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Sharpes Battle :: Корнуэлл Бернард
Страница: 135 из 244No, I promote Sergeant Sharpe and he takes to conducting private wars behind my back! Loup didn't attack the San Isidro to destroy Oliveira or Kiely, Hogan, he did it to find Sharpe, which makes the loss of the caзadores all Sharpe's fault!"
"We don't know that, my Lord."
"But the Spanish will deduce it, Hogan, and proclaim it far and wide, which makes it hard, Hogan, damned hard for us to blame Runciman. They'll say we're hiding the real culprit and that we're cavalier with allied lives."
"We can say the allegations against Captain Sharpe are malicious and false, my Lord?"
"I thought he admitted them?" Wellington retorted sharply. "Didn't he boast to Oliveira about executing the two rogues?"
"So I understand, my Lord," Hogan said, "but none of Oliveira's officers survived to testify to that admission."
"So who can testify?"
Hogan shrugged. "Kiely and his whore, Runciman and the priest." Hogan tried to make the list sound trivial, then shook his head. "Too many witnesses, I'm afraid, my Lord. Not to mention Loup himself. Valverde could well attempt to get a formal complaint from the French and we'd be hard put to ignore such a document."
"So Sharpe has to be sacrificed?" Wellington asked.
"I fear so, my Lord."
"God damn it, Hogan!" Wellington snapped. "Just what the devil was going on between Sharpe and Loup?"
"I wish I knew, my Lord."
"Aren't you supposed to know?" the General asked angrily.
Hogan soothed his tired horse. "I've not been idle, my Lord," he said with a touch of tetchiness. "I don't know all that happened between Sharpe and Loup, but what does seem to be happening is a concerted effort to sow discord in this army. There's a new man come south from Paris, a man called Ducos, who seems to be cleverer than the usual rogues. He's the fellow behind this scheme of counterfeit newspapers. And I'll guess, my Lord, that there are more of those newspapers on the way, designed to arrive here just before the French themselves."
"Then stop them!" Wellington demanded.
"I can and shall stop them," Hogan said confidently. "We know it's Kiely's whore who brings them over the frontier, but our problem is finding the man who distributes them in our army, and that man is the real danger, my Lord. One of our correspondents in Paris warns us that the French have a new agent in Portugal, a man of whom they expect great things. I would dearly like to find him before he fulfils those expectations. I'm rather hoping the whore will lead us to him."
"You're sure about the woman?"
"Quite sure," Hogan said firmly. His sources in Madrid were explicit, but he knew better than to mention their names aloud.
"We don't know that, my Lord."
"But the Spanish will deduce it, Hogan, and proclaim it far and wide, which makes it hard, Hogan, damned hard for us to blame Runciman. They'll say we're hiding the real culprit and that we're cavalier with allied lives."
"We can say the allegations against Captain Sharpe are malicious and false, my Lord?"
"I thought he admitted them?" Wellington retorted sharply. "Didn't he boast to Oliveira about executing the two rogues?"
"So I understand, my Lord," Hogan said, "but none of Oliveira's officers survived to testify to that admission."
"So who can testify?"
Hogan shrugged. "Kiely and his whore, Runciman and the priest." Hogan tried to make the list sound trivial, then shook his head. "Too many witnesses, I'm afraid, my Lord. Not to mention Loup himself. Valverde could well attempt to get a formal complaint from the French and we'd be hard put to ignore such a document."
"So Sharpe has to be sacrificed?" Wellington asked.
"I fear so, my Lord."
"God damn it, Hogan!" Wellington snapped. "Just what the devil was going on between Sharpe and Loup?"
"I wish I knew, my Lord."
"Aren't you supposed to know?" the General asked angrily.
Hogan soothed his tired horse. "I've not been idle, my Lord," he said with a touch of tetchiness. "I don't know all that happened between Sharpe and Loup, but what does seem to be happening is a concerted effort to sow discord in this army. There's a new man come south from Paris, a man called Ducos, who seems to be cleverer than the usual rogues. He's the fellow behind this scheme of counterfeit newspapers. And I'll guess, my Lord, that there are more of those newspapers on the way, designed to arrive here just before the French themselves."
"Then stop them!" Wellington demanded.
"I can and shall stop them," Hogan said confidently. "We know it's Kiely's whore who brings them over the frontier, but our problem is finding the man who distributes them in our army, and that man is the real danger, my Lord. One of our correspondents in Paris warns us that the French have a new agent in Portugal, a man of whom they expect great things. I would dearly like to find him before he fulfils those expectations. I'm rather hoping the whore will lead us to him."
"You're sure about the woman?"
"Quite sure," Hogan said firmly. His sources in Madrid were explicit, but he knew better than to mention their names aloud.