“Stephen, you naughty boy! How could you?” The boy caught sight of Harriet in the doorway and, shaking himself free, ran over to her and buried his face in her skirts, crying lustily. Miss Trench saw them both and gave a start. She held out her arms to Harriet in appeal.
“Oh Harry, I am sorry. I did not mean to, but he has painted black marks all over my picture just out of badness-and it was just as I wanted it!”
Harriet knelt to better embrace the boy and, having removed the dangerous brush from his hand, she handed it wordlessly to Crowther and stroked her son’s hair. His crying slowed a little. He put his face into her neck and mumbled something between sobs.
“What is it, Stephen? I can’t hear you,” Harriet asked him softly, still not looking at her sister.
“Crows. She forgot the crows,” he said, then his voice rising to a bitter wail, “I was helping!” He tucked his face into Harriet’s neck again, his small hands gripping the collar of her riding dress in determined fistfuls.
Rachel looked more stricken than ever. Crowther remained in the shadows of the drapery, as if Harriet’s curtains might provide some protection from the emotions flying around the room like the Chinese fireworks at Vauxhall. He looked down at the dirty brush between his fingers.
Harriet waited until the little boy was calmer and spoke to him gently.
“Perhaps Aunt Rachel did not want crows in her picture, Stephen. Have you thought of that? You would not like it if she painted all your soldiers yellow, now would you? Even if she thought they looked better that way.”
The little boy’s sobs stopped suddenly, and he pulled away from his mother as he considered this horrid possibility. He shook his head. She took his small face in her hands and smiled at him, then kissed him on his hot smooth forehead.
“Well, you do not seem much hurt, young man. Apologize to your aunt and perhaps she will not paint on your things in revenge.”
Stephen shot a glance toward Rachel, then walked carefully over to her.
“I’m sorry, Aunt. I thought it would look nicer with crows.” He thought for a moment and extended his hand. Rachel knelt down and took it with great seriousness.
“I didn’t realize you were helping, Stephen. And I am very sorry to have been so cross. May we be friends again?”
“You won’t paint my soldiers yellow, then? Because they should all wear red coats.” She shook her head. Crowther found he was smiling a little, and stepped clear of the curtains. Stephen grinned with relief and pounced forward to kiss his aunt on the cheek, then struggling free from her embrace, turned and started with surprise as he caught sight of Crowther hovering in the doorway behind his mother and twisting the brush between his fingers.
“Who are you, sir?”
“I am Gabriel Crowther.”
The little boy considered for a moment, then his eyes widened considerably.
“Do you eat children, sir?”
Crowther stooped slightly from the waist, till he had brought his thin body to the point where he could look the little boy in the eye.
“Not as often as I would like.”
Stephen looked at him with awe and pleasure, thrusting one small fist to his mouth. He then announced to the world in general that Mrs. Heathcote had made cake and he would be allowed to eat the crumbs from the tin, and raced out of the room. Harriet stood and smiled at Crowther, then, her eyes growing more serious, she turned to her sister.
“I’m so sorry, Harriet. I didn’t mean, I-”
Harriet looked irritated, and held up her hand. “This is not like you, Rachel.”
Miss Trench flushed red. “I have been more upset than I know. There was a moment when I heard of the body when I thought …”
Harriet put the heel of her hand to her forehead for a moment, then moved across the room to take her sister’s arm and lead her to a chair.
“Oh Rachel, I’m so sorry. It never occurred to me … Then I was unkind to you. You must have wished us all to the devil.”
Rachel shook her head. “It was stupid, and only for a moment.” She glanced up at where Crowther hung awkwardly in the background. “I’m sorry you have seen me display such a temper, sir. I am ashamed.”
Her sister laughed. “Oh, I’ve said at least seven shocking things to him this morning myself, Rachel. Have I not, Mr. Crowther? He could blacken us across the county if he has a mind. But then, as Mr. Crowther hardly moves in society at all, he can do no more damage to our reputations than we do ourselves. Please, take a seat, sir.”
Rachel looked across at Crowther as he sat, placing the brush gingerly in a vase on the side table.
“Still, I am sorry you were witness to my bad behavior, sir. I trust you will try not to think ill of me, and I rely, as my sister does, on your discretion.”
Crowther felt the warmth of her eyes and voice like a benediction; to the family good looks present in the elder sister was added real feminine grace. The girl’s hair was more honey than her sister’s, though the sunlight caught the fire in it and made it shine. Her eyes were the same green as Harriet’s. Softened a little, and a little wider perhaps, but their close kinship was obvious. She was a little thinner than she should be, but it gave her a delicacy that Crowther had already noted as rather lacking in Mrs. Westerman. The younger woman still had the freshly unwrapped softness of youth in her skin. She looked as if she had, as yet, suffered no rough weather. Again, she could not be ranked as a remarkable beauty, but he felt his old character of connoisseur of women stir in his breast.
“Till death, ma’am.”
Harriet raised her eyebrows. “Well, let’s hope that will not be necessary, sir.” Crowther squirmed a little on his chair. “Now Rachel, could you tell me if you have hidden Squire Bridges somewhere in the house?”
Rachel gave a slight choking laugh under her breath.
“He’s in the library finishing his letters. We should dine shortly or we will annoy Cook and Mrs. Heathcote. She so loves the squire, I think the whole of the storeroom is coming to table, and it will be all the worse for us if it is spoiled.” She turned toward Crowther and continued: “Will you be joining us, sir? We dine quite informally and you’ll be most welcome.”
Crowther felt that somehow, and by doing very little, he had made himself a touch ridiculous.
“I fear not, Miss Trench, though I thank you for the invitation. I dine at a later hour and at home.”
Harriet did not turn toward him, but said nevertheless, with a slightly bored tone that suggested she found these society shufflings rather wearying, “Please let us persuade you, Mr. Crowther. The squire will certainly dine with us, and I would be glad to talk further on your impressions of what has passed.”
Mr. Crowther felt Miss Trench’s encouraging smile on him and, bowing as best he could from his perch on the edge of one of Harriet’s neatly upholstered chairs, he accepted the invitation.
“I will tell Mrs. Heathcote,” Rachel said, giving him a slight curtsy as she stood and hurried out of the room. Crowther could hear the rapid scuff of her shoes on the flagstones of the passageway while the door was still closing; she was running as if she were still a girl.
Harriet rose and walked up to an elegant desk at one end of the narrow salon, where she began to glance through some of the correspondence neatly piled upon it. Crowther realized that this room must be her main place of business as well as leisure. It suited her, he thought, being pleasant and practical, but without the profusion of frills and fancies that Crowther had found oppressive in many feminine apartments. The room was long and well lit from the garden; the furniture was modern and practical but showed taste. The wall behind the desk was lined with volumes bound in brown leather, and the little objets d’art collected on the sidetables and above the mantel were interesting and well chosen for the spaces they occupied. Her husband had obviously collected a deal of prize money as well as household staff on his voyages, and delivered his wealth to a careful manager. Harriet put the papers back down on her desk with a sigh.