Charlie’s ears still rang from the news as she, Anthony, and Mama snuck out of the seaside town under the cover of twilight. Mama held Charlie’s hand, Charlie held Anthony’s, and both Mama and Anthony carried one of the valises. He insisted on leading, of course. They didn’t dare light a lantern until they were away from the town.

Fortunately, the smugglers lived next to a cliff trail that led down to the water. The trail was hidden beneath overgrowth, but once Anthony found it, they soon whisked out of sight. In a port town like this one, comprised mostly of fishermen, anyone up after dark drew suspicion.

They walked for ten long, silent minutes before Anthony stopped to light the lantern. In those ten minutes, Charlie had more than enough time to brood, but none of her thoughts brought her comfort. Papa had pivotal information for Britain. He should be on his way home, not farther from it. She couldn’t figure out why Papa would go to Portugal. Charlie had the deepest faith in Mama’s abilities as a spy—after all, she had hidden her involvement in the spy network, not to mention the secret behind Papa’s purported death, from her daughters for years. But what if, this time, Mama was wrong? Another man might have boarded a ship to Portugal, and Papa could still be in that town—or another.

The only thing Charlie wanted was to find Papa. The longer he remained in enemy territory, the more danger he was in.

As Anthony stopped to light the lantern, Mama brushed Charlie’s elbow. “You’ve been quiet.”

“I’ve been thinking.”

“Whatever it is, it looks to be troubling you.”

Charlie frowned at Mama. The light flared to life and cast a glow over Mama’s face. Somehow, it seemed to magnify the worry lines etched around her mouth and forehead. “Are we doing the right thing?” Charlie asked. “Are you certain that the man heading to Portugal is Papa?”

“I can’t be. Not until we catch the ship and discover for ourselves.”

“What if it isn’t? We’ll waste time sailing in the wrong direction.”

Mama rubbed her temple. “Nothing has gone according to plan thus far. We’re lucky Captain Graylocke is still with us. He could have left us on the beach, and we would be stranded in enemy territory. Let’s take advantage of him while we can.”

“And if we’re wrong?”

Mama’s lips thinned as she frowned. “Then we start again. I promise you, Charlie, we will not give up.”

Charlie hadn’t for a second considered giving up to be an option. She was going to find Papa no matter what. She only hoped they wouldn’t be too late.

* * *

The moment they returned to the ship with Anthony, Lieutenant Stills appeared at the railing. He cornered Anthony as the captain helped Mama out of the dinghy and back onto the ship. As Anthony accepted the valises from Mama and set them next to him, he said, “I hope you haven’t moved our belongings yet, Lieutenant. We’ll be playing host to Mrs. Vale and her daughter a bit longer.”

Lieutenant Stills hefted the valises, one in each hand, but didn’t move. “I thought you were to escort them to town for Miss Vale’s wedding.”

Apparently, Anthony hadn’t disclosed their true mission. He either distrusted his second-in-command, or he had simply deemed it unimportant, considering he had been ordered to bring them to port regardless.

Mama cut in smoothly. “The person with whom we were arranged to stay has left town.”

“We’re heading to Portugal,” Anthony added, his voice tight as he lifted Charlie out of the dinghy. Her knees wobbled as her toes touched the deck, but she steadied herself against him. Once she caught her balance, he released her and turned to his second-in-command. “Weigh anchor at once. If we cut out to the open ocean and avoid the coast, we should be able to make good enough time to catch the Portuguese ship, even in a whale like this.”

Lieutenant Stills would not be appeased by an order and followed at Anthony’s heels, dogging him for more information as Anthony shouted orders to set sail. At this hour, most of the crew had to be roused from their beds. As those on deck scrambled to awaken their cohorts, Lieutenant Stills asked more detailed questions, prodding Anthony for information regarding their destination and why they were so eager to catch this Portugal-bound ship. Charlie wondered whether he would he confess what he knew about Papa.

She never found out. Mama, who didn’t seem as concerned with the lieutenant’s curiosity as Charlie was, led the way to the captain’s quarters. Charlie followed. She set down the valise the moment they were inside. Mama, who had also taken the lit lantern, hung it from a hook beside the bed.

Charlie sat on the foot of the bed. “Assuming it is Papa on that ship, why would he have turned to Portugal?”

Mama joined her. She took Charlie’s hand in hers. Charlie, needing comfort just as much as Mama, squeezed back.

“I wish I knew, Charlie. It could be that he was frightened to stay here too long. Perhaps the Portuguese ship was his only option out of France, and he was desperate. Perhaps he hopes to transfer to a ship bound for England once he gets there.”

Too much relied on perhaps.

Mama clutched her daughter’s hand and added, “We’ll soon find out.”

Charlie nodded. When she took a deep breath, trying to calm her whirlpool of thoughts, the letter to Madame Renault shifted against her breast. With the new problem in their quest to find Papa, she’d forgotten about the letter.

She fished it out of her bodice now. “I hope you don’t mind, Mama, but I opened Lady Graylocke’s letter to Madame Renault.” Her cheeks flushed with shame. Mama had taught her never to open another person’s mail, but she’d been curious.

Mama pursed her lips and arched an eyebrow. She said nothing, but her expression spoke volumes.

Charlie offered the letter. “It’s written in code.”

A flash of surprise crossed Mama’s face before she hid it. After taking the letter, she carefully unfolded it and angled it toward the light.

“Can you decipher it?”

“I can,” Mama confirmed. “Will you find the book in my valise and a pencil?”

If Lucy had been nearby, Charlie would have had both articles already thrust beneath her nose. She missed her dear friend, even if she was happy that Lucy had fallen in love. Or at the very least, she was happy that Lucy was happy. Ever since she’d moved in with the Graylockes, she’d constantly been in Lucy’s company. She was more a sister than a friend.

But like Charlie’s own sister, once Lucy had married, she had spent less time with Charlie. In fact, Lucy had moved out of the house. Charlie craved the company of her closest friend, even if she would never seek to spoil Lucy’s happiness by confronting her over the loss.

Pushing aside thoughts of Lucy, Charlie quickly found the articles Mama requested and handed them over. She perched on the edge of the bed as she waited for Mama to decipher the letter. Lady Graylocke had told them it was a letter of introduction. However, if it was written in code, what did it truly say?

Mama finished and sat back. “It is a letter of introduction, as Lady Graylocke promised.”

“That’s all?” Charlie smothered a twinge of disappointment.

“I’m afraid so.” Mama folded the letter and stuck it between the pages of the book. She tapped the cover with the pencil.

Charlie frowned. “But if that’s all the letter says, why is it written in code? And how did Lady Graylocke even know to encode a letter?” This made no sense if there wasn’t anything sensitive in a letter of introduction.

“I don’t know.”

“Are you sure this is actually from Lady Graylocke? Could someone else have substituted this for her original letter?”

Mama looked thoughtful. “She handed it to me herself, but it was already sealed. I suppose someone could have switched them if she'd written it and left it on her writing table. In any event it has no big secrets. It's nothing to worry about.”

Charlie's heart squeezed. Her mother might be acting like the letter was no big deal, but Charlie had other ideas. If someone had changed letters—and she was sure they must have—then they had plenty to worry about.