“Listen to me, Justin,” Mr. Ravenel said quietly. “This was my fault. Not yours. You can’t be expected to follow the rules if I haven’t told them to you. I should have made certain you understood not to go inside one of the enclosures or pens by yourself. Never, for any reason.”
“But the cat . . .” Justin faltered.
“She can take care of herself. She’s over there, with at least eight lives left—you see?” Mr. Ravenel gestured to a nearby timber post, where the cat was grooming the side of her face delicately. The outer corners of his eyes tipped upward as he saw the boy’s relief. “Regardless, if an animal is hurt or in danger, don’t go near it. Ask an adult for help next time. An animal is replaceable. A boy is not. Do you understand?”
Justin nodded vigorously. “Yes, sir.” The grace of forgiveness, when he’d expected harsh judgment, left him glowing with relief.
“Ravenel,” she heard her father say, “I’m in your debt.”
Mr. Ravenel shook his head immediately. “I deserve no credit, sir. It was all pure idiot reflex. I jumped in with no plan or forethought.”
“Yes,” Sebastian said reflectively, “that’s what I liked about it.”
By the time Mr. Ravenel had made it to his feet, the horse and cart had been brought around. The combination of pain and fading excitement had left him too weary to quarrel. After a testy comment or two, he climbed slowly into the vehicle. To Justin’s delight, Mr. Ravenel invited him to ride in the cart as well. They settled on a stack of folded blankets, with Justin tucked against the man’s good side. As the cart began to roll toward the manor house, the black cat leaped into the vehicle’s open back.
Walking back with her father, Phoebe smiled ruefully at the sight of her son’s beaming face in the distance. “Justin worships him now.”
Her father arched a quizzical brow at her tone. “Is that a problem?”
“No, but . . . to a young boy, Mr. Ravenel must seem like a fantasy of a father. His own personal hero. Poor Edward Larson has little chance of competing.”
Although her father remained relaxed, she sensed his sharp interest. “I wasn’t aware Larson was in the running for such a role.”
“Edward and I are fond of each other,” Phoebe said. “And he’s fond of the boys, too. He’s known both of them since they were born. The last time he came to visit Heron’s Point, he made it clear that he would be willing to assume Henry’s place.”
“Willing to assume Henry’s place,” Sebastian repeated with slow emphasis, his face darkening. “Is that how he declared himself?”
“It wasn’t a marriage proposal, it was a prelude to deeper conversation. Edward isn’t one to rush things. He’s a gentleman of courtesy and delicacy.”
“Indeed. He doesn’t lack for delicacy.” Suddenly her father’s voice was caustic enough to dissolve granite.
“Why do you say it like that?” Phoebe asked in surprise. “What do you have against Edward?”
“I can’t help but question how my spirited daughter could fix her choice, once again, on a tepid Larson male. Is your blood really so thin that it calls for such milk-warm companionship?”
Phoebe stopped in her tracks, while outrage raced through her like wildfire. “Henry was not tepid!”
“No,” her father allowed, stopping to face her, “Henry did have one passion, and that was you. It’s why I eventually consented to the marriage, despite knowing the burden you would have to shoulder. Edward Larson, however, has yet to evince any such depth of feeling.”
“Well, he wouldn’t in front of you,” she said hotly. “He’s private. And it was never a burden to take care of Henry.”
“Darling child,” he said softly, “the burden is what you’re facing now.”
Chapter 12
By the time Phoebe and her father had entered the house, servants were running along the hallways with toweling and cans of cold and hot water, and the housekeeper was directing a footman to carry her medicine case up to Mr. Ravenel’s room.
“I’m going to speak to Lord and Lady Trenear,” Sebastian murmured, and headed for the stairs.
Nanny Bracegirdle stood in the entrance hall with Justin, who held the black cat against his chest. The half-wild feline should have shredded him by now, but she rested passively in his grasp, gazing around in bewildered curiosity at her strange new surroundings.
“Nanny,” Phoebe exclaimed, hurrying over to them. “Have you heard what happened?”
The older woman nodded. “Master Justin told me, and so did the cart driver. The household’s all in a tither.”
“Did you see Mr. Ravenel when he came in?”
“No, milady. They said he was a bit gray faced, but steady on his feet. They sent for a doctor even though he said not to.”
Justin looked up at her with a grimace. “His scratch wouldn’t stop bleeding. The handkerchiefs you gave him are all ruined, Mama.”
“That doesn’t matter,” she said. “Poor Mr. Ravenel—he’ll definitely have to be stitched up.”
“Will he have to stay in bed? I’ll bring my cat to visit him.”
Phoebe frowned regretfully. “Justin, I’m afraid you can’t keep her.”
“Oh, I already knew that.”
“Good. Well, then—”
“—but you see, Mama, she wants to keep me.”
“I’m sure she does, darling, but—”
“She wants to come live at Essex with us.”
Phoebe’s heart sank as she looked into his hopeful face. “But this is where she does her job.”
“She wants to work for us now,” her son informed her. “There are mice in Essex. Big, fat ones.”
“Justin, she’s not a house cat. She won’t want to live with a family. She’ll run off if we try to make her stay with us.”
His brows lowered in a determined expression that was pure Challon. “No, she won’t.”
“It’s time for a wash and a nap,” Nanny intervened.
Phoebe seized gratefully on the pronouncement. “You’re right as usual, Nanny. If you’ll take Justin and the cat up to the nursery—”
“The cat can’t come to the nursery.” The nanny’s face was dumpling soft, but her tone was unyielding.
“Even temporarily?” Phoebe asked weakly.
Nanny didn’t even dignify that with an answer, only prodded Justin to hand the cat over.
Justin gave Phoebe an imploring glance. “Mama, please don’t lose my cat—I want to see her after my nap.”
“I’ll look after her while you rest,” Phoebe said reluctantly, reaching out for the bedraggled creature. The cat mewled in protest and scrabbled for purchase, anxious not to be dropped. “Galoshes,” Phoebe swore beneath her breath, fumbling with the squirmy parcel of fur and bones.
Justin twisted to look back at Phoebe skeptically as Nanny towed him away.
“I have her,” Phoebe assured him brightly, while the cat tried to use its back feet to climb the ridges of her corset like a ladder. She clamped the furry, skinny body against her shoulder, holding it firmly. After a moment, the cat surrendered and conformed against her, claws still needling into her bodice.
Phoebe carried the cat upstairs, struggling to manage it with one arm while holding up her skirts with her free hand. Finally, she reached her room.
Ernestine, who was sitting by the window with some mending, set aside her sewing basket and came to her immediately. “What’s this?”
“An undomesticated barn cat,” Phoebe said. “Justin acquired her during our farm tour.”
“I love cats! May I take her?”
“You can try.” But as Phoebe tried to lift the cat away, it hissed and dug its claws into the bodice of the dress. The harder she tried to pry away the cat, the more tenacious it became, growling and clinging desperately. Giving up the battle, Phoebe sat on the floor near one of the windows. “Ernestine, would you run down to the kitchen and fetch something to tempt her? A boiled egg, or a sardine—”
“Right away, my lady.” The lady’s maid dashed out.
Left in silence with the stubborn cat, Phoebe stroked her back and sides. She could feel the grooves between her tiny ribs. “Would you mind retracting your claws?” she asked. “I feel like a pincushion.” In a moment, the little needles withdrew, and Phoebe sighed in relief. “Thank you.” She continued to pet the silky dark fur and encountered a little knot beneath one of her arms. “If this is a tick, I’m going to start screaming like a lunatic.”
Fortunately, further investigation revealed that the knot was a clump of some resinous matter, like pinesap. It would have to be cut out. Slowly the cat’s body relaxed, and a resonant purring began. She clambered up to the sunny windowsill behind Phoebe’s shoulder and reclined on her side. Surveying the room with a bored, queenly air, the cat began to lick one paw.
Phoebe stood and tried to straighten her clothes, discovering the front of her gray dress was hopelessly frayed.
Soon Ernestine returned with a plate of shredded boiled chicken and set it near the window. Although the cat flattened its ears and viewed the lady’s maid with slitted eyes, the chicken was too compelling to resist. After jumping to the floor, the feline slunk to the plate and devoured it ravenously.