He nearly spat out his food, coughing slightly while trying to regain his composure. “If that’s the price I’m to pay for your help, I’ll go back on the streets.”
She tilted her head, studying him while he stared at her in mutinous silence, no hint of the sparkling amusement he’d shown mere moments before. “It’s not a demand but rather an offer you ought to consider.”
“Why?”
“Because there’s power in knowledge. If you know your letters to perfection, information will be yours for the taking.”
A stubborn tilt of the chin. “What makes you think I don’t know how to read and write?”
Rather than bring up the effort he’d made atcopying down the title ofHeraklessome months ago, Samantha gave him a curious look. “Do you?”
His gaze held hers for the longest moment before he pushed back his chair and stood. “Thank you for breakfast.”
“You really should ask if you are permitted to leave the table.” Her words stopped his progress toward the door. When he sent her a backward glare of annoyance, she sighed. This would be like training a wild beast to live in confinement. It would take time. So she chose to abandon all attempts at educating him for the moment in favor of asking, “How do you plan to spend the day?”
“Dunno.”
“May I make a suggestion?” It took a few seconds, but he finally nodded. “Betsy has been asked to help you in case you’d like to try taking a boat ride in the park or pay a visit to a museum. If you speak with her, I’m sure she’ll make some more suggestions.”
“And if I want to go for a walk? Does she have to come with me then?”
Sensing his concern, Samantha said, “You’re not a prisoner here, Isak. We’re only trying to help.”
Lips pressed together, he nodded once more then left the room without saying anything more.
Samantha blew out a breath and dropped her head in her hands. This should not be so hard, should it? Someone cleared their throat and she glanced back up to find Adrian standing in the doorway.
“Everything all right?” he asked, hands in his trousers pockets as he came toward her.
“I fear I may have said the wrong thing when I suggested to Isak that we consider his schooling. My attempt to fix the mistake by encouraging him to enjoy an excursion with Betsy did not seem to work.”
“This is only his third day here.” Adrian pulled out the chair beside her and sat. He took her hand. “We need to allow him some time to adjust.”
“You’re right, but it’s also not good for a boy that age to sit around doing nothing. He’s thirteen years old, Adrian, and he barely knows how to read the most basic words. I’m just trying to help him.”
“And he’ll see that, provided you do not push him too hard too fast. Otherwise you run the risk of his feeling trapped, and I know that’s not what you want.”
She took a deep breath and expelled it. He was correct. While Harlowe had wasted no time with her when she’d first arrived at Clearview, she recalled how jarring the change had been. It might have been nice to have had a month to get used to her new surroundings before demands were made for her to perform.
“What did Turner tell you?” She was rather keen to know.
Adrian straightened, assuming a businesslike manner. “A cloaked figure left Mr. Benjamin Lawrence’s home at two in the morning – a man, Turner deduced, based on the individual’s gait and build. He followed him all the way to the docks where he disappeared into a lodging house. There he remained for about half an hour, after which he returned to his point of departure.”
It was unclear what this might mean, if anything at all, but it was certainly interesting. “Does Turner have any idea of who the man might be or what his purpose was?”
“None whatsoever.”
Samantha bit her lip in contemplation. “Did he see the man arrive at Mr. Lawrence’s home before heading out?”
“No.”
“Then it was probably a servant, either a footman or the butler.”
“My thoughts exactly. In fact, considering what we know, I’d say the man in question probably went to meet with the riders who got away when our carriage was attacked. We’ve already linked Lawrence to that, and a lodging house at the docks would make an excellent hideout for two such thugs.”
“True, though it might be wise not to make assumptions.”
“Fair point.” Adrian scratched the nape of his neck. “Since much of tomorrow will be taken up by Phelps’s funeral, I intend to call on Lawrence again today. It’s time for him to answer some questions about that attack.”
