Page 79 of The Rebel's Prize

Lucien shrugged. "It won't be difficult for him. If he agrees with us, it will be done. As Imogene has said, I'm sure Queen Sophia will be willing to help us if she can. Someone might just have to tie her husband to a chair for the entire voyage so he doesn't lose his mind."

He glanced at Chloe, smiling lopsidedly. "Perhaps he and I and Jean-Paul can form a club for the hard done by husbands of willful women."

Imogene snorted. "I suggest you try, my lord. And see how far you get."

CHAPTER17

When they finally descended the gangplank in Lumia and worked their way around the squads of soldiers waiting on the docks to transfer the prisoners, Chloe spied a familiar carriage waiting for them. She turned to Lucien, who had stretched his arms wide as though happy to be back on solid ground, with more room to move than the navire. "You sent word ahead?"

"Naturally. The staff needed to know what date we would be returning so they could reopen the townhouse."

His tone was matter-of-fact, and Chloe sighed. The need to do that hadn't even crossed her mind. "One day I might learn to think like a proper aristo lady." She wasn't sure she truly believed she was back in Lumia, let alone facing the prospect of being a marquesse for the rest of her life.

Lucien chuckled. "You've had other things on your mind. You will grow accustomed." He nodded toward the carriage. "Shall we, my lady?"

"Yes. I, for one, will be glad of a bath." And to sleep in a proper bed again. Not that there would be much time for sleep in the days ahead.

"Plenty of time for that. The prisoner transfer will take a while. Aristides will be expecting a report, but I'm sure he'll grant us a few hours' grace."

The emperor wasn't exactly famed for his patience. But Lucien knew him better than she did.

Chloe glanced back toward the navire and saw Imogene descending, her head turning as she searched the crowd. When her face broke into a brilliant smile, Chloe assumed she'd spotted Jean-Paul somewhere in the throng. Apparently, Lucien wasn't the only one who'd sent ahead. She smiled, imagining Imogene getting to tell Jean-Paul her news. "Even if there's a message waiting for us when we get home, we'll just have to pretend we didn't see it immediately. I'm not going straight to see the emperor after three days of washing in a basin." Facing Aristides would be hard enough with feeling grimy and wrinkled.

She slipped her hand through Lucien’s arm, but they only managed to get another fifty feet or so toward the carriage when a familiar figure stepped into their path.

"Captain Brodier," Chloe said, jerking to a halt, stomach swooping.

"Lieutenant," the captain said. "Welcome back to Lumia." Her tone was professional, her expression neutral.

With her white-blonde hair and ice-blue eyes, Honoré had a daunting presence at the best of times. Running into one of her superior officers for the first time since technically abandoning her post wasn't the best of times. "Thank you. I'm glad to be back," Chloe said, trying to sound calm.

Honoré turned to Lucien. "Major de Roche. Would it be possible to have a few moments with the lieutenant?"

Lucien looked at Chloe, and she wanted to ask him to stay, but she realized that in this situation, she needed to follow protocol. Honoré was her immediate commanding officer. Lucien, though he outranked her, was in another branch of the services altogether. If he tried to overstep and interfere in whatever Honoré wanted to say, that would be only more trouble. She sent him a little pulse of reassurance through the bond, and he nodded once. "I'll be in the carriage," he said and strode off.

Chloe turned back to Honoré. "Captain. What can I do for you?"

Honoré straightened her shoulders. "I'm glad to see that you have returned, Lieutenant."

Chloe opened her mouth to start to explain, but Honoré held up a hand. "I'll make this short because I'm sure you've had a long journey, and I understand that you're involved in ongoing business for the emperor." She lifted an eyebrow. "For that reason, Lieutenant, we have been ordered to overlook the fact that you left the city without informing us."

Chloe winced. "I'm sorry. I know it was...not protocol. But the circumstances were unconventional."

Honoré straightened. "Unconventional," she said slowly. "That seems to be becoming your default mode of operation."

"I didn't intend to leave. But...." She didn’t know how to explain.Sheknew why she had left, but the army would interpret her actions however they chose, regardless.

Honoré nodded. "I understand, Lieutenant, but you also need to understand that in the diplomatic corps, you are just a lieutenant. A very newly minted one. You are not a marquesse, and there are rules to be followed. This time, there are to be no repercussions, but you cannot keep relying on that being the case in the future. After all, a diplomat who cannot follow protocol is of no use to the corps."

Chloe nodded, swallowing against her suddenly dry mouth. The warning was clear enough: Next time, they wouldn't be so lenient. "I understand. And I am grateful for another chance. It won't happen again."

Honoré sighed and then smiled ruefully. "Well, it seems you have a knack for finding trouble, or sniffing out trouble, at least. That can also be a useful talent. You just need to learn to resolve it in a more collegiate fashion, perhaps." She glanced over her shoulder at the carriage. "But go on, Lieutenant. I'm sure you have business to attend to. Once this investigation has concluded, you'll be reassigned back to the corps, and we will take things from there."

"Thank you," Chloe said with a brief salute. "I'll try not to let you down."

She managed to keep the smile off her face until she had moved past Honoré and was heading to the carriage.

Well, that was one question settled. She hadn't been thrown out of the corps, at least. And she still had a chance of making a career.

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