The older woman clucked. “I almost wish she hadn’t. Having the animal in the nursery distracts the children.”
“From what, Mrs. Jacobs?”
“Well…from their studies, of course.”
The conversation he’d had with Louisa the other day about the children resurfaced. He frowned. “Considering the twins are only two,” he said sternly, “I do not see how a cat is going to distract them from their studies when they should not be studying at all. And if they do, it should only be at limited times during the day.”
Mrs. Jacob’s narrowed eyes laced with malice, and as she opened her stiff lips to speak when a crash shook the walls. The mysterious boom had come from downstairs. His heart dropped. He darted out of the nursery and down the stairs. Servants filtered from the other rooms to see what had caused the sound.
Then came Mrs. Smythe’s shriek. “Louisa!”
Fear lodged in his throat, and he ran faster. Had something terrible happened to her? Yet the closer he came to the library and could hear the housekeeper’s irate grumbles, a different fear took over.What did Louisa do this time?He almost didn’t want to know.
Chapter Twelve
Servants peered intothe doorway of the room where he and Louisa had talked only moments ago, wide eyed with hands over their mouths. Trevor pushed past them to enter. Then halted.
Mrs. Smythe paced the floor, in between the books on the floor and the overturned bookcases, mumbling incoherently as she made wide gestures with her hands. Trevor took in the scene carefully. How had his bookcases—two of them, anyway—fallen over?
“What is wrong with that girl,” Mrs. Smythe said to nobody but herself. “I have only so much patience…” She bunched her hands into fists. “There’s only so much I can do.” She stopped and faced Trevor. The older woman’s face crimson with fury. “I’ve tried, Your Grace, but she is unteachable. I cannot train her. She just…” She motioned her hand toward the mess on the floor. “Obviously, she has no skills at all. I have never seen anything like this in all my years.” She breathed deeply, rubbing her forehead.
“Where is Louisa?” he asked.
The housekeeper threw up her hands. “I don’t know, Your Grace.”
“Your Grace, if I may?” Hobbs moved beside Trevor. “I saw Louisa run out the side door toward the west end.” He pointed in the direction.
Trevor inhaled deeply, hoping to calm his ire before he went after the girl. “I shall find her and have a talk with her.”
A few of the men lifted the bookcases as the maids scurried around, picking up the books. A slight pound started in Trevor’s forehead as he left the house in search of the reckless woman. He tried to convince himself it wasn’t her fault…that because her loss of memory she really couldn’t be blamed for causing such havoc. Yet he wondered why she hadn’t found what she was good at. Obviously, she had worked for a wealthy family. Her vision of the ballroom and the way a meal should be served suggested she had. So then why couldn’t she do anything right?
He walked a good distance, wondering if he should have taken his horse. She couldn’t have gone too far. Then again, she’d been running, and probably scared of punishment. And rightly so…since she could have destroyed his library. At the same time, she could have hurt herself, and his gut churned with the knowledge. He couldn’t bear to see her injured any more than she had been.
When he neared the pond hidden in the grove of trees, her sobbing echoed through the stillness and he slowed his steps. On her knees, she faced the pool of water and rocked back and forth, her arms wrapped around her waist. Locks of hair had fallen from her bun, and dangled around her shoulders and face. Pity tugged at his heart. Poor confused girl.
She sniffed and wiped her hand under her nose. She’d yet to face him. “I cannot help it. Nobody understands.” She sniffed again. “What’s wrong with me? It’s no wonder I was starved half to death, I never do anything right.”
Did she know he was so near? Yet she made no indication she was aware of his presence. Taking soft steps, he moved closer. Her rambling didn’t make sense. When she saw him, she flinched. Wide, terrified eyes peered up at him, her mouth and shoulders quivering.
“Oh, please forgive me.” A fresh batch of tears streamed down her cheeks. “I don’t know what’s wrong.” She sniffed. “Please don’t take away my meals for punishment. I promise I will try harder.”
He stopped short. Stunned. Why on earth would she think he wouldn’t feed her? Her too-slender frame from when they first met haunted him and horror dawned, sending a wave of nausea through his gut.Dear God!He moved toward her. “Louisa, I—”
Still on her knees, she jumped away from him. “Please, don’t hurt me. Don’t withhold my food. I will do better, Macgregor—” Suddenly she stopped. Her face paled as her arms fell to her sides.
Clearly, she had remembered something. He knelt in front of her and cautiously grasped her shoulders. “Louisa? What do you remember?”
“I—I—” She sucked her bottom lip into her mouth.
“Who is Macgregor?”
Her body shook as the color in her face faded quickly. “I don’t know,” she whispered. “All I know is he was mean to me. When I didn’t do his bidding, he starved me.”
Confusion twisted inside Trevor’s head, wrenching his heart. He wanted to pull this poor woman into his arms and wash away those vile memories. For certain, she was still disoriented. Had she been hit in the head during the accident in the library?
“It’s all right.” Ignoring the warnings in his head, he followed his urges and tugged her into his embrace. She wrapped her arms around his middle as hard, wrenching sobs shook her. Her face pressed into his chest and his shirt quickly dampened from her tears.
“Shhh…” He stroked her satin locks flowing down her back. Resting his cheek on top of her head, he closed his eyes. The scent of roses he’d always detected whenever she was around enveloped him. Comforting her felt too nice and brought a littlepeace to his own troubled life. She’d made him laugh when he thought he’d never do it again. She made him smile and peer at the world from a different angle. More importantly, she made him feel needed—like he’d never felt before.
