Authors Notes: Well thats the end of that. I could have ended it here...but where is the fun of that :D
A Soft Triumph
Chapter 19
Man without fears?
Soon enough Percy walked back into the kitchen. His job done, Tony back under the leagues roofs. A little worse for wear, but still had a huge smile on his face.
Percy spread out the things he had got at the market today. Chauvelin sat in the corner eating the left over stew from earlier. A few of his men were doing the same. Percy pulled out a large pan and pored water from a bucket into it.
"So what we eating tonight old man?" One of the other soldiers asked. Percy smiled and lifted up a tuna, and had a huge smile on his face.
"Man at the market was practically giving this away. Says he's closing up shop. Moving to the country where he and his wife can live now that there son has joined the revolution as a soldier. Says they no longer have anything to worry about." He said and started to cut up the tuna. "Such a nice man, I'll miss him." The story was true...well partially. Although there son didn't join the revolution, he joined the league.
"Always a good thing to retire after so much hard work." A soldier said and leaned back smoking a pipe.
"Specially a child whose joining such a noble cause." Chauvelin said lifting his glass. "To the revolution." He said. Percy lifted his water cup and nodded his head drinking from it.
Later on that night
Percy walked into the room where his daughter was being kept. She looked up and at her father. Her eyes were very droopy and tired looking. He sat the tray down and walked over to her. His hands ran over hers as she looked back out the window.
"Tony is safe." He whispered as he took her hands in his. "Your so cold..." He said trying to warm them in his large hands.
"I was so worried that I wouldn't see Sir Tony again." She smiled at her father and looked at the food in the bowl. "Whats that?" She asked looking into the bowl.
"I know you don't like fish so I made you some potato chowder instead. Its not much I'm afraid, but it'll still fill up your belly." He said and held up a spoon full. He stopped and leaned forward. "You'll get very tired after eating this...but please...just let it happen. It'll be easier to carry you." He said and held up the spoon. Eve looked at the spoon very accusingly. She opened her mouth and took a bite.
There was a drug in the food. She couldn't taste it much, but there was a soft bitter taste to the food. When she was finished Percy looked out into the dinning room where the soldiers were eating before. Most of which were yawning and falling asleep. Even Chauvelin had fallen asleep in the middle of making his pipe. Percy smiled and looked around at his daughter who yawned and curled up in the chair she was sitting in. Percy checked the rest of the house, all of which were out like a light. He came back to find his daughter asleep. He picked her up pulling a blanket around the young girl and carried her out of the building meant for her prison. Outside was a carriage waited with Tony within, and Andrew was driving.
"How is she sir?" Tony asked as Percy sat down with his daughter in his arms.
"A little worse for wear but she'll be fine." He said kissing the top of her head.
The carriage halted quite abruptly outside the inn they were staying at. The door was flung open and Hastings stood there with the lamp.
"Percy...come see." He said. Percy climbed out of the carriage and ran into the Inn. The keepers wife motioned for him to follow. Once upstairs and inside a room he looked on the sight he had waited all his life to see. A woman, his wife holding a child in her arms while humming as it fed. He walked forward and leaned over to see the child. It had soft blond hair like him. He looked down at the sleeping child in his arms.
"Eve...wake up." He whispered shaking the little girl who opened her eyes to see her father without that dreadful wig and mustache. "Look." He said turning her just so.
Eve crawled across the bed and looked down at the child. Her eyes watered up and looked up at her father. She reached over and cradled the babies head in her hands.
"Its a boy." Margeurite whispered and looked up at Percy. Her face broke into a smile when she saw the tears running down his face. They were silent tears, the man never let loose any sort of emotion such as these. Eve put her head on her mothers shoulder. She looked up when Percy's league looked through the door. Eve jumped up and ushered them out the doors and closed it.
"You know...I think I know why she's been having those nightmares, and not wanting to be with us." Percy said and sat down on the bed.
"Oh?" Margeurite asked looking back down at the baby.
"I figured it out when she left to go riding that morning." He said and looked up at Eve as she turned and looked at Percy.
"I didn't want to be in the way. I left so you two could have some time together. Papa has been away from us for months at a time sometimes and most of the time he spends it with me teaching me stuff...when he needs to be with you." She said and looked up at her father unsure of what he would think. "I didn't mean to get caught." She said and looked at the baby.
"Oh but sweetheart...your our daughter, we chose to adopt you. We knew what we were doing with when took the job." Margeurite said quoting Percy from several of his exploits. Percy nodded picking up his daughter who yawned and looked down at his son. "So what do we name him?" Percy asked. Eve looked down at him.
"I like the name Robert." Eve said and Percy looked down at the boy and nodded. "Robert." He said and chuckled. "Sir Robert Blakeney." He said and sat his daughter down and picked up his son and walked toward the door and opened it. The league walked over to there chief. "Meet my son Robert." He said and looked up when Eve leaned in and giggled. But suddenly the smile disappeared as she looked down at the ground floor where Chauvelin was looking on with over a dozen men.
"I see you got your daughter back...but its short lived Sir Percy. I knew that old keeper was you. I waited to follow you so you could lead us to this very spot." He said Eve thought quickly as she pulled the rope on the overhanging candle holder. It fell and landed on Chauvelin and his men.
"Quickly we need to get mother and my brother out of here." Percy looked at his daughter.
"Already taking on the over protective big sister note?" He said and pulled a blanket around his son and watched as Hastings and Andrew picked up Lady Blakeney.
"I lost one sibling to my ignorance...I will not loose another." She said officially following them downstairs and into the carriage. Soon enough they were at the port and away from Paris.
