General Cornwallis's impromptu meeting with General 'O Hara and some of his men was not going well. They had insisted that he grant them an interview as they were concerned that the Redcoats were not gaining ground as quickly as they ought to. They urged Cornwallis to commandeer more of his troops for battle with the militia.
'We cannot underestimate them, my Lord,' General 'O Hara said urgently. 'They have killed eleven officers in less than the same number of days and they are intercepting our supply runs to the camps.'
Cornwallis sighed – his mind was not on the task in hand that evening and he was sick of the attention that he had been forced to give to the continental militia. In his opinion they were slow-witted urchins who fought with wooden arrows and spears like an uncivilised rabble of miscreants. The only fighting he was interested in was that which would bring him glory and victory; sacrificing his men for militia would do neither, since it would not win the war, nor earn the respect of England. He glanced out of the window of his office and noticed that the sun was burning a dim orange and that dusk was about to fall.
'Captain,' he said shortly, 'I have no intention of discussing this matter any further with you this evening. I have an appointment that cannot wait.'
'An appointment, my Lord? I have not been informed of this …'
'And why should you?' Cornwallis snapped. 'There are matters I have to attend to which are none of your affair.'
'But my Lord, we have some valuable supplies to transport tomorrow – this matter cannot be put off, we need your word to request more men for the security of it.'
'Damn it,' Cornwallis shouted, banging his fist on the table in frustration, 'I will not permit you to enlist more men for such trivia. Are you not the King's redcoats? Can you not protect our supplies from a mob of vagabonds? If you cannot, then how do you hope to take victory against the colonial army - and the French?' General 'O Hara reddened slightly. He thought it unfair that Lord Cornwallis was reproaching him for something that was hardly his fault. It had been Colonel Tavington's actions that had swelled the ranks of the milita and created the notoriety of the "Ghost", but he merely nodded.
'Certainly, my Lord,' he said. 'I will give orders to the men that they are to quell any rebellion single-handedly and relieve the rabble of their wooden spears and loin cloths.' General 'O Hara wondered if Cornwallis would let him get away with the thinly veiled insolence of such a remark, but he seemed distracted and merely grunted that he and his men were dismissed.
Several minutes later the Lord Cornwallis was tapping his fingers impatiently on the desk. He was not used to being kept waiting and he hoped that his letter had reached the appropriate hands. He did not relish the prospect of waiting another day before resolving the matter of Grace. He thought that if he had time to think too deeply about it he could easily talk himself out of his decision, as he had a weak spot for his granddaughter and he knew in his heart that she would be enraged by the course of action that he had decided to take. Perhaps unluckily for Grace, then, there was a knock at the door a few moments later.
'Come in,' Cornwallis said, his low voice resounding like an echo through the empty office. The door opened and through it stepped a British soldier.
'You sent for me my Lord,' came the indifferent drawl as the soldier made his way to Cornwallis's desk, his footsteps loud and purposeful.
'Yes,' Cornwallis said.
'On a personal matter, my Lord?'
'Yes,' came the reply, 'Please sit down Colonel Tavington.'
Tavington looked at Cornwallis with mild surprise; as far as he could recollect the General had never invited him to be seated in the entire time he had served under him. He drew up the small wooden chair which had been placed opposite the General and seated himself in front of him, wincing slightly as he made contact – it had been another heavy day in the saddle. He had gotten the sealed letter from a redcoat private earlier that day. It was not the first time that he had been summoned to the General's office in recent weeks, and he had not relished the prospect of repeating the experience at first. The other interviews had been extremely unpleasant and humiliating – the General having been less than pleased about the progress of the one they now called "Ghost" and his militia, and he seemed to hold Tavington personally responsible, using him as a verbal punch bag for his frustration. However, when he had read the short letter more thoroughly he had noticed the General's reference to a 'private and personal matter'. Though Tavington had struggled to imagine to what this may refer he was at least easier in the knowledge that it was not going to be another dressing down witnessed by the triumphant General 'O Hara, who seemed to take every derogatory mark made towards Tavington as a personal victory.
'My Lord …?' Tavington prompted, thinking that the General was regarding him very strangely.
'This is not easy for me, Colonel,' Cornwallis said, wringing his hands and getting to his feet. Tavington had no reply to this, so he simply watched as Cornwallis began pacing, wondering whether he had deliberately ordered him to be seated so that he could physically loom over him. 'You must understand that I have attempted every other avenue. I would not ask this of you, or her, unless I had exhausted every other possibility,'
'Her, my Lord?' Tavington said, slightly confused. Cornwallis paused at the far end of the room and turned to look directly at the Colonel of the Dragoons.
'Grace,' he said after a few moments of silence.
Tavington had to try very hard to stop his expression giving away his disgust. He could hardly believe that Cornwallis had disturbed him from his duties to discuss that impudent little wench.
'I do not understand, Sir,' he said, as lightly as he could, endeavouring to keep the contempt from his tone. Cornwallis was now back behind his desk and was watching the Tavington carefully.
'I desire, Colonel, that you and my granddaughter be joined in matrimony.'
