by Sarah Winn
Mrs. Coyler sat on the settee and Ellen in a chair facing her. For a few moments, the two women stared at each other, both at a loss for words. Finally, Ellen said, “Philip spoke fondly of you.”
The older woman’s face collapsed and she dabbed at her eyes with a crumpled handkerchief. “We didn’t know he’d married until Silas made inquiries at the war office after seeing his name on a casualty list. My other child had died the year before in childbirth.” Her voice failed and she could not go on.
“I’m very sorry for your loss, but I will not, under any circumstances, allow my only child to come under your husband’s control.”
Mrs. Coyler pulled the handkerchief away from her face. “Silas is not a bad man, but he had to be strong and self-assured to climb up in the world like he did. He thought being hard on Philip would help him to become strong too. He didn’t realize how much the son had taken after his father. Silas thought Philip would surely come home and beg for his father’s forgiveness once he was cut off completely, but Philip was too stubborn for that. Just as his father had done before him, he set off to make a life of his own.”
Ellen heard thumps on the staircase in the hallway and Toby’s voice called. “Mama! Mama! Alice can’t find my shoes.”
Suddenly he appeared in the doorway, fully dressed except for his stocking-clad feet. He stopped and his eyes opened widely as Mrs. Coyler issued a high-pitched moan and raised a trembling hand toward him. Toby stared back at her and then looked at his mother for reassurance.
Seeing no way around it, Ellen said, “Toby this is your grandmother. Your father’s mother. Her last name is Coyler, the same as yours.”
Toby quickly moved beside his mother’s chair. “Has she come to take me away?”
“Noooo.” Mrs. Coyler moaned. “Certainly not. That was a terrible misunderstanding. I assure you we’ll never take you away from your mother.”
The boy visibly relaxed. “Good.”
Mrs. Coyler gave him a watery smile. “You are a fine-looking boy, Toby. You remind me of your father when he was your age, except your hair is darker.”
Before Toby could respond, heavy footsteps sounded in the hall and Gerald appeared in the doorway. One of the servants must have sent for him, for he had obviously rushed to the house without bothering to put on a jacket or comb his hair. He glared at Mrs. Coyler. “What’s this? I told you not to come here.”
“Please, pardon our forwardness, Captain, but my desire to know my grandson was so great…”
Ellen saw another flood of tears building in Mrs. Coyler’s eyes and sought to forestall it. “It’s all right, Gerald. Toby does have a right to know his grandparents.”
Gerald looked around the room. “Where’s the old man?”
Mrs. Coyler recovered her composure and said, “He stayed in the carriage, thinking you might be more kindly disposed to me than to him. But I assure you, he feels terrible about the trouble he caused.”
Gerald looked at Ellen questioningly. She didn’t know exactly what he wanted her to say, so she shrugged. He turned and headed for the front door. In a few moments, he returned with a glum Silas Coyler following him. “Toby,” Gerald said, “this is your grandfather.”
Toby grabbed one of Ellen’s arms. The old man looked at his grandson for a long moment and then directed his gaze at Ellen. “I’m heartily sorry for the trouble I caused you, missus. I hired a man to find my son’s widow, and he told me tales that made me think my grandson was in danger. Otherwise, I never would have given you such a fright. If you’ll just allow my dear Bess to know the boy, I’ll be in your debt.”
He looked truly humble, but Ellen had feared the man so intently, that it was difficult to trust him. “I—uh—suppose it will be all right if you and Mrs. Coyler visit from time to time.”
Mrs. Coyler made a keening sound before saying, “God bless you, dear. You show your Christian character by forgiving those who have wronged you.”
Ellen did not want to take credit for too much goodness for she still intended to keep these two at arm’s length as much as possible, but she supposed it would be good for Toby to know his grandparents.
As if to prove her thought, Mr. Coyler held out a cardboard box that had been tucked under his arm. “Here’s a gift for the boy.”
Toby looked to his mother for her nod of approval before taking a couple of steps toward his grandfather and accepting the box. He retreated back to her side and she held the box on her lap while he tore the top flaps open and pulled out a large, red, wooden top. “What is it?” he asked.
Feeling embarrassed that her son did not recognize such a common toy, Ellen replied, “It’s a spinning top. You wind the string around the bottom and then pull it so the top spins by itself.”
Toby looked at her in confusion. Gerald tried to give him instructions about the string. Mr. Coyler suggested it would work better on the wooden floor in the hallway rather than the carpet in the parlor.
Ellen realized Gerald would have trouble demonstrating how the top worked, and rose from her chair to assist, but Mr. Coyler followed Gerald and Toby out into the hallway and actually got down on his knees to help with the demonstration. Mrs. Coyler watched these goings on with such an intense expression that Ellen feared she was about to start crying again. “Let me get some tea for us,” she said.
Mrs. Coyler got to her feet. “I’ll come with you, dear. These men will be playing with the top for a while.”
Ellen didn’t know what else to do but lead the woman toward the back of the house. She stopped in the pantry and began to load the serving tray with cups, saucers, spoons and a plate of cookies.
As Mrs. Coyler watched, she said. “This is a nice house.”
“Yes,” Ellen replied. “Gerald was fortunate to inherit it from his aunt.”
When Mrs. Coyler murmured, “I know.” Ellen stopped what she was doing and looked at her curiously. The older woman smiled sheepishly, “Silas looked into the captain’s background.”
Ellen didn’t know how to feel about that. Was it an invasion of Gerald’s privacy or a grandparent being sure his grandson was in safe hands? “Well. I hope he liked what he found out,” she said stiffly.
“Even before he looked into his background, Silas had a good opinion of the Captain. The war office had told him how Philip died, so after Silas got over the shock of learning you two were married, he said the marriage proved the captain was an honorable man. Being a businessman, Silas admires a man who honors his debts.”
Ellen was totally confused. “Debts?”
“Well. I suppose some wouldn’t see it as a debt. But the Captain obviously did.”
“See what?” Ellen asked.
Mrs. Coyler’s eyes grew round, and she stared at Ellen for a long moment before saying, “Don’t you know how Philip died?”
“He was shot during the charge of the Light Brigade,” Ellen said. “Gerald was wounded in the same battle.”
Mrs. Coyler’s plumb hands began to flutter. “Yes, but Philip died while saving the Captain’s life. There’s talk of giving him a medal.”
Ellen sank onto a stool beside the work table where the tea tray rested.
“Di—didn’t the Captain ever tell you?” Mrs. Coyler asked.
Ellen shook her head.
“Well, he probably didn’t want to upset you with gory details. Men are like that, wanting to protect their womenfolk from the ugly facts of war.” Mrs. Coyler moved closer and nervously patted Ellen’s shoulder.
Ellen knew she needed to get up and finish assembling the tea tray and take it back to the parlor, but she was stunned by the knowledge of this huge debt Gerald must feel he owed Philip—a debt that could never be repaid unless Gerald made a sacrifice to save Philip’s widow and child. This was why Gerald had married her!
But she had known that from the beginning, hadn’t she? No. she had thought he was just a good man willing to help a dead friend’s widow and child. And he had tried to make the first version of their marriage
temporary. But after she had surrendered to the lure of physical desire, he’d had no choice but accept the marriage as permanent. A man already beset with physical and financial problems had been forced to take on the care of a woman and child he barely knew and certainly cared little about.
Had he grown to care for her? Did the intimacies they had been sharing of late mean anything to him, or was he just making the best of a bad situation?
Why did this upset her so badly? She had married a man she didn’t love, hadn’t she? Had she? She had told herself she could never love anyone as she had loved Philip, but living day after day with Gerald had shown her what a kind and caring man he was, how he struggled without complaining to build a new life for himself and for Ellen and her son. And finally, she had found a level of comfort and passion in his bed that she had never thought to experience again. When they were intimate she felt as if he truly cared for her.
Was pleasing her in bed just another way to repay the debt to the man who saved his life? What could she do about this now? Nothing. The marriage had been consummated. They were both trapped. She could only try to make it up to him by being the best wife she could.
With a deep sigh, she got to her feet. “Let’s finish the tea and get it back to the parlor.”
“Let me carry the tray, dear.”
“Oh, no,” Ellen said, “You’re my guest.” After a brief hesitation, she added, “Let’s not mention this conversation to Gerald, since he’s tried to protect me from the details of Philip’s death.”
Mrs. Coyler nodded and sighed in obvious relief.
Ellen led Mrs. Coyler into the kitchen to get hot water for the pot. The three household servants were all there and jumped to their feet. Ellen introduced them to Mrs. Coyler, and added, “She’s Toby’s grandmother.”
Everyone nodded. Mr. Moore insisted on taking “that heavy tray” from Ellen, Mrs. Moore insisted on filling the teapot with hot water from the tank on the side of the cook stove, and Alice raced to fill the cream pitcher. Of course, Mr. Moore carried the tray into the parlor for them.
The men and the boy had the top successfully spinning on the hall floor. Toby had to be persuaded to put it away with the promise of cookies. Ellen was stunned to see a smiling Gerald extend his hand to Mr. Coyler, when the older man had a bit of trouble getting up from his kneeling position on the floor. The resemblance to a happy family scene made Ellen’s senses reel even more.
At least Toby returned to her side as refreshments were served. He might be pleased with the spinning top, but he wasn’t ready to fully accept his new grandparents. The conversation lagged over tea. Gerald asked when they were continuing their journey home. Mr. Coyler said, they had booked a room at an inn in Hemsley and hoped they might visit Toby tomorrow. Ellen pressed her lips tightly together, determined not to issue them any further invitations, but Gerald invited them to come back tomorrow afternoon and plan to stay for dinner.
She swallowed her objections. Like it or not, she would have to welcome the Coylers into her son’s life, in the hope they would relieve Gerald of some of the financial burden he had assumed in order to repay his debt to their son. Gerald’s debt to Phillip had now turned into a debt she owed Gerald.
* * * *
As soon as the Coylers left, Gerald hurried back to the stables to help the men finish up the day’s chores. It was fully dark by the time he got back to the house and washed up for dinner. He found Ellen in the small dining room, bustling around the sideboard as she tried to keep the food warm in chafing dishes.
“Sorry I’m late,” he said as he strode into the room.
“That’s all right,” she replied, in a voice that did not sound all right. “Do you mind if I fill the plates from the sideboard, so I won’t have to transfer these heavy serving dishes to the table?”
“Of course, not. In fact, let me help you.” He picked up the serving plates from the table and carried them to the sideboard. Once their plates were filled and they were sitting at the table, Gerald decided there was no advantage to be gained from ignoring the subject what was uppermost in both of their minds.
“I did mail the letter telling them not to come.”
“Mrs. Coyler mentioned receiving it.” After this statement, Ellen focused her attention on the food on her plate.
“After Toby had seen his grandmother, I couldn’t see the point of keeping his grandfather out.”
Ellen shrugged, but still didn’t look him in the eye. “It was an awkward situation.”
He could see she was trying hard to be fair about this, even though she did not like what had happened, so he wanted to reassure her. “We can let them have a relationship with their grandson but keep them from taking over his life.”
She looked him directly in the eye then. “Do you really think either one of us is a match for that foxy old man?”
He wanted to argue with her, tell her he would do anything necessary to protect Toby, but then he thought about Silas Coyler, trapped in the coal mines at twelve years of age and working his way out and up. Comparing that to Gerald’s own efforts in business, clearly showed that he was no match to the crafty older man, and made him admit to himself that Ellen was probably right. So, he turned his attention back to his food.
He wondered if Ellen had always doubted his abilities. Was that why she had been so hesitant to make their union permanent? Perhaps, the fact that she did not love him as most wives loved their husbands made her more prone to doubt him. In the last week or so, however, she had seemed to be fond of him. And his feelings for her just kept growing and growing. He had thought that once they completed their vows, he could relax and enjoy the companionship of his wife and child. But he might as well accept the facts that Toby would always be another man’s son, and Ellen would always be in love with that man.
The introduction of the Coylers into their lives would keep reminding everyone of the missing father and husband. But old man Coyler could do a lot for Toby, so Gerald should quit feeling sorry for himself and concentrate on what was best for the child.
When they had finished their quiet meal, Ellen stacked the dishes on a tray, and said, “I want to talk to Mrs. Moore about tomorrow’s dinner, so I’ll be a while. Do you want to do something before we go upstairs?”
He shook his head. “It’s been a long day. I’m going up to bed.”
“I’ll follow you soon,” she said, as she picked up the tray and carried it from the room.
The tray looked heavy and he thought he should be carrying it for her, but it would be tricky to carry a flat, heavy object with one hand. He realized there would always be simple little tasks he could not do that would remind her he was less than a whole man. He needed to keep reminding himself of that and stop hoping she would miraculously fall in love with him.
He went upstairs, got out of his clothes, into his nightshirt, and stretched out on the bed, but he left the bedside lamp burning for Ellen. In time, he heard her come down the hall and go into the bedroom across from his. She still kept her clothes there. Did she do it so she would not crowd his space or was it a sign she was trying to maintain a distance between them?
In a few minutes, she came into his room with a robe covering her nightgown. She had gone to the trouble of donning the robe and tying its sash just to walk across the hall. Now she untied the sash, removed the robe, and draped it across a nearby chair. When she was standing by her side of the bed, she paused and asked, “Should I remove my gown?”
Knowing the question was just a question, not an invitation, cooled any ardor it might have aroused in Gerald. “Ah—I’m tired tonight, and my knee is aching a bit.”
“Would you like for me to put some liniment on it?”
Ever the dutiful wife. “No, I just need to rest it.” Without waiting for her to fully get into bed, he leaned toward the bedside table and extinguished the lamp.
Chapter 18
In the grey light of pre-dawn, two horsemen emerged from the mist rising from the river and walk
ed their horses to the lane that crossed the road they were on. “This is it,” Zeke said. “It goes right past the Osborne stable.” He pointed to the right.
“You should come with me,” Bill Blake said. “If I get a chance to snatch the kid, I might need your help.”
Zeke shook his head. “Folks on that farm know me. I got to go on living here.”
Bill was tempted to go on arguing with the big dumb ox, but he could sense the fear lurking beneath all that muscle, and knew if he pushed too hard, the man might back out on him all together. “Okay, you go back to the mill and wait.”
“I can’t wait long. I gotta go to work.”
“You have time. The sun’s not up yet, and I sure don’t intent to hang around that farm after the hired help start stirring. Besides, if I do get a chance to grab the kid, you’ll have to deliver the note to the grandparents. That’s the only way this plan will work.”
Zeke grudgingly nodded his head. “But if you ain’t back before the sun’s full up, I’m going into town.”
Bill swallowed the curses he wanted to hurl at his stupid partner, yanked on the reins of the nag Zeke had borrowed from the stable where he worked, and headed east. He had to walk the horse because of the darkness, so rays of sunlight outlined the roof of the stable by the time he approached it. Of course, he couldn’t chance riding past it, so he turned his horse into the trees and brush on the far side of the road. He found a concealed spot to tie the horse and started walking.
He had been around the house before, so he knew it would be difficult to break into from the front or sides. The back, with its multiple doors, used mostly by servants, would be his best bet—if he could avoid being seen by the servants. After circling the house, he darted across the lane and back into the brush so he could come up behind the house. A rooster crowed in the chicken pen on the far side of the of the backyard, causing Bill to jump and then curse. It was later than he had thought. Servants would be starting their work soon. He had to do something now. He knew the Coylers were staying at a local inn and that they had made arrangements to rent the same hack they had used yesterday afternoon again today. But he had no knowledge of how long they would be in Hemsley after today.