HMS Valiant - 44. Chapter 44

April 3, 1800

London, England

Granger followed the Lord Chamberlain, Lord Salisbury, down the corridors of St. James Palace until they reached a closed door. Granger recognized this door, as it led the way to the same room he’d been ushered to before when he’d had private audiences with the King. While Salisbury scratched the door to announce their arrival, Granger glanced quickly at his reflection in the mirror, to make sure that his uniform and appearance were in good order. Since he’d gotten his hair cropped, he now had to wear a wig on occasions such as this. That necessitated a check to make sure it wasn’t askew. Salisbury opened the door and bowed as he went in. Granger followed after him, mimicking his moves as he saluted his sovereign. The room was long, with a desk at the end of it. The King was standing next to the desk, dressed in an unremarkable way.

“You wanted to see me?” the King asked abruptly. A simple look from him to Salisbury was all that it took for the King to dismiss him. He bowed again, and left the room.

“Yes, Your Majesty,” Granger said smoothly. “On our recent mission, we uncovered a plot to undermine The Honorable East India Company’s position in India.”

The King’s eyes narrowed in annoyance. “And who was behind this plot?”

“It would appear that the Guild is responsible for it, Your Majesty,” Granger said.

“Explain this plot,” The King ordered.

“Of course, Your Majesty,” Granger said. He explained the situation to the King, spinning it out as a story. He remembered that had been effective in the past, when he’d described battles, and it seemed to work this time as well. When Granger was finished, he merely stood there, watching the King while he digested the entire scheme, waiting for what seemed like an eternity for the King to speak. Granger had expected the King to remain calm, and to perhaps express his annoyance, but he was not maintaining his normal composure. The varied expressions on his face gave evidence to the emotions roiling through his brain

“What is to be done about this?” the King demanded abruptly. “What is to be done about this?” He was very angry, and very agitated. Granger had never had to deal with him when he was like this, and he suddenly felt very alone and very vulnerable.

“Your Majesty, I probably should leave it to Mr. Pitt to explain that,” Granger hesitated.

“You tell me,” the King ordered loudly. “Mr. Pitt rarely deigns to meet with me. He merely sends me letters. My own chief minister! My own chief minister never calls on me!”

“I’m sure he means no disrespect, Your Majesty,” Granger said, backtracking.

“You’re sure he meant no disrespect? You are sure?” The King challenged sarcastically. “Ha!” The King shook his head, and began to pace around next to the desk. “He would have me breach my oath, the oath I swore upon my coronation! He would have me betray the church, and bring the Papists back into power!” The King had evidently shifted topics, and was clearly bothered by the proposed Catholic Emancipation. That was one of the more controversial topics being bandied about these days.

Granger swallowed hard, unsure as to how to proceed in the face of the King’s extreme anger. “That would be a foolish thing to do, Your Majesty, since it is inconceivable that you would breach Your oath.” That seemed to calm him a bit, having Granger agree with him, more or less.

“Inconceivable,” he mumbled as he nodded. He paced back and forth, shaking his head in apparent disgust. “What will be done about this Guild plot?”

“Your Majesty, if it meets with Your approval, my father will replace Mr. Dundas on the Board of Control, and a few of the other Privy Councilors will be replaced as well.”

“Your father is an honorable man,” the King noted.

“I must thank Your Majesty, both personally and on behalf of my father, for Your kind words,” Granger replied.

“Dundas was behind this,” the King accused, getting angry again. And then Granger saw his opportunity to at least placate Dundas, and get him to pull his claws in.

“My impression, Your Majesty, was that Mr. Dundas was led astray by the ill advice of others,” Granger said.

“If that is the case, Lord Granger, then why must he be removed from the Board?” the King challenged. Granger was almost flummoxed by this man who seemed almost mad one minute, then alternately was quite bright and perceptive, and a most determined inquisitor.

“Your Majesty, I believe that the thinking was that Mr. Dundas, while innocent of any malfeasance, would be better to leave the affairs of The Honorable East India Company to others, and that his talents were needed in other parts of the government,” Granger said, although probably less smoothly than he had hoped.

“Hmph,” the King said. Granger was finding it incredibly difficult to deal with him, as he went from anger, to pronounced intelligence, to this new state, where his mind seemed to wander. Granger stood there for what seemed like an eternity, but was probably only about five minutes. Finally, the King spoke again. “Thank you for bringing this to Our attention.”

“I am glad to be of service to Your Majesty,” Granger said politely.

“I would be obliged if you would have them send Lord North to me at once,” he said, clearly dismissing Granger.

“Your Majesty?” Granger asked, unable to hide his shock. Lord North had been dead for almost eight years.

“Lord North,” the King repeated, almost a mumble. “I must speak with North.”

“Of course, Your Majesty,” Granger said. “I will send for His Lordship at once.” He bowed and left and barely managed to hide his shaken expression when he encountered the chamberlains outside the room. Unfortunately, Salisbury wasn’t with them. Granger focused on the two men in front of him. “You will remain here and see that no one goes in to see His Majesty,” he ordered one.

The man blinked at him, then got his wits about him. “Yes, my lord.”

Granger turned to the other man. “You will take me to see the Lord Chamberlain.”

“This way, my lord,” he said, and led Granger down a corridor to a drawing room, where Salisbury was reviewing some papers. Granger was pleasantly surprised to find his father there, along with another chamberlain.

“George!” his father said. “It is good to see you!” He approached Granger and embraced him warmly, but then seemed to sense that his son was deeply troubled.

“It is good to see you too, Father,” Granger said, as he tried to gather his wits about him.

“I did not expect your audience to be finished so quickly,” Salisbury said to Granger.

“The King became quite agitated, and although he seemed to understand our conversation, he asked me to send for Lord North,” Granger explained.

“Lord North?” his father asked, shocked.

Salisbury, who was normally the epitome of a stoic, looked visibly shaken. He turned to the chamberlain. “No one is to see the King.”

“Lord Granger already gave orders to that effect, my lord,” the chamberlain said. Salisbury gave Granger an appreciative look.

“Send for His Majesty’s doctors at once,” Salisbury ordered, dismissing the chamberlain who had been in the room.

“I will go and see him,” the Duke of Suffolk said, then turned to his son. “I would be obliged if you would keep this meeting, or at least the King’s behavior, to yourself for the time being.”

“I will do my best,” Granger said. His father’s eyes narrowed, but Granger stared back at him boldly.

“We will talk later,” the Duke said, and exited the room, following the chamberlain who had escorted Granger to that room.

“It is possible that the King is just a bit shocked, but if it is thought he is unwell, that could cause considerable turmoil within the City and the government,” Salisbury said gently, to explain the Duke of Suffolk’s request. “The markets would most certainly react.”

“I can see the importance of discretion,” Granger said, possibly a bit too coldly. Unless this was a permanent or more severe spell, there was no need to spread news that may cause panic.

“Thank you,” Salisbury said. He escorted Granger out of the palace and all the way to his carriage, a nice mark of respect. “I will send word to you later about His Majesty’s condition.”

“I would appreciate that,” Granger said sincerely, even as he climbed into his carriage. He paused to tell the coachman to take him home, then sat back in the soft leather seats and exhaled loudly, since he was alone. The King had always been something of a father figure to Granger, and while Granger was well aware of his illness in the 1780s, to see the King break down first hand was very disconcerting.

Granger managed to compose himself by the time he arrived home. He found Caroline in the library, working on some correspondence. “You are back,” she said, stating the obvious, but in a pleasant way.

“I am indeed,” Granger said, and smiled at her.

“How was the palace?”

Granger hadn’t really known why he’d objected to his father’s request that he remain silent about the King’s behavior, but now, faced with Caroline’s innocent prompt, he understood why he had instinctively made that decision. He gave her an appreciative look as he remembered that they were partners, their destinies were linked, and that he could not keep such things from her. He was starting to trust her again, at least in issues such as this. “Disturbing.”

“Indeed?” she asked curiously.

“I explained things to His Majesty, and he ultimately became quite agitated and asked for Lord North,” Granger explained.

“George, you are very talented and resourceful, but I do not think even you can conjure a man back from the dead,” she said with a smile, adding some desperate levity to the situation.

Granger smiled at her, and even chuckled. “I think you underestimate me.”

“Perhaps,” she said, smiling back.

“My father was at the palace and asked me to say nothing of this,” he explained.

“But you told me,” she said, more of a question.

“Indeed,” Granger replied, letting her draw the meaning from that decision. “I told His Majesty that Dundas was being misled by evildoers, so maybe that will help keep him from throwing knives at my back.”

“That was a nice gesture,” she said. “I think Mr. Dundas will soon realize that throwing knives at us is most unwise.”

“What are you talking about?” Granger asked.

“I suspect that this time, the Guild will find itself quite embattled,” she noted.

“Mr. Pitt and Mr. Dundas did not think so,” he said.

“I do,” she replied, almost a challenge.

“Then they will find themselves quite embattled,” Granger said with a grin.

“We are to entertain Mr. Pitt tonight, are we not?”

“That is correct,” Granger replied.

“You will trust me to make all the arrangements?” she asked.

“Of course,” Granger said automatically. “You may include whomever you choose.”

“My plan is to return to Brentwood tomorrow,” she said, changing the subject.

“I am wondering if you would consider changing your plans.” Granger asked nicely.

“Is there some reason I should stay here?”

“I need your help,” Granger said. “And I would enjoy your company.”

She smiled at him, then stood up and put her hands on his arms in a caring way. “Then I will stay.”

“Thank you,” Granger said, smiling back at her. Even as they did, the anger Granger felt toward her began to fade, not entirely, but just a bit. “If you have no objections, I will send for the children so I may see them.”

“I have no objections,” she said, but looked at him more closely. “Why?”

“I have been given new orders,” he said. “Lord St. Vincent is to take command of the Channel Fleet, and I am to go with him, at least until Valiant returns.”

“But you have just gotten back!” Caroline objected, in a way that was very touching, showing Granger how upset she was to have him torn away so soon.

“Evidently I am not very pleasant,” Granger said with a wry grin. “I have upset the King and made Mr. Dundas almost lose his composure completely, so they are sending me out to spend time with St. Vincent, to see if he can tame my wild streak.”

She chuckled. “That is probably their strategy, but they will probably not be successful.”

“I am to be just another aide to him, without a formal role,” Granger noted, getting serious again. “That will be a thankless job. I’ll end up detested by everyone in the fleet.”

But Caroline wasn’t going to let him descend into a bad mood, now that she was finally enjoying some time with him. She was almost ecstatic that her husband seemed to be melting a bit. She began to think that maybe there was hope they could repair their relationship. “It seems that you do indeed have a problem, vexing everyone wherever you go.”

“It is a most perplexing difficulty,” George replied playfully.

“I would suspect that Spencer knows that St. Vincent will create substantial upheaval in the Channel Fleet,” Caroline said, trying to calm her husband’s fears. “It is important that Spencer is kept aware of how that is going, and he has evidently decided that you are to be his eyes and ears.”

“I will be a spy.”

“That is how it seems to be,” she said.

Granger pondered that carefully. “If that is the case, it is quite an honor he does me.”

“See George, you do not always vex everyone,” she teased, making him chuckle.

They were interrupted by Cheevers. “My lord, my lady, Lord Daventry is here and has asked to see you.”

“Please show him in,” Granger said automatically. It took almost no time at all for Daventry to enter the room.

“How wonderful to see you again,” Caroline said, as she stood with Granger to receive him. He kissed her hand in the proper way.

“I am glad I was able to elicit such a positive response,” Daventry said playfully. “I am unused to being received cordially by wives.”

“Only your own, my lord,” Caroline teased, making them all chuckle.

Daventry turned his focus toward Granger. “I wanted to discuss our treasure, and then I was of a mind to drag you to Carlton House.”

“Join us,” Granger said, and gestured for Daventry to have a seat. He poured all three of them a glass of wine, and then sat down, Daventry’s cue to explain himself.

“I think that the appraisal on the gems was perhaps too conservative,” Daventry said. They looked at him, waiting for him to continue. “I am thinking most greedily that perhaps we can retain them for our share, and distribute the cash to the other parties.”

Granger instinctively recoiled from the possibility of not acting entirely in the best interests of his men, but allowed himself to calm down and realize that the gems would be more useful to him than to his men, who would prefer gold. “I am amenable to that.”

Daventry smiled briefly to acknowledge Granger’s agreement. “I was of a mind to whisk you off to Carlton House to call on Prinny, while we rely on your lovely wife to divide the gems up for us.”

Caroline raised an eyebrow at this high compliment Daventry was paying to her, to in essence give her control of which stones would go to Granger and which would go to Daventry. She was smart enough to know that the gems Granger acquired would mostly end up as jewelry in her collection, so it was remarkably flattering for Daventry to trust her to do so fairly, disregarding her conflict of interest. “I would be happy to assist you,” she said.

“Thank you, dear,” Granger said, then turned back to Daventry. “Why must we go to Carlton House?”

“You have not called on Prinny since you got back, and he is a most jealous creature,” Daventry said. “As you are occupied tonight, I felt it was important to prod you into making a call today.”

“I appreciate the concern you are taking about my reputation,” Granger said sincerely.

“I am wondering if you would be willing to join us for dinner.” Caroline asked Daventry.

“I am unsure as to whether I am available or not,” he said flirtatiously. “Who will be in attendance?”

“So if I invite the correct people, your schedule will suddenly be clear?” Caroline bantered back.

“That is a distinct possibility.”

“It will only be the three of us, and Mr. Pitt, and possibly Cavendish if he is available,” Caroline said. Granger looked at her strangely. A dinner party was not the usual venue to discuss business matters, but that appeared to be the object of this one. He was worried that Pitt would be offended, or that their reputation for hospitality would be negatively impacted.

“That grouping will most definitely clear my schedule,” Daventry said cheerfully. Granger buried his concerns, resolving to trust his wife as he had promised, and then he and Daventry took their leave of Caroline, leaving her with Patton, Andrews, and the gems.

“I do not think we will be able to discuss business matters with Prinny, but we can make an appearance, and perhaps set up a time to meet with him tomorrow,” Daventry said.

“I will trust you to arrange our schedule,” Granger replied. “Other than our dinner with Pitt tonight, I have left the rest of my calendar unencumbered.”

“I suspect it will not remain that way for long,” Daventry noted. Granger tended to agree with him. He would have to make time to see his father, not that that was a chore, and he would have to inquire later about the King’s health.

They arrived at Carlton House and the chamberlain ushered them into the grand stairway and up to the Prince of Wales’ bedroom. He was a notoriously late riser, so even though it was just after 1:00, he was still completing his toilet. They walked into the room and saw that it was filled with other men, most of whom Granger knew. The Prince saw them and rose to greet them, a singular mark of respect.

“Granger! You have escaped from the Sultan and returned to us,” he said, making Granger smile broadly, even as he bowed.

“I have indeed, Your Royal Highness, and I am pleased to note that Your Royal Highness is much happier to see me than the Sultan was,” Granger said.

“You are a polarizing figure,” the Prince said jovially, making everyone chuckle.

Beau Brummell was there, supervising the Prince’s toilet, or so it seemed. He smiled. “It is good to see you, my lord. I fear that I would have missed you more but His Royal Highness does such a good impression of you, it is as if you were here amongst us.”

The Prince gave Brummell a fearsome look, one that would have floored Granger, but did not appear to affect the Beau. But the Prince was known for his astounding skills at mimicry. “Indeed, Your Royal Highness?” Granger asked.

“I would not want to offend you, Granger,” the Prince said, scowling again at Brummell.

“I think that is almost impossible, sir,” Granger said.

The Prince drew himself up so he was quite erect and adopted a very rigid and proper demeanor, and proceeded to imitate Granger. Granger thought such a bearing was more resembling of Arthur Wellesley than him, but it was amusing. “Your Royal Highness, I must report that I have only been able to sink twelve of the thirteen pirates who assaulted me. I must beg Your pardon, and will endeavor to slay all of the curs at my next encounter.”

Granger stared at him for a brief moment, stunned at how well he had done that. It was as if he had spoken the words himself. And then, in a rare lack of self-control, Granger began laughing, getting a broad smile from the Prince. “That was truly well done, Your Royal Highness.”

“You’re not too tough to do, Granger,” the Prince said in a friendly way. “I just have to do Castlereagh and drop the brogue.”

All eyes turned to the charming Irish peer, the son of Lord Londonderry, who was one of the most handsome men in the government, and indeed, probably in all of London. With a long straight nose, light brown hair, and piercing eyes, he was even more attractive when he spoke. Castlereagh bowed politely. “You flatter both of us, Your Royal Highness.”

Lord Castlereagh, in 1817

“I must agree with Lord Castlereagh,” Granger said, and shot his smile at the handsome Irish peer, only to get a very handsome grin in return.

“I did not mean to disparage your excellent work, Granger. You performed spectacularly against the Bey’s forces,” the Prince said.

“Thank you for Your kind words, but I only did what Your Royal Highness would have done,” Granger said diplomatically.

The Prince smiled at them, and then led them down the stairs to the main room, where they found the ladies waiting to join them. Granger knew this was the perfect opportunity to take his leave, but only after greeting Mrs. Fitzherbert. She had returned to the Prince’s side a few years back, and Granger had always had a good relationship with her. With those pleasantries aside, he caught Daventry’s eye, and they used that opportunity to make their escape.

“That was a very smart thing to do,” Granger said to Daventry, referring to his insistence that Granger call on the Prince of Wales. “Thank you.”

“I think that our friendship is such that it requires us to watch out for each other,” Daventry said honestly.

“I agree,” Granger said, smiling at him. Granger paused to think of what a shame it was that Daventry was only interested in women. He would be an easy man to love. Then Granger thought of the various mistresses Daventry left in his wake, and decided that being his friend was probably a much better proposition.

“Then I wonder if you would allow me to pry into your personal life, as grounds to give you some unsolicited advice?”

Granger was annoyed at Daventry’s prying, but too curious not to hear what he had to say. “I will give you leave to dabble into my personal affairs.”

“I would ask you to forgive your wife,” he said bluntly. Granger just stared at him, processing the words. “Perhaps that was phrased poorly.”

“Perhaps,” Granger said, slightly annoyed. He was most irritated that the rift between him and Caroline was so obvious.

“George, for your own sake, you must give her a chance to at least clear the air, and to explain to you what happened to cause the rift between you,” he said.

“And why must I do this?” Granger demanded, somewhat petulantly. Daventry raised his eyebrow to call Granger on being so childish, even though he made no comment about it.

“Because it is a wound that festers inside you, and inside her,” Daventry explained. “It will be an irritant for you, and ruin what would otherwise be happiness.”

“I can see your point on that,” Granger agreed, allowing himself to open up to Daventry.

“And it will be even more dangerous for Caroline,” he said. He paused, probably for effect, to make sure he had Granger’s full attention. “I think that your rejection will ultimately propel her to make very poor decisions.”

“I’m not quite sure what you’re talking about,” Granger said, and in that, he was being completely honest.

“She has had an affair with Prince William, but you both behaved in an exemplary way after it became an issue, so much that her honor was largely restored,” he said. “There have been some scurrilous tales about her since then.” That would have most likely been the gossip about Caroline with Cavendish and Treadway.

“Indeed, and I have had to deal with them,” Granger said, letting his bitterness show.

“But nothing of substance has really happened. They are just rumors,” he said. He looked at Granger in a meaningful way. “And that is how it must continue to look.”

Granger nodded slightly at that reminder, that the decision he’d made before leaving to make sure Caroline’s tryst with Cavendish and Treadway remained merely a rumor. “I must make sure I do nothing to raise suspicions.”

“You must, but that is not the primary reason for you to reconcile,” Daventry said. “I think that Caroline needs you as an anchor, to ground her. If you are gone, at least as far as she knows, I think she will be adrift, and then she will be tempted to seek out liaisons that are indeed damaging. And ones that are not discreet.”

“Why would she do that?” Granger found it hard to comprehend that Caroline would knowingly turn her back on her family.

“Because you do not love her,” he said honestly. He raised his hand to stop Granger’s objections. “George, when we fought the pirates, or retrieved the chest, I did not interfere with your actions. I recognized that you were incredibly talented, and that you had a much better grasp of the situation than I did, or than anyone did.”

Granger ignored his flattery. “You are saying that you respected my abilities.”

“I am,” he confirmed. “And I am saying that in this situation, when we are dealing with women, you should show me the same confidence. As good as you are at commanding a frigate, so am I good at dealing with women.”

“I daresay that Lady Daventry would not agree with you,” Granger teased.

“I daresay you are right, but then again, I am convinced she is not a woman, but the spawn of some mountain creatures sent to destroy humanity, so in that situation, I would maintain I still have that skill with women.” Granger laughed out loud at Daventry’s boldness, and his sense of humor.

“I will consider what you have said,” Granger said, when they were both done laughing. They arrived back at Portland Place to find Caroline waiting for them. Granger smiled at her warmly, and got an even happier look from her, and he knew then that Daventry was right, and that he must make things right with Caroline.