Page 29 of Her Brother's Keeper
“Thank heavens for Mrs Annesley. She is correct,” Darcy said fervently, grateful that he had finally hired the right companion.
“I am trying to believe her. But the little boy, Fitzwilliam… What is his name?”
“His name is Edward, but his sister calls him ‘Neddy’.”
“Neddy,” she repeated softly. “He may be a simpleton, but what if he is not? What if he is like me, and merely does not possess the common talent of speech?”
“It is what his sister believes.” Suddenly he was possessed of an urge to confide in her. “She has described his mind as being in what she imagines as a sort of fog, with barriers to what seems clear to us. Obviously, it takes much effort for him to pierce that fog, to breach it with communication. As I have explained, he loves animals, and with their appeal, he has learnt to name them. He especially loves horses. I had a vaguenotion in my mind, that perhaps I could use riding lessons as a sort of reward for trying more diligently in other areas.”
Georgiana nodded, her forehead crinkled as she considered. “It is an idea.”
“It may be a terrible one. The lad is so wild to ride that he is beyond control when the ride is finished. His sister says that he believes he will never get to go again—he has not had many privileges in his young life—and his despair incites his worst behaviours. How does one reason with a child who has no language? How do I explain that I will return? How do we teach him self-control, when to him we are like jabbering crows, our words meaningless?”
They both puzzled over this as they ambled slowly over the track they followed.
“Does he count?” she asked abruptly.
“I do not know.”
“It seems as though if he could count, we could teach him an…an order to things. Such as, first comes breakfast, then comes this, that, and the following, and next comes riding lessons, afterwards comes something else, then a few other things, followed by bedtime…and thenceforward, we start it all over again.”
He noticed her use of ‘we’ with mild alarm; yet, she was obviously intrigued, and he did not have the heart to stop her involvement. “It is a thought. I wish I knew how to demonstrate it to him. And of course, I cannot come every day.” With a start, he realised that they were almost to the path to Fox Hollow. “We had better tether the horses here—her home is near, beyond this grove. Once Edward sees horses, he will pay attention to nothing else.”
Georgiana’s brows rose. “You mean for me to come too? To be introduced?”
He glanced her way. “The sister is respectable. There is no reason you should not be.”
“Oh, no, I did not mean that. And I would love to try and help. It is only…as I said, I do not do well with strangers. I blurt things that ought to be kept quiet, and I need more practice. Also, I am hardly dressed to meet…I would not wish to embarrass you before your…your friend.”
He realised, even though he had not once referred to Elizabeth by name, that she had misinterpreted his interest in Edward to indicate an interest in Edward’s sister.
Well, she was not entirely wrong, but it became more important than ever that he show her that there was nothing in his motives beyond charity. It was a Platonic connexion, and that was all it could ever be.
“Hersibling is half-feral. I doubt she is easily dismayed by a misplaced sentence or two, and improper riding gear. My concern is solely in assisting the child, if it can be done.”
Georgiana suddenly pulled up on the reins. “I have an idea! But I need to go back to Netherfield.” She wheeled her mount in the opposite direction and took off at a gallop.
“Georgiana! Wait! What are you doing?”
“I have an idea!” she called back, laughter in her voice, not slowing in the slightest, nor waiting for him to approve or reject whatever it was that she meant to do. Soon she was out of sight.
But that was Georgiana—impulsive and a little bit heedless.
And are you not the fox calling the wolf sly?he asked himself.
He had been telling himself his trip to Fox Hollow this morning was due to the promise he had made to Edward, but he knew it was a mere excuse. Georgiana’s briefly joining himhad been a warningheought to heed. He sat quietly for a long while, indecisive, Mabel patiently nibbling the grass at her feet, wondering whether to turn back to Netherfield.
I should not do this.
It was wrong. He couldnotpursue Elizabeth Bennet. Yet, every time he decided to return to Netherfield without seeing her, feelings of disappointment and an even greater wrongness seemed to overwhelm him. With a sigh, he finally dismounted, tethered Mabel to a tree convenient to his purpose, and finished the journey to Fox Hollow alone.
Twenty-Four
A NEW ACQUAINTANCE
Mr Darcy will never return.
“I am not disappointed,” Elizabeth told Neddy, who was taking each of his soldiers and standing them into a long line across the hearth and from thence, around the room, his blond curls gleaming in the grey light streaming in from the windows. When he ran out of soldiers, he would add other toys—he did not seem to care about which toy, only about his pattern.
