think too,â she said, delighted to find a kindred spirit. âAnd yet â oh, goodness, if you could have heard the things I said to them.â
âI wish I had. Iâm sure it would have been very entertaining.â
âOh no, Iâm sure thatâs wrong,â she said, conscience stricken. âHow can a fight be entertaining?â
âVery easily if you have righteousness on your side. Nothing like a good fight. Engage the enemy and turn your ten-pounders on him.â
âTen-pounders?â
âGuns.â
âThey said â â her voice began to shake from another reason, âthey said theyâd tell the constable that Clara was parish property, and I said â â mirth was overcoming her, âI said â â
âDonât stop there,â he begged. âI canât stand it.â
âI said he would take my side because â heâd met this chicken before.â
His crack of laughter hit the ceiling. Rena gave up the struggle not to yield to her amusement, and the two of them sat there, holding onto each other and rocking back and forth.
âThatâs not a ten-pounder, thatâs a twelve-pounder,â he gasped at last. âIt must have blown them out of the water. I shall always regret that I wasnât there.
âI ought to have been, of course. I should have walked back to the vicarage with you, and then I would have been there to help. When I think of you struggling back here â and what do you mean by creeping in by stealth?â
âI thought you would still be at the tavern, and the house would be empty.â
âNo, I didnât stay long. I began to feel rather uncomfortable.â
âYou mean you felt unwelcome?â
âOn the contrary, they welcomed me with open arms. Theyâve decided that my arrival means the good times have come again, that Iâll be wanting to restore the house and the gardens and that will provide work for them. I now know the names of every artisan and gardener in the district.
âHow could I tell them that I have no money to fulfil their dreams? And my dream too if the truth be told.â
âIs it really your dream too?â she asked excitedly.
âYes. In the short time Iâve been here Iâve fallen in love with this place. Iâd like to do all the things they want, and live in a house thatâs as lovely as it ought to be. But not only for my sake. For theirs too.â
He gave an awkward laugh. âIâve really been thinking only of myself since I inherited the Earldom. I never thought of how it might affect other people, or how they might hope it would affect them. But tonight I was confronted by the reality of other peopleâs lives, and it made me stop and think.â
He looked at her ruefully. âThinking isnât something Iâve done a lot of in my life. Iâve done my duty as a sailor, but for the rest Iâve been heedless, and content to be so. But now â â he sighed. âTheir need is so desperate and frightening. It made me feel I should do something about it. And yet â what can I do? Except pray that we find more coins, and they turn out to be worth a lot.â
âYes,â she said. âWeâll pray.â
âSo, I escaped, because I wouldnât give them false promises. I came home and started writing letters, until I heard this crash from downstairs.â
âThat was the chair.â
âAnd why were you going to sleep on the sofa? Do we lack spare bedrooms?â
âI thought Iâd find one tomorrow, in the light.â
âYou canât stay down here tonight.â
âYes I can. And Iâm going to.â
âRena, be sensible.â
âI am being sensible. Besides, I want to stay with Clara, and I canât very easily take her upstairs.â
âTalking of Clara, sheâs busily pecking my boots. No doubt she thinks she