“Is that all?” I joked, though it was true—he appeared to be all of that. He was everything Mama had wanted for me. I found myself smiling in the darkness. I’d never thought fulfilling my promise to her could be so in harmony with what I wanted.

“No, in fact,” Charlotte said. “There’s more. He has fabulous prospects as André’s aide. He’ll rub elbows with the top men in the army. Probably even with General Clinton himself.”

I jolt shot through me. I had no idea how I’d missed it. Duncan had a direct line to the very highest sources of information in the British military. But spying was something committed against strangers. Distant acquaintances. Not suitors.

Was it?

Long after Lucy and Charlotte fell asleep, I lay awake and wrestled with my conscience. Spying was stealing from the enemy—but what if that enemy was someone decent? Someone with a charming personality, perfect lips, and eyes like pools of honey when they caught the sunlight?

But this was about the fates of nations. It was about freeing America from a tyrant who wielded power like a hammer. Abuse was wrong—and I wanted to fight it. To spy—to truly do it—there was no room for doubt. I had to march into the danger as boldly as a soldier, heedless of the pain I might cause.

I couldn’t let anything stop me.

Chapter 15: Friends and Foes

The following afternoon, Liesje Visser took her dark leap at the North Dutch Church as rain fell steadily outside. When she and Casper Devoor exchanged vows, my eyes drifted across the church to Lieutenant Duncan, a few rows to my right.

He looked over sharply, as though I’d called his name.

I turned away and fought a smile, a velvety heat spreading through me. One thing I couldn’t deny: my body knew exactly how it felt about Lieutenant Duncan.

After the ceremony, we returned to the Vissers’ for the celebration assembly. I gazed across their grand parlor, feeling like a hunter as I scanned the room for Major André or Lieutenant Duncan. I loved it, this thrill of the search. The rush of a dive. I’d been asleep for three years. I’d been holding my breath. Now, finally, I was awake and breathing again.

As the wedding couple began the first minuet, Judge Latimer leaned down to my ear. “I understand I’ve been set aside for tonight. I hope your young lieutenant is worth the bruise to this old man’s heart.”