“I’m sorry you had to endure all of that.”
“After Papa’s arrest, when everything started falling apart, I moved in with my sister and Windham. It seemed rather fitting. They were more or less outcasts and so was I. I had no desire to be dependent on them forever, but I had nothing to fall back on, save the history degree my father insisted I get. As he’d put it, there was no sense in wasting time on law, medicine, or anything else of the like, since I’d never need to work for a living. The degree would only be symbolic - a trophy of sorts - obtained from the same university he’d attended. Namely Oxford.
“So I chose to start over. Windham gave me a loan so I could support myself through my studies. Medicine seemed like an interesting choice and after meeting Mr. James Wardrop while at Edinburgh University, I developed an interest in the eye.”
“Was he a professor of yours?”
“No. He’s a surgeon who came to give the occasional lecture, and the author ofEssays on the Morbid Anatomy of the Human Eye. I had the honor of speaking with him at great length on a number of occasions. He pointed me in the right direction and even invited me to sit in on a few of his operations. I learned a great deal, thanks to him.”
“You have a remarkable past,” Louise said.
“Most would probably say it is one I could do without.”
She considered this. “What do you say?”
“Hmm… I suppose everyone is a culmination of experiences. I’d not be the man I am today without the past I’ve had. And since I prefer myself now to how I used to be, I’m not sure I have regrets.”
“What was wrong with your younger self?”
“He was more...entitled. Or rather, he lived with a sense of entitlement that made him lazy, for lack of a better word. I used to be a man of leisure, Lady Louise. I’ve since become a man reliant upon an income, and I’m inclined to believe I’m happier for it. You see, there’s a great deal to be said for making something of oneself instead of having it all handed to you. Being an ophthalmologist isn’t easy. I’ve had to struggle to get where I am. I received no special treatment during my studies because I was titled or privileged. Indeed, for the very first time in my life, I was on equal footing with everyone else, and it was wonderful. Because I knew the day I received my degree with highest honors that I did so on merit, and not because of my rank.”
“Your achievements are to be admired. Most men in your position would likely have turned to drink or some other form of self-destruction. Instead, you rose above the blemish your father placed on your name and turned it into a strength.”
“I never really thought of it quite like that.”
“Perhaps you should.” When he said nothing further, she asked, “What are you reading?”
“The Last of the Mohicans, by James Fenimore Cooper.”
“I haven’t heard of it. Is it new?”
She could hear him flipping through pages, and then, “It says it was published two years ago, so relatively new, I suppose.”
“And how do you find it?”
“Interesting. The plot takes place in North America during 1757 when the French and English were fighting for territorial control. The daughters of a British colonel have been kidnapped by a traitorous scout, and I believe Uncas, a native American guarding the women, and his half-white brother, Hawkeye, are about to launch a rescue mission.”
“So it’s an adventure novel?”
“I’d say so.”
Louise smiled. “Perhaps I’ll read it once you’ve fixed my eyes.”
“I can read out loud for you now. I’ll even start from the beginning if you like.”
“Oh no. That would be yet another imposition and—”
“Not at all. If anything, it will give us something additional to discuss during the weeks ahead. I believe that can only improve my own reading experience, so in fact, you’d be doing me a favor.”
“Well then,” Louise said with a grin, “by all means, proceed.”
“Thank you.” Mr. Berkly cleared his throat. “‘It was a feature peculiar to the colonial wars of North America, that the toils and dangers of the wilderness were to be encountered before the adverse hosts could meet.’”
Settling back against the squabs, Louise closed her eyes and allowed the deep cadence of Mr. Berkly’s voice to bring the story to life. His change of pitch and enunciation for the purpose of adding dramatic effect created an experience so wonderfully immersive Louise almost felt as though she were riding alongside Cora and Alice Munro, and it occurred to Louise she could listen to him for hours.
Upon which she instantly wondered if she could say the same of Mr. Fairbanks.
To her surprise, she wasn’t quite sure. In fact, she was having trouble recalling the sound of his voice.
