She drew a deep breath. “Yes, I’m grateful for that. I’ve many happy memories of him, too.”

“You haven’t mentioned any other family. Did you have cousins, aunts, uncles to comfort you?”

“I’m afraid there was no one. My mother was an only child. And my father…” For no apparent reason, her manner took on a certain reserve. She withdrew her hand from beneath his, ostensibly to brush a few crumbs off the atlas. “Well, his family lived very far away.”

He had the distinct impression he’d probed too deeply into her private life. A pity, because he burned to know why she’d never married. It seemed only natural that a lovely, vibrant woman would have had many suitors, especially if she’d lived in the public eye. Perhaps she’d merely been loath to leave her beloved father.

Setting aside the atlas, he arose to fetch the decanter and refill their glasses. “So Audrey’s family became your family. I’m curious, why did she and her husband choose such a remote locale for their mission?”

“Jeremy attended a lecture in Philadelphia, by a traveling preacher who spoke of a great need to bring the word of God to the natives on the frontier. They went where they felt they could accomplish the most good.”

“Were they not concerned that it was dangerous? I recall there being a dispute about the Northwest Territory. It was claimed by the British and the Canadians, as well as the Americans.”

“When they built the settlement, the area was peaceful. Leo was born there, and they took it as a sign from God that they were meant to stay. They befriended the local natives, shared their faith with them, and strove to demonstrate that they could all live together in harmony.”

Hadrian tried to imagine dainty, fair-haired Audrey living in a rough cabin on the frontier with a baby and a preacher husband. Even surrounded by a log fence, an outpost in hostile territory had to be a perilous place. “Why didn’t they leave when the war began? And what about you? You must have traveled there in the midst of the war.”

“Bellingham was located some twenty-five miles from the nearest battle site, at River Raisin. Anyway, a year had passed with no further skirmishes in the area. I’d always enjoyed teaching, and after Papa’s death, I thought it time to find another way that I could be useful.”

“Yet Bellingham didn’t turn out to be quite so safe a refuge, after all,” he murmured.

Abruptly, torment shadowed her face and robbed her beautiful eyes of their brightness. Natalie surged to her feet, her fingers tightly clutching the wrapper at her throat. “I—I’d rather not talk about this anymore. It’s late.”

Silently cursing himself, Hadrian arose, too. Why had he stirred up painful memories by alluding to the massacre? It was none of his concern. He had a strict policy of not involving himself in other people’s troubles. Especially in situations where intense emotional outbursts might occur.