“My goodness.” Tatiana shook her head. “It’s only been a few weeks since we met, but you’ve brought so much joy to us. We’ll be so sad to see you go.”
“You aren’t that far from Manhattan,” Elsa pointed out. “We could visit you.”
“I’d like that very much, dear. Although I can’t yet offer a forwarding address.” Tatiana looked to Danielle and pursed her lips, as if wondering if she’d already said too much for her daughter.
“About that.” Luke glanced at Tom, who nodded. “I wish I had more answers for you, but I can at least offer one piece to the puzzle of your next steps. Tom and I—and some other fellows I know—well, we’d like to build you a new cottage.”
“I don’t want a new cottage.” Danielle rubbed between Barney’s ears. “I want this one. Only this one.”
“You’re absolutely right,” Luke told her. “This cottage is the best one there is, aside from the fact that it’s about ready to fall down around you. It isn’t safe. And that’s to say nothing of the weather sweeping through it. Hard to stay healthy over the winter in a place like that.”
“That’s why we’re going to build you one exactly like it,” Tom said. The spoon in his right hand trembled until he stirred his food around on his plate, banishing the tremor once more. “And I mean down to the last nail. Luke and I are pretty good at building reproductions. We would like to build one for you.”
Tatiana’s eyes rounded. “You would do that for us?”
Tom grinned, clearly warming under her gratitude. “We would. To be fair, it was Luke’s idea, but we’re all in. What else do I have to do on weekends anyway?”
“I thought about trying to surprise you, but I figured this would be one less thing for you to worry about if you knew we could take care of it for you. Free of charge, by the way,” Luke added.
Elsa had been closely watching the little girl, whose brow had begun to furrow. “How does that sound to you, Danielle?” Elsa asked. “A cottage that looks and feels exactly like this one. You can put all your same things inside it.”
Danielle twirled a lock of her hair around her finger, then rubbed the strands with her thumb. Her gaze flickered from the dog to the people sitting around the table, and then back down again.
“Last spring,” Tatiana began, “a robin built a nest inside the wreath hanging on our front door. It bothered her every time we opened and closed it, so finally she gave up on that nest. Do you remember, Danielle? She took the twigs from the nest and built another one in a safer place, right up there in the tree. She liked it there. That’s where she had her babies. It felt like home to her anyway, even though she moved her nest. That’s what we’ll do, too. We’ll just move our nest like the robin did.”
Danielle made no reply, but the crimp in her expression wasn’t quite so severe. Still, she looked worried. She would need time to get used to the idea.
Ivy smiled at her. “I’ve heard a lot about the birds around here, and about George in particular. Could you show me some of the things he’s brought you? I’d love to see, when you’re finished eating.”
Conversation flowed easily around the table, right up until Ivy and Danielle left to go inspect the collection of George’s gifts.
With a glance to her daughter, Tatiana leaned in and spoke in low tones. “Mr. Nigel Field came to the property with Mr. Spalding yesterday. He confirmed what I’d already heard, that he intends to turn the estate into a public park.”
Luke leaned forward. “He’ll need a team of groundskeepers and gardeners to maintain all this. Will he hire you on, even if we have to move your cottage?”
“I tried to convince him,” Tatiana said. “I know this land better than anyone. I may not be as strong as I once was, but the county will hire all the strong backs they need, so that shouldn’t matter. I waved my experience about as much as I dared. He wasn’t making any hiring decisions yet, that’s what he said to me. Something about weighing the options...” She shook her head. “Mr. Spalding pulled me aside after that exchange and told me not to get my hopes up. Mr. Field has been interviewing landscape architects already. It sounds like he may want to start with a clean slate. I doubt that would include retaining an aging gardener and child.”
Elsa rested her folded arms on the table. “What did Mr. Spalding say, exactly?” She almost didn’t want to know.
The tip of Tatiana’s nose grew pink. “He said he felt it was his duty to make Mr. Field aware of Danielle’s ‘condition.’ I overheard him myself. Mr. Spalding painted such a poor picture of my girl, focusing on her worst moments, predicting how such ‘episodes’ could affect park visitors. It was his recommendation to be done with us entirely. What could I possibly say to that? Mr. Field would never take my word over Spalding’s. It’s no use.”
Dismay filled Elsa. She had no idea where the woman would find employment. But she did know one thing. The sooner Mr. Spalding and the Petrovics could part ways for good, the better. If Mr. Field had been receptive to the ominous warnings about Danielle, it was better for them to leave this place before he could threaten to have Danielle institutionalized.
“I’m so sorry,” Elsa said.
“Whatever for, dear?” Tatiana patted Elsa’s arm.
“I haven’t found the aviary for you. I haven’t helped you find employment.”
“But that’s not why you came to Elmhurst. Helping us wasnever your job, or Luke’s or Tom’s. And youhavehelped us, you know. Just not in the ways you named.”
The sun was sinking, and shadows stretched longer across the lawn. All that was left to do was say good-bye to Tatiana and Danielle.
Luke and Tom had been in charge of bringing candles, matches, and kerosene lamps for their camping trip inside the mansion. Even so, Elsa and Ivy were determined to make full use of the remaining daylight to finish all the cataloguing and tagging they could.
“You’ll see them again, you know,” Ivy reminded Elsa. “This isn’t the end of the story unless you want it to be.”
“I don’t.”
