Lavender Lies (Historical Romance) by Constance O'Banyon Read Free Book Online Page A

the past two months. He has chosen to ride with the Virginia Militia, as opposed to joining the Continental Army. I never know where he is at any given time. I am just hopeful that he is alive."
    By now they had reached the Eldridges' backyard and Lizzy seated herself in a swing that had been hung in the tall mulberry tree. "I am still worried about your aunt taking a stranger in the house."
    "You needn't be. Nicodemus sleeps over the kitchen. I can assure you he always looks after me."
    "Yes, thank goodness you have Nicodemus. Papa says he has never before seen such devotion in a bond servant."
    "You know we don't think of Nicodemus as a bond servant. My father brought him home the day Chandler and 1 were born. He helped bury my mother when she died. He worked off his debt to my family several years ago. Yet when my father was . . . killed, Nicodemus came to Williamsburg to be with me and my aunt. He is really like family to me, and my aunt tolerates him better than she does most people."
    Lavender gazed at the sun and gauged it to be almost noon. "1 must leave now, Aunt Amelia may need me."
    "Why don't you have lunch with me? Mama has a new pattern book that we could look through."
    "I wish I could stay, but there is so much to do today."
    Elizabeth walked with Lavender to the picket fence that divided the two properties. Lavender waved as she rushed through the gate and into the house, leaving Elizabeth to stare after her with a worried frown on her face. Something was dreadfully wrong with Lavender, and she did not know what it was.
     
    Lavender sat at her aunt's bedside, watching the uneven rise and fall of the older woman's chest. The medicine Dr. Gait prescribed seemed to have soothed her to sleep and allowed her to breathe easier.
    Quietly, so she wouldn't disturb her aunt, Lavender moved over to the window and stared out at the storm clouds gathering in the east. How strange her life had become. If Lizzy only knew the intrigue and danger Lavender was involved in, she would be horrified. Lavender smiled as she remembered her friend's conversation today. Elizabeth was not easy to fool and had finally guessed that Lavender's drab appearance was only a disguise. Of course, she could never guess what Lavender was trying to hide. It was better to hide behind the glasses of a drab little bird, so no one would ever guess she was actually the Swallow!
    Lavender had been surprised to learn about the large network of spies that operated out of Williamsburg. Forbes Duncan and his wife Sarah were her contacts. They worked at the hospital and made it possible for her to slip in and out of town without being discovered. Their main assignment was to cover for her when she had to leave town. Clothes were hidden there for her in a secret room in the stable. And several horses were kept there for her and Nicodemus's use.
    Lavender was thoughtful for a moment. It had been a month after her father had died that Brainard Thruston had sought her out. With very little effort, he had convinced her to take her father's place. Now she was so deeply involved in intrigue that there was no turning back. She had become very good at her job. Oh, yes, the British would give much to get their hands on the Swallow. Brainard had shown her a handbill where some British nobleman, whose name she had forgotten, was offering one hundred pounds for the capture of the Swallow. There was danger everywhere, and one could not always tell Whig from Tory. Many Virginians had been educated in England, and, therefore, it was not always easy to tell a Virginian from an Englishman.
    Lavender knew she was walking a dangerous path. If the wrong person found out about her deception, it would mean her death. That was why Lavender told no one about her double life. Several times she had almost been captured, and now there was a price on her head. She wondered how much longer she could play her dangerous game before she was caught. She had decided to be very cautious from