Hawke, Simon Time Wars 3 The Pimpernel Plot

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more surprising was his announcement that he had only narrowly
escaped the guillotine, having received the death sentence
from the Committee of Public Safety, and that he and his
sons would have been headless corpses had they not been rescued
by a daring Englishman.
Who was this splendid fellow to whose courage we owe
The Pimpernel Plot
the pleasure of your company, good sir? the Prince of Wales
asked.
I regret to say, said the elderly de Chalis, in perfect although
accented English, that I cannot tell you his name, Your
Highness.
What? said the prince. But see here, my dear fellow, we
must know the name of this brave chap, so that we may single
him out for the accolades which are justly his. This is no time
for modesty. England needs her heroes. Tell the fellow to come
forth!
I am afraid that I have been misunderstood, Your Highness,
said the duke. I did not mean that I will not tell you his name,
but that I cannot tell you his name. It is unknown to me. What
is more, I can no more describe him to you and this fine assemblage
than I can tell you his name. I have learned that I
have never seen his true face.
At this remark, another wave of murmuring swept through
the crowd, but it was brought to a quick halt by the Prince of
Wales rapping his hand upon the table for silence.
But how is this possible, Monsieur le Duc? How can this
man have rescued you from certain death and you have never
seen his face?
I have never seen his true face, Your Highness, replied de
Chalis. This Englishman is a consummate actor and a master
of disguise. I know him only by a curious appellation imparted
to me by certain individuals who are in league with
him. This man prefers to do his work in secret and it seems
that he has set himself the task of saving as many innocent
lives from the guillotine as possible. Would that I knew his
name and face so I could thank him, for I owe him everything,
but all I know of this gallant gentleman is that he calls himself
the Scarlet Pimpernel.
Say what? slurred Sheridan, leaning forward drunkenly
and fixing his bleary eyes upon the duke. The Scarlet Pimple,
100 Time Wars #3
did you say?
Oh, hush, Richard! said his dinner partner, an aspiring
actress well out of her depth in this society, whose knees had
been tightly clamped together throughout all of dinner in order
to frustrate Sheridan s groping fingers. She gave him a
shove with her elbow, not very hard, but hard enough, considering
his state, to topple him from his chair and send him to
the floor, where he remained.
A gentleman seated across from him turned to face a friend
of his across the table and, indicating the seat vacated by the
dramatist, quickly said, That s five pounds you owe me.
The Scarlet Pimpernel, said Dewhurst, at the same time
motioning the servants to prepare a place for the old Frenchman
at the table. A small, star-shaped red flower, I believe.
How very fascinating! said Lord Grenville. I say, Dewhurst,
can you shed any light upon this situation?
Only a little, I m afraid, milord. For the most part, I am as
much in the dark about this singular gentleman as are the rest
of you. As some of you may know, Percy and I are old acquaintances,
having met abroad and spent much pleasurable time
together on numerous occasions. Percy was the proud owner
of an absolutely splendid yacht, a beauty of a schooner called
the Day Dream. We had sojourned in the Bay of Biscay aboard
that lovely craft and I had determined that I had to have her.
The Pimpernel, Dewhurst! said the Prince of Wales. What
of this Scarlet Pimpernel?
I m getting to that, Your Highness, Dewhurst said, beginning
to saunter round the table slowly, enjoying his role immensely.
He came to the spot where Sheridan had fallen,
stepped over him and paused a moment, then picked up the
playwright s glass, which was still three-quarters full. Faith
and I believe ole Richard s finished with this glass. Well, waste
not, want not. He took a sip, then glanced down at the floor.
I say, Burke, I ve heard that Sheridan could really hold the
The Pimpernel Plot
floor in Parliament and now I see that he s adept at holding
the floor here, as well.
This sally was greeted with uproarious laughter and Edmund
Burke, especially, laughed heartily, pounding on the table and
shouting, Well said, well said!
Tony, stop with this nonsense and get on with it! said William
Pitt. What does Percy s boat have to do with this mysterious [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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