“I miss my friends. One especially.”
“A lover?”
Caroline was silent.
“Are you married?”
“To be truthful, I do not know.” She recounted what had happened the night she was taken by the pirates.
“Is there someone in England who would offer a ransom for you?”
“Yes,” she said. She gave Henry’s name.
“I think,” said Orlando, choosing his words carefully, “that if you wish it I might help you get away.”
“Get away? You mean, escape?”
“The Emir will never let you go. He values all his European captives too much. But further down the coast is another ruler, a sheik who can be persuaded to assist if the money is there.”
Suddenly Caroline was possessed by an intense desire to see England again.
“Please,” she said urgently, “do all that is within your power. But will you come with me?”
“I
