Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for reading yesterday's chapter and for leaving lovely comments.

This is an important day for the story as I reach a landmark CHAPTER 100! When I set out posting this story on September 1st last year, I was 4 days into a 3-month adventure in the USA. No-one could have envisaged what we were about to face.

Nearly 9 months later, the world is in chaos, travel is cancelled and we are in lockdown, unable to be with friends and family who live elsewhere and there has been a weird, global rush on toilet paper!

My sister (an NHS worker) is, thank the Lord, recovering from Covid-19 but too many others have not been so lucky and my heart goes out to them and their families. So, home alone, I continue to write this story, hoping to bring a little daily relief to you all. Isolation would be so much harder to endure without email, internet, social media and the phone.

So, to help me mark this special chapter, I have a favour to ask. I would love to hear from as many of you as possible. All you need do is say, 'Hi!' I'm not asking you to leave an actual review or comment. I would be so excited and it would make my day!

And now, Athos' day is far from over and here he catches up with his second-in-command.

CHAPTER 100

Athos schooled his features so that he gave nothing away as he read through the list of the Red Guards' supplies that he had requested from Grenouille. The man had been quick and efficient in producing it and although the hand was child-like, it was at least legible. He knew Grenouille was watching him and he did not want the man to think he was immediately judging the Red Guard unfavourably, but he was appalled by what he was seeing. They had had the same amount of preparation time as the Musketeers; Tréville and Richelieu had decided early on that a significant number from both regiments would be accompanying the royal party and the Cardinal had deliberately hand-picked those of his own regiment who would be included.

So where had the instructions for the Red Guard fallen down so badly? It surely could not have been from the Cardinal himself; he would not do anything to jeopardise the safety of the monarch. Planque was advised that a threat to the King was possible, which was why so many more of his men were required. Why had he not made adequate provision for those men then? The food quantity was totally inadequate for that number of soldiers and basic in quality. Admittedly they were fewer than the Musketeers, but it was always known how long Louis intended to remain at Versailles and should the trouble – if it materialised - detain them any longer, then extra food should have been included. There was barely enough for the men for the expected duration of the visit and then only if they were rationed from the outset.

He could not help but be reminded of what Tréville said so often; that a good soldier was a well-fed soldier.* Athos was grateful, not for the first time, that he served under such a man. He glanced over the list again and checked the back of the piece of paper in case he had missed anything. It was blank. Planque could only have been in command for a matter of weeks – since his disreputable predecessor had been dispatched by d'Artagnan. Why had Richelieu not taken more notice of what was happening within his regiment? Did he really trust Planque so completely? The man had obviously never had the experience of preparing to go into the field but why had he not sought advice? Was it through pride or the result of unfortunate inexperience? Or was it a painful example of the man's incompetence that Grenouille had complained about to Athos?

Or did Planque have some other agenda and if so, what could it be?

No wonder the Red Guard had reacted so badly to the setting up of the Musketeer kitchen so near to them. They had seen and smelt the preparation of the food for the King's regiment and, feeling justifiably aggrieved, they had acted upon their outrage. What were they expected to do? Hungry, they might be forced to pillage from the nearby villages or poach from the forest and that would be detrimental to Louis' hunt.

"Not exactly a banquet, is it?" Grenouille said eventually and yet there was no bitterness in his tone.

The irony was not lost on Athos that the King and his guests were feasting on freshly roasted meat and luxurious sweetmeats, whilst the soldiers, grown men and physically active, had such plain fare and inadequate in filling their bellies. He could not believe that Richelieu would allow this hardship had he known about it.

"Not really," he admitted, trying to make light of his concern and aware that he had been silent for too long. Something else occurred to him and he was almost afraid to ask. "Tell me about the spare weapons and ammunition that you have brought with you."

This time there was an edge to Grenouille's voice and his face hardened. "We're a little better off there but it's still not enough if we're supposed to be headin' for trouble. I did try to tell 'im about that but he weren't 'avin' it." He was referring to Planque.

"I confess to being surprised that he did not listen. A career soldier such as you must have seen campaign action and could have advised him."

"Probably didn't want to 'ear what I 'ad to say on account of it comin' from me," Grenouille admitted. "You want me to bring you a list of that too?" he offered.

Athos nodded. "I need to see how much there is and how far we can share it out. I will issue instructions tomorrow morning."

"We really expectin' trouble then?"

"How much did the Captain tell you?"

Grenouille shrugged. "Not a lot. 'E hinted that there might be something likely to 'appen but we'd already worked that out for ourselves, the fact that there were so many of us comin' to Versailles this time an' especially when we saw your lot. We've got no idea who we might be fightin', why or how many an' we don't know where they're comin' from or when. Makes a man uneasy, that does, Captain. I learned more from your friends in a couple of minutes than I knew before."

"And what did they tell you?" Athos was hoping that they had not divulged too much by accident.

"You'd gone to a meetin' down south as a sort of spy an' someone'd recognised you an' ordered some men to kill you. Your friend … Aramis, is it? 'E said you'd been 'urt bringin' back some important information for the King and Cardinal."

"And no doubt he told you that I was not ready to be doing what I am doing?"

Grenouille looked sheepish but Athos smiled at his correct assumption.

"I understand your unhappiness about the situation, I really do, but much of this has been shrouded in secrecy out of absolute necessity. I will be in a better position to tell you more in the morning, I promise you. To that end, I want the men mustered for inspection and orders at seven."

Grenouille looked surprised. "Inspection?"

"Yes, didn't Planque inspect the men?"

"Well, yes, but not every day. 'E'd leave it to me the other times. When 'e did do it, 'e didn't take that long about it."

Athos had to bite back what he wanted to say. Instead, he reached up to clap a hand on the other man's shoulder, a friendly gesture that caused a wide-eyed surprise, but Athos chose to ignore it. "No offence, Grenouille, but I want to do it for myself. I expect every man to be in proper uniform and I want to check weapons. No man under my command is seeing action with a dirty weapon. I am telling you this now so that you can pass it on to them; call it a warning if you like. There should be no man who is not ready, but in the event of anyone failing to meet this standard, you will take his name and he must rectify it before he is allowed to break his fast. I expect to be giving out instructions at that time and I have no doubt that there will be plenty of them."

"Do you have any idea when this whatever-it-is might start?"

Athos let his hand drop. "Not exactly but there is an important meeting at nine in the morning and everything depends upon the outcome. That is all I can tell you, I am sorry."

"I know an' don't worry, I can accept that. At least you're talkin' to me an' explainin' what you can."

"What time does your late evening duty change?"

"At ten**," Grenouille told him.

Athos reflected on that. He wanted to eat and spend time with his brothers, desperate to make some amends to them, before making an appearance at the banquet. He knew that he would then have a late-night meeting with Tréville and Richelieu but hoped that they would understand any delay.

"I will make my rounds then," he announced, "and I want you to accompany me."

"Glad to, Captain."

"I will meet you here then," Athos said, turning in the direction of the Musketeer camp.

"Captain, you not goin' to the King's banquet?"

"Not immediately. I am visiting my friends; it might be a while before we have the opportunity to be together again."

Grenouille watched the young man go and thought about what he had said. It was natural that Athos wished to see his comrades; even more so if the next day were to bring a pitched battle, because those four friends would not be fighting beside each other. The Captain was certainly acting as if he anticipated combat and he would be leading the Red Guard, but he was already wounded and Grenouille had not thought to ask the nature of the injury, nor how far he was along the road to recovery. He did not look as if it were hindering him to any great extent but then Grenouille was no man of medicine.

If they were about to be embroiled in a vicious conflict, who knew how many of them would still be standing the next time the sun set?

A/N

And today's little gems …

* The comment 'an army marches on its stomach' is attributed to Napoleon and consequently too late to be used here but Treville is a wise commander and he would, no doubt, have reached a similar conclusion, hence his words.

** The French army did not use or refer to the twenty-four hour clock until 1909.