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Back Pengarron Dynasty Save as PDF
Chapters (50)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. One
  4. Two
  5. Three
  6. Four
  7. Five
  8. Six
  9. Seven
  10. Eight
  11. Nine
  12. Ten
  13. Eleven
  14. Twelve
  15. Thirteen
  16. Fourteen
  17. Fifteen
  18. Sixteen
  19. Seventeen
  20. Eighteen
  21. Nineteen
  22. Twenty
  23. Twenty-One
  24. Twenty-Two
  25. Twenty-Three
  26. Twenty-Four
  27. Twenty-Five
  28. Twenty-Six
  29. Twenty-Seven
  30. Twenty-Eight
  31. Twenty-Nine
  32. Thirty
  33. Thirty-One
  34. Thirty-Two
  35. Thirty-Three
  36. Thirty-Four
  37. Thirty-Five
  38. Thirty-Six
  39. Thirty-Seven
  40. Thirty-Eight
  41. Thirty-Nine
  42. Forty
  43. Forty-One
  44. Forty-Two
  45. Forty-Three
  46. Forty-Four
  47. Forty-Five
  48. Forty-Six
  49. The Pengarron Sagas
  50. The Harvey Family Sagas

‘My uncle, Sir Oliver Pengarron, has a hut in the manor grounds kept solely for injured wildlife. I’ve seen all manner of animals and birds, even insects released, fully recovered, into their habitat. Miss Kelynen Pengarron healed a partially blinded kitten there quite recently. I would have loved to have had it, but my uncle has an allergy to cat’s fur.’

‘My brothers and I have three cats on the smallholding, all of an agreeable nature. One is about to produce a litter. You are very welcome to a kitten. If you have a care, I will bring the basket to the big house and you may choose one for yourself.’

‘I shall consider it, thank you. My cousin, Mr Pengarron, was only saying last week we should have some animals about the house.’

He smiled his soft smile.

Cordelia became aware of how he was looking into her eyes and that she was doing the same into his. He was virtually a stranger, yet she felt at ease in his company.

Then she remembered Alicia. ‘Oh, I really must go! I’ve deserted Mrs Rosevear and she is walking back alone. It’s been – goodbye, Mr Kinver.’

‘I’m going home to the smallholding. May I not go along with you part of the way, Miss Drannock?’

There were improprieties and implications to consider, but suddenly Cordelia did not care about them. She was tired of being thought of as a ‘dear little thing’, she was tired of being indulged as if she was still a child and, most of all, she was tired of being ignored.

‘Well, you have to walk along the same path, so of course you may.’

They walked off, enjoying more conversation. When he offered her his arm, she accepted it.

Twenty-Two

The same afternoon, another young woman was fainting and another was holding flowers.

Rosie Renfree was in St Piran’s church, on her knees, lying limply over the communion rail. When she came to, her vision clearing slowly, she didn’t know where she was, then with a groan she recognized the colourless stone flags she was looking down on. Her head buzzed frighteningly. Somehow she dragged herself up on to leaden feet. The shawl around her shoulders had fallen off and she was cold, shivering uncontrollably.

Staggering to the front pew, the Pengarron pew, which she wouldn’t even have dared touch before this, she fell down on it, clinging to the figure of the patron saint carved in the dull wood at its end. Bowing her head she wept wretchedly, hoping desperately no one would come inside.