But before they knew all this, an Orderly who had been wounded in the battle confessed as he was dying that he was responsible for the theft.
He had taken the keys from Charlton’s pocket while he was having a bath, unlocked the despatch box, extracted the plan and returned the keys to his master’s pocket. Marie Louise had paid him well and he had been promised even greater reward if Napoleon found the plan useful.
The Earl, Henry Somercote and every other Officer in the Regiment had returned to England determined to right the wrong, but they could not find Maurice Charlton.
“Where does Giselda live?” Henry Somercote asked now. “I have a carriage downstairs.”
“I don’t know,” the Earl answered plaintively
“You don’t know?” Henry echoed.
The Earl shook his head.
“She would never tell m
