where did that thought come from?

Ian escorted her to her seat just as Harold
Grundy returned with Mrs. Gage. Grundy tried to conceal his
displeasure as best he could and Ian never noticed a thing, but
Esther Gage noticed it right away. The music started again and
Harold asked Rebecca to dance, so Ian turned to Mrs. Gage and asked
her to dance seeing as General Gage was not to be seen.

She was a good dancer and was skilled in the
art of interesting conversation as well. Ian learned that her
husband was disappointed in the way the hostilities were shaping up
with the colonists, and worried as well. After that dance ended,
Ian danced two more numbers with wives of two of the naval officers
who had been so interested in his story. He answered questions
about his sailing experience and some few about banking. After that
he went to get another glass of punch, joining both James and
Andrew. He finished the evening dancing with the very young ladies
of the group where he had started, who were all glad that he and
James had returned to dance again with them.

They departed near to eleven o’clock,
walking with Andrew to the loading dock where
New Hope
was
moored and parting company there. Ian and James were hunting north
of the city within the hour and bagged several rabbits. The balance
of the night was spent recalling the events of the evening and
comparing notes. There was no doubt that the accounts given in the
newspapers and the reality of the war between the Crown and the
colonies were two different things. Ian was becoming increasingly
interested in the struggle.

Miles Edwards sat reading a detailed report
given him by a private investigator just that morning. He had moved
into his missing brother’s estate in North London and had been
actively pursuing facts surrounding his brother’s disappearance. As
he pored over the report his brow furrowed in concentration.

The information fit with what he had learned
at Robert Milliken’s office recently, being as it said one Ian
McCloud had gone to America. The report went on to say that indeed
one Henri Lafayette had been in London at the time of his brother’s
disappearance, in company with an unknown number of people. The
grisly evidence he had found at his brother’s home before the
Constables had arrived that first day had been a piece of what he
was now sure was his brother’s ear. It looked as if a child had
bitten it off and spit it out. Yet there was no mention of a child
in this report. He absent-mindedly took a sip of rabbit’s blood
from a pewter goblet on the table beside the wingback chair he sat
in.

As he pondered this, his butler came in to
announce that there were two people who asked to see him. He nodded
and shortly the butler escorted a lovely red-headed woman and a man
wearing a silver hook mounted in place of his right hand into the
room. Remaining seated, Edwards merely raised his eyebrows and
waited for them to speak. The man introduced himself as Stefan
Devrie and his wife as Yvonne. Edwards nodded and gestured to the
sofa across from his chair.