“You will not keep wild animals in this house.” Hugo’s voice rose with each word. “Have you completely taken leave of your senses? What if that creature had bitten someone? What if one of the staff had been injured because of your foolish creatures?”
“They’re not foolish!” Leah’s own temper flared to match his. “They’re important! And whiskers isn’t dangerous—he’s a grass snake, not an adder!”
“I don’t care what manner of serpent it is!” Hugo turned toward the door, his patience exhausted. “Peters! Williams! Remove every one of these jars immediately and release their contents into the grounds.”
“No!” Leah lunged forward as two footmen appeared in the doorway. “Papa, please, you don’t understand?—”
“I understand perfectly.” Hugo’s voice dropped to that dangerously quiet tone his daughters knew to fear. “You haveendangered the safety of this household for the sake of your morbid fascinations.”
“They’re not morbid!” Tears were streaming down Leah’s face now. “They’re beautiful, and they’re important, and you won’t even listen?—”
“The discussion is finished.” Hugo fixed her with a look that could have frozen hellfire. “You will confine yourself to your room for the remainder of the day and consider whether your selfish desires are worth terrifying the staff and disrupting the entire household.”
Leah stared at him for a moment, her face a mixture of fury and heartbreak. Then, without another word, she pushed past the footmen and fled the room, her sobs echoing down the corridor.
Well done, Hugo. Another masterful display of paternal authority.
“Your Grace,” Peters ventured carefully, “shall we proceed with removing the specimens?”
“Yes. All of them. And search the room thoroughly for this… Whiskers. I want that creature found and removed immediately.”
As the footmen began carefully collecting the jars, Hugo became aware of Sybil standing in the doorway, her expression unreadable.
“Not a word,” he said curtly.
“I wasn’t planning to say anything,” she replied mildly. “Though I should probably go check on Leah.”
Of course, you should. Because you’ll know exactly what to say to her, won’t you? While I stand here looking like a tyrant who destroys children’s interests.
“Do what you like,” he said, turning away from her knowing gaze.
“I will.”
Sybil found Leah in the music room, curled up in the window seat with her face buried in her knees. Her shoulders shook with silent sobs, and she didn’t look up when Sybil entered.
“May I sit with you?” Sybil asked gently.
Leah shrugged without lifting her head which Sybil took as permission. She settled onto the window seat beside the girl, close enough to offer comfort but not so close as to feel intrusive.
“He hates me,” Leah mumbled into her skirts.
“He doesn’t hate you.”
“Yes, he does.” Leah finally looked up, her face blotchy with tears. “He thinks I’m strange and unnatural and that my interests are improper. He said I was morbid.”
“He said the creatures were morbid. That’s not the same as saying you are.”
“Isn’t it?” Leah wiped her nose with her sleeve. “Normal girls my age are interested in music and drawing and preparing for their future debuts. I collect spiders and befriend snakes. What father wouldn’t be ashamed of such a daughter?”
Oh, sweetheart.
“Your father isn’t ashamed of you,” Sybil said firmly. “He’s frightened.”
“Frightened?” Leah looked genuinely surprised. “Of what?”
“Of you being hurt. Of something happening to you that he can’t prevent or fix.” Sybil chose her words carefully. “When Jenny screamed, his first thought wasn’t about the inconvenience to the household. It was about whether you were in danger.”
“But Whiskers would never hurt anyone,” Leah protested. “He’s the gentlest creature you could imagine.”
