Only With Your Love (Vallerands #2)(85)

Justin continued to smile. “I give a damn about you too, Father.”

“I won’t lose you,” Max said grimly.

“No, not if you keep from interfering.”

Max released him reluctantly, remembering Justin’s dislike of being touched. They began to walk again, and Max said abruptly. “There is something I didn’t intend for you to know until after the matter was resolved. Now I think you should be made aware of it.”

“What is it?” Justin asked warily.

“Commander Matthews and Lieutenant Benedict are assembling a combined force of sailors and marines to attack the island. They’ve been planning it for some time.”

Justin stopped in his tracks. “What? How long have you known about this?”

“For weeks, actually.”

“Why the hell didn’t you tell me?” Justin demanded angrily.

“I didn’t feel you needed to know.”

“Dammit, when is this little expedition supposed to occur?”

“The day after tomorrow.”

“The day af—” Justin broke off with a foul oath. “The fools! There’ll be heavy loss of life. There are ships in the harbor with long guns and carronades. They’ll take out half the force before Matthews gets close enough to fire on the island!”

“Perhaps. But Legare’s presence has become too much of a menace. They can’t allow it to continue unchallenged any longer. They feel the assistance of the army will give them the necessary strength.”

“Have you told Matthews about Philippe? That he may be a prisoner on the island?”

“Of course not. If I had, the authorities would have come to arrest you immediately.”

“You’ll have to go to Matthews and Lieutenant Benedict and tell them everything, Father. About me and Philippe and the whole charade.”

“No,” Max said decisively. “If you’re hoping to rely on their mercy, mon fils, you’ll quickly discover that there will be none for you. Come morning they’ll have you swinging from the gallows.”

“Not if they know I can be of use to them. You must find out precisely when they plan to attack, down to the minute. Convince them to wait until after I exchange myself for Philippe. That way Philippe will be safe.”

Max looked unimpressed. “And how will you be of any use to the naval force then?”

“I’ll have some of my men on Isle au Corneille to protect me. Aug will smuggle them there. Then I’ll lead an attack from within the fort. Tell Matthews that we’ll set fire to the munitions warehouses and use the fort’s own cannon to take out the defenses in the harbor. We’ll weaken them from the inside. Then the naval squadron will be able to take the island without resistance. Matthews will have to agree to that.”

Max shook his head. “There are too many opportunities for something to go wrong.”

“There always are.” Justin glanced at him, surprised by the feeling of companionship he had never experienced with Max before. “We have to do it this way. For Philippe’s sake. Make Matthews understand that I can help him.”

Max scowled, but he did not argue.

Justin was relieved as he realized that his father would do what he asked. “Father…you realize that after this I’ll have to disappear for good.”

“I’m still attempting to arrange a pardon for you.”

“Not even you have that much money or influence. If I’m not caught, I’ll leave and hopefully be presumed dead.”

“And we’ll never see you again,” Max said quietly.

Justin hesitated. “No.”

“And what of Celia?”

When there was no immediate reply, Max looked at his son. Justin’s face was remote and his jaw was tightly clenched. “She’ll be better off with Philippe,” Justin managed to say. “There’s only one kind of life I can offer her, and I’ve come to realize I…don’t want that for her.”

After walking back to the main house with Max, Justin kept himself occupied with small tasks for the rest of the day, repairing a few loose boards in the bell tower and joining in the effort to clear a fallen tree that had partially blocked the drive. As he worked alongside the slaves, Justin reflected on the irony that on Isle au Corneille and among most pirate crews, men of color had freedom and authority equal to any white man, whereas here in the civilized world they were reduced to slavery. The value of a man like Aug, intelligent and perceptive, able to organize men and carry out plans with skill and inventiveness, could never be realized here. Here Aug could not sit at a table and partake of a meal with him. Their friendship would be governed by intolerable restraints devised by a hypocritical society. Justin realized that his friendship with Aug and the past few years of living and fighting alongside his crew had changed his beliefs radically.

Although there were many freedmen in New Orleans, and it was common—even encouraged—for white men to take mulatto or octoroon mistresses, a male with any drop of Negro blood would be hanged for having an affair with a white woman. Since Justin had arrived here he had dared to ask Max if he felt there was anything wrong with such a system. To his surprise, Max had admitted uncomfortably that with his own increasing interest in his shipping business, he had recently been considering freeing his slaves. Justin hoped that he would, although he knew that it would cause trouble, even outrage, between the Vallerands and many important Creole families.