“Of course they listen to me. They know I love them and would never ask the wrong thing of them.” Grace patted the ground in front of her. “Place Hector here, please. And he will learn to listen to you too as long as you are kind, patient, and loving. Remember, he has to be given time to learn new things,just as you do. But if you reward him with love and sometimes a treat or two when he behaves as he should, he’ll soon listen just like my pups.”
“Your Gastric looks like he has had a lot of treats.” Sissy idly scratched the much calmer Galileo’s ears as she watched the dogs head across the meadow.
“Yes, well, my sweet Gastric loves to eat. I think it’s because I found him on the streets of London, and he was half starved. Perhaps, deep down, he fears that someday he might starve again.” Grace examined Hector’s sore leg. “Thankfully, this is not bad at all. I think he is more afraid than anything.”
“Can you bandage it anyway?” Connor asked. “I am sure that will make him feel much better and less afraid.”
Grace tried not to smile. She normally didn’t pay much mind or even tolerate children all that well, but she liked these two. “I would be happy to, and we shall put some balm on the scrape just to be certain, yes?”
Both children nodded as they knelt beside her, avidly watching her treatment of their sweet pup.
“What do you think, Galileo?” she asked the cat critically eyeing her and flipping his tail.
“It takes him a while to trust,” Sissy said. “Our last two governesses were mean to him.”
“A pox on them both,” Grace said without thinking. She paused in her wrapping of Hector’s foreleg. “I should not have said that, but I can’t tolerate anyone being cruel to animals. Please add that to our agreement of mutual secrecy.”
Both children grinned and bobbed their heads. Galileo even deigned to move a little closer.
“There now. All done.” Grace scratched behind Hector’s ears and the little white dog almost seemed to smile. “We shall be great friends, Hector.” She held out her hand to Galileo. “Friends?”
The cat flicked an ear and blinked its great golden eyes as if to say he had yet to decide.
Grace understood completely. Once an animal had been mistreated, it was afraid to trust anyone.
“Thank you for helping us,” Connor said. “And have no worry. We always keep our word.”
“It was a pleasure meeting you,” Grace told them, “and I always keep my word too.”
“Hector refuses to walk,” Sissy said. “It’s a long way home to carry him all the way.”
While Hector was a small dog, it would be quite the chore for them to tote him across the meadow and all the way back to Wolfebourne Lodge. Grace chewed on her bottom lip, battling with what she knew sheshoulddo and the need to protect the freedom of wearing her buckskins. The children could ride Pegasus while holding the little dog, but what would happen when she delivered them home and was spotted by one of the servants or, heaven forbid, someone of even higher ranking? But what if she got themcloseto home? She could deliver them well out of sight of anyone but close enough that carrying the little dog the rest of the way wouldn’t be such an arduous task.
“I have an idea,” she told them. “The two of you can ride my horse while holding Hector. I shall get you close enough to the lodge so you can carry him the rest of the way, but still far enough away so no one will see me. Do you think that might work to keep all of our secrets safe?”
“We will make it work,” Connor said.
“But what about Galileo?” Sissy asked.
“Did Galileo not make it here on his own four feet…er…paws?” Grace eyed the cat, unsure what to do about him.
“Yes,” the little girl said. “But he’s tired now. Just look at him.”
Galileo yawned.
“I am afraid I am not an expert on cats.” Grace liked felines well enough. Especially after being around so many of them while visiting her married sisters. Blessing and Thorne’s home was full of them, and Fortuity had four roaming her and Matthew’s house. “Would Galileo stay put in Gastric’s seat behind the saddle? I won’t have him scratching Pegasus.”
“Galileo likes horses.” Sissy picked up the great ginger cat and held him up to Pegasus’s nose. “Meet Pegasus, and be polite. He is our ride home because Hector can’t walk with his sore leg.”
Horse and cat touched noses and appeared to reach a peaceful accord.
“Will Galileo allow me to help him into the seat?” While the cat had ceased growling or hissing at her, Grace had not missed that he still gave her a wide berth.
Sissy nodded and held out the cat as if the question was silly.
“All right, Galileo. No scratching, if you please.” Grace gingerly took hold of the cat and deposited it into Gastric’s seat behind the saddle.
Galileo settled into the seat as if claiming it as his throne.
