to watch for and what situations to avoid, sheâll manage better.â
Tommy nodded dutifully, but Mark, that smart boy, remained unconvinced. âWe donât know you. How can we trust you?â
Mrs. Martin might deserve to be condemned for her choices, but he wouldnât violate his own familyâs honor just because she had.
âYouâre right. I can only ask you to have faith in my word. Your mother needs help, and your great-grandmother has been very, very kind to me over the years. Iâm going home to Marksby. And I owe it to your great-grandmother to keep her kin safe. If your mother chooses this path, can you support her? Can you ease her way just that much?â
âAre you a man of honor, Mr. Lanfield?â Mark asked solemnly, with a seriousness that belied his years.
A quick one, this boy. Getting straight to the heart of the matter. Daniel searched his motivations for a way to answer truthfully.
âIâd say I am, yes, Mr. Martin. I shanât do your mother harm.â
âI entrust my mother to your keeping. If she comes to harm, I shall hold you accountable.â The weight of his words carried the menace of an adult. He would be a formidable man someday.
Realizing the sound it would make and the punishment she would bring upon herself, Vanessa caught the bedroom door sheâd been about to slam. As if her parents didnât already think her immature. But really! Banished to the wilds of northern England! With skittish Aunt Helena! It was a wonder her parents didnât turn into papists so they could tuck her away in a nunnery! And what hypocrisy! She knew full well why her parents wanted her to go. But Mama had been only a few years older than Vanessa when she and Papa married. They couldnât continue treating her like a child.
She slipped the kerchief Billy had given her out of her pocket and stroked one of the roses embroidered on it. Hidden by the tall hedge maze at the park, heâd given it to her as a promise of his affection. The roughness of the cloth reminded her of his shirt, warm against her cheek as she clung to him.
She could refuse to go. They couldnât force her. If they insisted, sheâd hide away at Billyâs. He hadnât shown her his home yet or taken her to meet his family, but he worked so many long hours. She was certain heâd be happy to have her with him.
Aunt Helena even said sheâd be fine traveling alone.
But then . . . Auntie was a bit frail. And those spells of hers. A vision of Auntie collapsing in a graceless heap hovered in her memory. Some street brawl had erupted at the market, and suddenly down went Aunt Helena. She was so confused and alarmed the first time sheâd seen her aunt faint straight away. Not prettily either, the way some of the girls pretended to do when a handsome fellow tipped his hat at her. Vanessa knew what to do now, but those first few incidents had been chaotic and frightening, especially when Mark and Tommy were there to see their mother unconscious. No doubt Auntie needed a traveling companion, but why did it have to be her? Why? And why would Auntie take such a risk, to begin with? Yes, their grandmother was ill, but neither Mama nor Auntie had seen her in decades.
She threw herself upon the bed and began tracing the flowers on the kerchief. How terribly dramatic she was being. Petulant, that was the word. No, this train of thinking definitely wouldnât convince her parents she was mature enough to marry her beloved. But there must be a way.
She bolted upright. If she had to accompany Aunt Helena (and her mother had made it perfectly clear that she did have to), this could be the perfect opportunity to prove herself! She could demonstrate how absolutely capable she was, how mature she was. Then, when she revealed to her parents the truth of her relationship with Billy, they would recognize her as an adult and support her plans wholeheartedly. She tucked
Tommy nodded dutifully, but Mark, that smart boy, remained unconvinced. âWe donât know you. How can we trust you?â
Mrs. Martin might deserve to be condemned for her choices, but he wouldnât violate his own familyâs honor just because she had.
âYouâre right. I can only ask you to have faith in my word. Your mother needs help, and your great-grandmother has been very, very kind to me over the years. Iâm going home to Marksby. And I owe it to your great-grandmother to keep her kin safe. If your mother chooses this path, can you support her? Can you ease her way just that much?â
âAre you a man of honor, Mr. Lanfield?â Mark asked solemnly, with a seriousness that belied his years.
A quick one, this boy. Getting straight to the heart of the matter. Daniel searched his motivations for a way to answer truthfully.
âIâd say I am, yes, Mr. Martin. I shanât do your mother harm.â
âI entrust my mother to your keeping. If she comes to harm, I shall hold you accountable.â The weight of his words carried the menace of an adult. He would be a formidable man someday.
Realizing the sound it would make and the punishment she would bring upon herself, Vanessa caught the bedroom door sheâd been about to slam. As if her parents didnât already think her immature. But really! Banished to the wilds of northern England! With skittish Aunt Helena! It was a wonder her parents didnât turn into papists so they could tuck her away in a nunnery! And what hypocrisy! She knew full well why her parents wanted her to go. But Mama had been only a few years older than Vanessa when she and Papa married. They couldnât continue treating her like a child.
She slipped the kerchief Billy had given her out of her pocket and stroked one of the roses embroidered on it. Hidden by the tall hedge maze at the park, heâd given it to her as a promise of his affection. The roughness of the cloth reminded her of his shirt, warm against her cheek as she clung to him.
She could refuse to go. They couldnât force her. If they insisted, sheâd hide away at Billyâs. He hadnât shown her his home yet or taken her to meet his family, but he worked so many long hours. She was certain heâd be happy to have her with him.
Aunt Helena even said sheâd be fine traveling alone.
But then . . . Auntie was a bit frail. And those spells of hers. A vision of Auntie collapsing in a graceless heap hovered in her memory. Some street brawl had erupted at the market, and suddenly down went Aunt Helena. She was so confused and alarmed the first time sheâd seen her aunt faint straight away. Not prettily either, the way some of the girls pretended to do when a handsome fellow tipped his hat at her. Vanessa knew what to do now, but those first few incidents had been chaotic and frightening, especially when Mark and Tommy were there to see their mother unconscious. No doubt Auntie needed a traveling companion, but why did it have to be her? Why? And why would Auntie take such a risk, to begin with? Yes, their grandmother was ill, but neither Mama nor Auntie had seen her in decades.
She threw herself upon the bed and began tracing the flowers on the kerchief. How terribly dramatic she was being. Petulant, that was the word. No, this train of thinking definitely wouldnât convince her parents she was mature enough to marry her beloved. But there must be a way.
She bolted upright. If she had to accompany Aunt Helena (and her mother had made it perfectly clear that she did have to), this could be the perfect opportunity to prove herself! She could demonstrate how absolutely capable she was, how mature she was. Then, when she revealed to her parents the truth of her relationship with Billy, they would recognize her as an adult and support her plans wholeheartedly. She tucked
Similar Books
