AN: A speedier update as a thank you for all the lovely reviews for the last chapter. A bit more Ruth here...

"Where should I put these books, miss?"

Ruth looked up from arranging her desk, pushing a loose dark curl behind her ear, and paused to answer the footman's enquiry. "Over in that trunk there, please, John. I shan't need them again before I depart for Kieley." The footman followed her instructions, quietly leaving the room afterwards. Miss Evershed sat down in the one uncovered chair in the room with a sigh - in two days time she would be leaving London, finally, to go to Kieley and Lady Radford. The elderly lady, fatigued by several entertainments that she and Ruth had attended in the last week, had decided to go to the country a few days early, leaving Ruth behind to follow at her leisure. The arrangement worried Ruth somewhat; as far as she could remember, Lady Radford had never admitted to any sort of genuine fatigue or illness. A frown furrowed her brow and she could not quite quell the suspicion that her godmother was hiding something from her…

A knock sounded on the door and Berry entered. He had been torn between returning to Kieley with his mistress, or remaining in London with Miss Evershed, but Lady Radford had soon settled the matter - Ruth would be in far more need of a butler than she herself, shut up in the country, would be, for the next few days at least. He bowed stiffly and announced, "Sir Henry Pearce has called, ma'am. Should I send him in, or are you too busy to receive him?" Ruth stood up, all thoughts of Lady Radford pushed aside, if not forgotten.

"Send him in, Berry," she replied, more calmly than she felt. Berry bowed once more and left the room. Ruth heard low voices, footsteps and then Sir Henry was shown in. As had become his custom now, he walked frankly up to her and shook her hand whilst Ruth looked around for another chair that had not been wrapped up in linen sheets by Lady Radford's exceedingly efficient housemaids. Sir Henry must have sensed her distraction, however, for he smiled and told her, "Do not trouble yourself to find a chair, Miss Evershed. I have merely come to wish you a safe journey to Kieley and to ask you to send my best wishes to Lady Radford."

Ruth smiled in return and remained standing also. "I do not depart until the day after tomorrow, sir," she reminded him archly.

He shook his head. "Yes, but I myself am departing from London today, on business, and do not think to see you again… for some time."

A pang of sadness flashed through her heart and she looked curiously up into his face. "But your business will not take so much time as to keep you from Middlethorpe for more than a few weeks, surely, sir? Lady Radford and I were rather hoping that we might receive you at Kieley for Christmas."

He appeared somehow distracted, and his answer when it came was somewhat confused. "I had hoped…" He stopped, closed his eyes, paused, and then continued with a visible effort, "….But that may not come to be… I cannot say how long my business will take, that is - I should not like to give you disappointment…"

Sir Henry trailed off once more, a frown creasing his face and making him look more careworn than ever. Worried, Ruth murmured, "I am persuaded, sir, that you… you could never disappoint me."

He attempted to shrug off his gloom, but was not entirely successful. "Forgive me. Should time allow it, I would be delighted to accept your invitation. I cannot yet say what my situation will be. Forgive me."

Ruth shook her head. "I understand, of course."

He nodded somewhat sadly. Silence fell, whilst each tried to think of something more to say that would prolong their meeting, Sir Henry staring searchingly, almost hungrily at Ruth's face, as if trying to memorise it. At last, he gave up and bowed once more. "I must go. Goodbye, Miss Evershed."

His voice sounded so final that Ruth replied more firmly than she ordinarily would have done. "Goodbye, Sir Henry - for the present."

He clasped her hand once more, squeezing her fingers as though trying to burn their imprint into his palm, and then he was gone.

Ruth sat down and covered her face with her hands. His visit had brought her little joy and she could not help remembering her meeting with Mr Mace, and Sir Henry's reaction to it. She sighed. "When sorrows come, they come not single spies but in battalions…"

The wind blew strongly about the two men as they waited on the dockside. Around them, the crew of His Majesty's Ship Stalwart made last-minute preparations for their mission to France. Lucas glanced out at the chopping waves of the sea and frowned in worry. "Are you sure you should be doing this, Harry? You've not been in the field for…" His voice trailed off at the stern look his superior flashed at him.

"Of course. Lucas, I trained Tom Quinn myself. It's my responsibility to discover whatever information he may have left for us, and bring it back." He did not add that France was currently a more appealing option to him than England. Graham's disgrace bit at him like a knife, and his relationship with Miss Evershed was reaching a point where concealment would no longer be possible. For God's sake, he'd almost proposed to her in her godmother's drawing room yesterday morning! And there were still too many things to show her about himself, before he could risk a proposal. He would not make an offer until he was utterly sure that nothing could happen in future years to destroy whatever happiness they might have together. He had not quite realised how much she had captured him, until he had been standing in that room, alone but for her, with her soulful blue eyes gazing up at him with such trust and, dare he speculate, admiration. The force of will needed to tear himself away from her had been terrific, and the power of such an attachment scared him somewhat. He had never felt such a way about a woman before - not even, he remembered guiltily, about his late wife.

Tearing himself away from his thoughts, he accepted his passport (forged, of course, and bearing a false, French, name) from Lucas and slipped it inside the pocket of his caped driving coat. "In any case, I speak fluent French, which will make the whole process far easier than it would be for any one of the pups you and Carter are training," he added briskly.

Lucas nodded, but he still appeared worried. "Take care, sir," he advised, shaking his commanding officer's hand. A smile suddenly crossed his face, relieving it somewhat from the tension it had been under. "I think Ruth may be rather angry if you do not, in any case."

Harry remained straight-faced. "I couldn't possibly comment. Goodbye, Lucas."

But it was a thought that maintained him in some cheer and comfort as the Royal Navy ship pulled out of the dock and turned towards France.

AN: Next time - Ruth at Kieley, or Harry in France? Thoughts?