“Ralph, what’s wrong?”
“There’s someone on the road ahead of us, ma’am,” he replied evenly.
The track was barely wide enough for the coach, so she wondered how they would be able to let the approaching horsemen come by. She leaned out a little further, narrowing her eyes against the glare of the setting sun.
“Can they pass us?” she asked.
Ralph coughed. “I don’t think they want to do that, ma’am. I think they’re highwaymen.”
The sound of a bullet whining past confirmed his guess. Georgina ducked back inside the coach, her heart racing. She used her foot to push the jewellery-box even further beneath the seat. It was the first place a thief would look, but in order to do so, he’d have to take his eyes off her – and she would be ready for him.
Satisfied that the box couldn’t be seen from above, she sat back on the opposite seat and waited. She heard hoof-beats and then a challenge from the road. Ralph responded readily enough, calling abuse at the ruffians who dared to waylay them. Georgina edged towards the window again and peeked out. One of the blackguards had a chestnut mount, a nervous filly that whickered at the four black stallions that drew her coach. The rider of the filly held a blunderbuss pointed at Ralph, while the other highwayman cantered nearer on a pure white gelding.
Georgina stared in disbelief, recalling her earlier words at the inn. Romantic, she’d said it was, to ride a white horse – but the reality was somewhat different. Only a man supremely certain of his ability to conquer and flee could hope to evade detection on a white horse.
Or maybe he chose his mount because it provided such a dramatic foil to his clothes. Like his colleague, he wore a long black cape that swirled as he slid from the saddle, and then he flung it back over his shoulders to reveal the rest of his attire – all as black as his cloak.
She looked at him with interest. Long leather boots shone softly in the muted light beneath tight breeches, over which he wore a plain dark cotton shirt that laced across his broad chest. She could just about make out the slight roughening of hair where the laces crossed, and so she jerked her gaze upwards to continue her perusal.
He wore a velvet redingote with silver frogging, and she couldn’t help but notice too that the coat was a little strained across his shoulders. The lower part of his face was covered with a black neckerchief, but his eyes were very blue, bright with mischief as he faced her. His hair was dark, short and rumpled beneath the tricorn hat he swept off his head when he saw her at the coach window.
“Your servant, ma’am,” he said respectfully, bowing from the waist.
“I didn’t think highwaymen were anybody’s servants,” Georgina retorted.
“Highwaymen? But that’s such a common term.” He sounded offended, straightening himself up and drawing closer. “I prefer to think of myself as… a pirate of the turnpikes.”
“That sounds slightly more impressive,” she agreed as seriously as she could.
His eyes twinkled as if he found her amusing, and then he lifted his gloved hands and drew a flintlock from his belt, levelling it at her with a flourish. “And we all know that pirates – and highwaymen – like booty… So, my dear ma’am, hand it over, if you please.”
Georgina affected surprise. “I can assure you that I have nothing of value with me or in this coach.”
His eyebrows lifted. “Indeed? I think you’re lying, ma’am. What about your rings? They’d fetch a pretty penny.”
She clutched her fingers tight together and gave him a furious look. “You’ll have to cut my hands off first!”
The highwayman came closer, until it was mere inches between the mouth of the pistol and her face. “Don’t think I won’t do it, if that’s what it takes.”
Georgina swallowed nervously. “You wouldn’t. Highwaymen are rogues, but none have ever laid hands upon a woman in violence.”
He looked thoughtful. “There’s always a first time.”
“…pure fun. In a few short pages Ms. Lorenz has created realistic and likeable characters who took me on a true fantasy trip. I loved watching this story unfold. Short and sweet… I absolutely adored The Lady and the Highwayman.”
- Amelia, Joyfully Reviewed
