After a few moments, the child finished his recitation, and Eleanor told him to return to his seat.
“That will be all for today, children,” she said with a smile in her voice. He could not see her from where he stood, but he imagined her standing in her blue dress, her hair piled on top of her head in a mass of curls. “Class dismissed.”
He stepped aside as the door opened a moment later.
Two children, both with bright blond hair, walked out the door and headed across the muddy fort toward a cabin close to the governor’s house. It was the cabin the Fergusons were living in so Mrs. Ferguson could be close at hand to feed Miriam.
Arran waited for more children to leave, but there was no one else. Surprised, he opened the door wider and found Eleanor organizing a stack of books on one of the tables. She looked up and he immediately saw what she had been hiding from her voice.
Disappointment.
“It was just Fiona’s two children,” she said as she bit the inside of her mouth, as if she was trying to remain composed. “No one else came.”
Frustration built in his chest for her. She had put so much effort into her preparations. “I’m sorry, lass.”
“There are twenty-three children in the colony,” she said. “And all but six of them are appropriate ages for school. I should have had seventeen children here today.” She lifted her hands. “Where are they? It’s winter, the perfect time to devote to their studies. What else could they possibly be doing?”
He suspected she already knew the answer to her question.
“It will take time for you to gain their trust.” He stepped into the building and set his musket against a table.
“They’ve known me for many months now but will not even speak to me.”
“How did you gain Fiona’s friendship and trust?”
“I asked her for help.”
“Mayhap the others see you as self-sufficient. They want to be needed. Every day, they rely upon one another for their very lives. It bonds them together in a way nothing else can. In their minds, you are above such things. Removed.”
Her eyes filled with sadness. “I’m not above such things. I have many needs. At the moment, I’m in great need of friends and students.”
“Then let them know that.”
“How?”
Arran walked between the tables and looked down at a stack of books. There were not many in the colony, though she had brought some of her own. “Visit with them. Go to their homes. Ask they what they need.”
“They need a school.”
“What they need is food, water, and shelter. A school is a privilege and a luxury.”
“But it’s right here, ready and waiting for them.”
“Most of them have never had the privilege of an education and they’ve gotten along just fine. They probably don’t think their children need one, either. In their minds, all their children need to know is how to survive. Change their mind. Explain what education can do for them.”
She was quiet for a moment as she nodded silently. “I’ve had a very privileged life. It’s hard for me to understand their needs. I will visit them and ask Fiona for ways I can help, beyond the school.”
And he would find a way to encourage the colonists to trust Eleanor. They just needed to get to know her to realize she truly wanted what was best for them.
“I must meet with Semple,” he said, though he hated to pull himself away from her. He had hoped that simply seeing her for a moment would ease the longing in his chest, but it didn’t.
“I am going to straighten things up a bit more and then go to Miriam.” Her words were tinted with a bit of sadness. “This is the longest I’ve spent away from her since she was born.”
“You’ve grown to love her, haven’t you?”
She nodded, though it wasn’t joy he saw in her eyes, but concern. “More than I think I should. I’ve become quite attached to her, I’m afraid.”
“Is that bad?”
