Page 12 of Her Brother's Keeper
“Edward! Neddy! Stop! No!”
It was futile, as if he had not spoken. Gallant shifted again, the whites of his eyes showing, and Darcy knew it behoved him to move the boy away. With one hand, he looped the reins over a nearby branch—not easy, because the child wanted to touch the saddle, the mane, the ears, or any part of the animal he could reach. Despite his small size, he was sturdy and single-minded in his intent. At last, he had the beast tethered and could stride farther away from it.
Once Edward recognised that Darcy was heading in the opposite direction of the object of his pursuit, he began fighting, reaching for his face—most likely to try and claw himself free. Darcy simply tipped him back over his shoulder so that the boy was hanging upside-down, his little arms unable to reach anything vulnerable. The child shrieked his fury and frustration.
In the distance he heard a woman’s frantic voice calling, “Neddy! Neddy!”
Even from here, he could tell it was Elizabeth’s voice. She sounded panicked; undoubtedly she had heard her brother’s screams. It was probable that coming upon him dangling the child upside-down was unlikely to impress her.
Easily he hefted Edward, turning him in his arms so hefaced outwards, and Darcy had a better hold upon him. There was a large fallen log nearby; he seated them both, keeping his grip firm. Edward struggled but could not free himself.
“Give up,” he told the boy. “I can hold you like this all day.” The words made no difference to the child’s struggles. “Miss Elizabeth!” he shouted, as loudly as he could in the direction of her calls. “This way! I have your brother! He is safe.”
It was a very few minutes before she reappeared, grappling her way through the thick brush; her bonnet had come loose, trailing down her back, and there were tears in her skirt.
“Neddy!” she cried, running to them, arms outstretched.
The child’s struggles, which had begun to fade, began anew.
“I cannot release him,” Darcy said soberly. “He is determined to reach Gallant. He seems to be… infatuated.”
At his words, her expressive eyes took on a look he could not like, a sadness that was much too close to despair. Somewhat to his surprise, she sat down beside him instead of offering protests to his hold on the boy.
“Neddy is fascinated with horses,” Elizabeth replied. “However, he is not allowed near the stables, and seldom sees them. I do not know how but by some means he knew a horse was near, even through the trees. He has not tried to escape my hold in months, but he did, and I believe it was because of the horse’s presence. He was chasing after it.”
“Ah. Does he often try to escape to the stables?”
“No. Neddy is…he does not quite…that is, he probably would, if he realised where the stables were in relation to Fox Hollow. I never take him near them, else my life would be spent in nothing but—” The boy flung himself forwards, trying to break away. He began screaming at the top of his lungs, and tried to bite Darcy’s arm.
Darcy managed to control him and avoid the boy’s mouth, doing his best to keep his own frustration with the boy under a firm control, while Elizabeth grabbed his head and did not allow it to reach Darcy’s arms. He kept his voice gentle but firm.
“Edward, you must stop this. Hurting people is bad. The horse is dangerous. We do not touch the horse, not this horse. He is a nervous creature who bites and kicks. He is not a horse for a child.”
“It will do no good,” Elizabeth said, and there was poignant emotion in her voice. “He does not understand. No matter what I try, he does not understand.”
“Do you think his hearing is amiss?”
“No. When something interests him, he seems to hear well enough. He must have heard the sound of your horse from afar, it is the one thing that makes sense. I envy you your strength. What shall I do, Mr Darcy, in a few short years when he can overpower me? If I cannot keep him safe, he is doomed, I fear. If only I were a man!”
“Miss Elizabeth, the world would be a far worse place if you were a man. Let us take him home, or at the very least, out of sight of Gallant.”
Twelve
PAST THE POINT OF NO RETURN
Darcy had been correct; almost as soon as they were beyond sight and sound of Gallant, once there was absolutely no possibility of reaching the horse, the boy calmed. It was no longer necessary to keep such a tight hold upon him, although he did not let down his guard. Edward instantly became much more interested in the sights and sounds around him, looking about with interest at the scenery. He wondered whether there was a more tactful way to ask the most obvious question, decided that there probably was not, and to ask it regardless.
“What discipline has been attempted?”
Elizabeth’s mouth twisted with bitterness. “If you are asking why he is not beaten for his behaviour, do not worry. He has been. In fact, in my opinion, it was those thrashings whichtaughtNeddy to respond with violence when he loses control.”
“I was certainly not suggesting he be beaten,” Darcy replied, appalled.
“Believe me when I say that he learns only the wrongthings from corporeal punishments. He does not understandwhy, Mr Darcy. Besides which, I do not think he…that he feels pain in the same way that most people do. Or else he has a very high tolerance for it.”
“If he cannot learn, and cannot be disciplined?—”
“No! He is not a simpleton!” She appeared as though she wished to snatch the child away. Edward held utterly still in his arms, gazing up at him with his startlingly blue eyes—almost as if he awaited the outcome of their discussion. “Hehaslearnt things. Hedoes. Simply not all the things I wish him to learn, in the order I have wished him to learn them. I will take him now.”
