Gondabad, India July 1863
"Ah, Windrush!" Lieutenant-Colonel Hook marched forward with his hand extended, his hair still unfashionably long but his face remarkably unlined. "I was about to send for you. I need your services for something more interesting than administration."
"Yes, sir." Jack saw his hopes of home leave begin to fade. "What"s happened, sir?"
"Now." Hook perched on the edge of the table, sipping at a glass of brandy. He continued as if Jack had never spoken. "You"ll be wondering what this is all about, Windrush."
"I am, sir." Jack glanced around. Hook had taken up his quarters in the great fort of Gondabad, where the Rajah had become a staunch ally of Britain since the failure of the Mutiny. The room was empty except for the desk, a small, glass-fronted drinks cabinet,
