Chapters (50)
- Cover
- Dedication
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Forty-Five
- Forty-Six
- The Pengarron Sagas
- The Harvey Family Sagas
‘I could cut my tongue out for what I said to Cordelia. What exactly am I going to say to make it up to her? She’ll probably never forgive me and it’s no more than I deserve. I went to her room first thing. I thought she was still refusing to answer the door, then Polly told me she’d risen even earlier and had gone riding.’
‘Ask her to be godmother to your baby, she’ll be delighted with the idea. More importantly, what are we going to do about Mama and Father?’ Kelynen said.
‘What do mean?’ Luke asked irritably, wondering why he drank so unwisely. He must take care not to turn into a sluggard. ‘They seemed quite happy yesterday. I thought they were getting along very well. Didn’t you, Livvy?’
‘I didn’t notice at the time, but in retrospect they seemed almost affectionate.’
‘Perhaps, but how much of that was for our and Beatrice’s benefit?’ Kelynen persisted, grooming Gilly’s coat. The fox had settled, its tiny pointed face on her knees, looking down at the floor. ‘You haven’t been here, Luke, to witness their estrangement first-hand, to feel the tension. Mama has been every bit as stubborn as Father over this. The day Father came home and announced he was staying, obviously with the intention of making full amends, I could see this entirely didn’t suit Mama. I asked her directly if or when she was going to let bygones rest. Her words were, “All I can say is I hope to and very soon.”’
‘Well then,’ Olivia said with a sigh of relief. ‘I believe she’ll do as she says. Why do you doubt her, Kelynen?’
‘I don’t really, it’s just that I can’t bear seeing Father so unhappy.’
Luke smiled grimly. ‘Why am I not surprised that you should see things more from Father’s point of view? I can understand his feelings, although not his actions towards Clem Trenchard. He’s been a thorn in Father’s flesh for years, but Father should have simply ignored the ignorant fellow. Trenchard stayed under your roof, Livvy. Could you not see that he might have been a threat, that he was planning something in the way Father must have had in mind?’