Petals on the River (82 page)

" Gage returned in short order with Sly Tucker, and between the two of

them, they carried William back to his bed.
 
His lordship, anxious to

preserve propriety with a lady present in the room, dragged the sheet up

over his waist before he would allow them to strip off the bloodstained

nightshirt.
 
It was Shemaine who gently swabbed his back clean while

Gage pressed a towel firmly against the rent in an effort to stem the

fresh flow of blood.

"Is Gran'pa going' to be all right?" Andrew asked worriedly, reluctant to

come any closer than the top of the stairs, for the sight of so much

gore had frightened the boy.

Shemaine offered a smile of encouragement.
 
"Your grandfather is going

to be just fine, Andy.
 
He's too ornery to allow a little mishap like

this to trouble him."

Flushing red with chagrin, William shot a glance toward the girl and

promptly became the recipient of a pointedly eloquent stare. Shemaine

had no need to chide him for what he had done, he knew he deserved it

only too well.
 
Frightening the boy was only a small part of it.

Colby was already making the rounds and arrived soon after they had

managed to stem the bleeding.
 
He was furious that the elder had tried

to get out of bed so soon after suffering such a serious wound.

''You leave this bed one more time and rip open any more stitches and

I'll have no recourse but to lay a red-hot iron to close up the wound!

Do you understand what I'm saying?
 
I didn't patch you up just so you

could kill yourself going to the privy." In a vivid display of outrage,

he jabbed a thumb over his shoulder to indicate the necessary item. "The

pot's right there, just waiting to be used!
 
So save me a few trips out

here to mend you up and do so!"

Having bravely crept forward, Andrew now sank behind the head of the cot

until his nose rested on the feather ticking.
 
He wasn't at all certain

he liked the man scolding his grandfather.
 
If ever he got sick or

injured, he just hoped the doctor wouldn't have to be fetched for him.

Colby Ferris didn't limit his criticism to his lordship, but turned a

glare upon Gage, who was standing at the basin washing his father's

blood off his forearms.
 
"And what are you doing out of bed? Didn't I

tell you to stay there for a while?"

"I did .
 
.
 
.
 
for a while," Gage retorted with a grin.
 
"But I had

work to do."

" Tis evident the both of you are close kin!" Colby grumbled, and eyed

Shemaine as a possible source of help.
 
"Perhaps you can do something to

convince these two to heed my advice."

Shemaine smiled and began laying out clean linens for the bed and fresh

swabs for the doctor to use while he restitched the wound. Remembering

one of lames Harper's favorite sayings, she turned it into a question.

"Have you ever seen the sun setting in the east, Dr.
 
Ferris?"

Flicking a glance from father to son, Colby set his lips awry in

perturbation.
 
The two showed no remorse and would obviously do what

they wanted.
 
"I see what you mean."

"Still, they might set a better example for the boy if they were more

attentive to your instructions," Shemaine added, smiling up at Gage as

she handed him a towel.
 
"I'm sure they would expect Andrew to do what

you say, Doctor, just as my husband expects his men to glean guidance

from his expertise."

Colby smiled, realizing the lady was effectively getting her point

across with gentle reasoning far better than he had with his ranting.

Seeming suddenly abashed by the poor example they had set for the boy,

Gage and William looked toward Andrew.
 
It was William who twisted

slightly to take his grandson's hand and pull him around to the side of

the bed.

"Do you understand that I brought this new trouble on myself by not

listening to the doctor?" The child stared at the elder with widened

eyes as he continued.
 
"I should have had more consideration for your

mother and the trouble I made bloodying the sheets and the stairs.
 
I

know what I did frightened you, and I'm sorry for that.
 
I should have

stayed here in the loft and not tried to go downstairs. Had I done so, I

wouldn't be needing more stitches now.
 
Do you understand?"

The boy nodded, and William ruffled his dark hair, winning a grin from

the youngster.

Wiping his hands on the towel, Gage gave his wife a smile as he ceded to

her gentle arguments.
 
"All right, my love, I'll go tell my men to work

the rest of the day without me.
 
Does that please you?"

"'Twill relieve my worries knowing you will rest." Shemaine reached up

and, lightly combing her fingers through his hair, gently felt the

swelling that was still there beneath the neatly closed gash. "I don't

want anything to happen to you now that we've found each other."

It was rumored that Gertrude Turnbull Fitch had caused such a row in

Newportes Newes after the death of her father that officials of the

hamlet had started making inquiries about her possible involvement in _

the plot to blow up Gage Thornton's ship.
 
To assure himself of some

avenue into the Turnbull wealth, Captain Fitch forcibly hauled his wife

aboard the London Pride and set sail for England before anyone actually

decided to arrest her.
 
She hissed like a viper, laying a severe

tongue-lashing upon him, but Everette only smiled, for her threats

carried little weight now that J.
 
Horace Turnbull was dead.
 
He

promised himself that it would be Gertrude's last voyage on the London

Pride, for she had cost them more in lives lost than he had ever managed

to pilfer from the coffers.
 
James Harper and the crew guessed their

captain's intentions, but they didn't dare let out sighs of relief After

the shores of England were reached and they had seen the last of the

shrew, then there would be a celebration the likes of which they had

heretofore only dreamed about.

At first, Shemaine and Gage were both hopeful that Potts had been aboard

the vessel when it embarked upon the return voyage, but they soon

learned that he had jumped ship and was still in the territory. Some

said he was keeping company with Morrisa again, and if that was the

case, it was not hard to surmise that with Freida closely watching over

her girls and their accounting of customers, Potts was having to pay

through the nose for any favors he might be receiving from Morrisa.
 
A

tar's wages could not last long with such prurient indulgences, and it

was supposed that one day soon he would have to find work or resort to

drastic measures to gain the coins he would need to merely exist.

Potts's welfare was of little consequence to Shemaine and Gage. They

were far more concerned with the threats he had made in the past and

feared the day was swiftly approaching when he would again be seeking

his revenge.
 
Not an hour went by that they didn't wonder if he was in

the woods again, watching for an opportunity to kill one of them.

Soon after the departure of the London Pride, Calley gave birth to a

little girl, and her joy was complete.
 
Annie stayed for another week

just long enough for the woman to get back into the routine of running

her household again.
 
In the ensuing days a small wedding was planned

for Annie and Dr.
 
Colby Ferris at a church in the hamlet.
 
Only a few

close friends would attend the ceremony, but everyone else was invited

to a large feast at the tavern, which served the best food in town. For

that particular afternoon at least, the owner had promised to keep

Freida and her girls from plying their trade on the premises, a

situation that did not necessarily please the madam.

Mary Margaret kindly offered to come out and sit with Andrew and William

while Gage and Shemaine attended the ceremony and festiv ities.

Since it promised to be a late hour before they returned, the couple had

invited Mrs.
 
McGee to spend the night with them so she wouldn't have to

make the trip back at a late hour.
 
The woman readily accepted.

But William was not at all keen about the idea.
 
His hackles rose at the

thought of having an Irish nursemaid looking after him, but being for

the most part restricted to his narrow bed by firm orders from the

doctor, he could find no avenue of escape.

Gage showed no sympathy toward William's grumbling complaints. "I've

seen old boars with better temperaments than you have," he accused,

having grown exasperated with his father's continual harping about Mrs.

McGee coming out to watch over them.
 
"You've complained about the

discomfort of your bed, the lowness of the ceiling, the inconvenience of

peeing in a pot, and a long list of other things, not the least of which

is the fact that you and Andrew will be left in the care of Mrs. McGee,

a perfectly capable, kindly old womanþ"

"Old woman...humph!" William snorted, jamming his pillow more firmly

beneath his head with a balled-up fist.
 
"Old shrew, more likely!
 
What

is she going to do, run and fetch the pot when I've got to go?
 
By

George, I'll rot in hell first!" It was positively absurd to imagine

himself being attended by some harpy who'd think of him as an invalid

and, in her zeal to be helpful, try to lift the tail of his nightshirt

as he staggered weak-kneed toward the chamber chair.
 
He had been

imprisoned in this damned loft far too long and certainly needed no

decrepit ancient assisting him!
 
"Blast it all, Gage!
 
I don't need any

nosy-posy tending me!"

Gage struggled valiantly not to laugh.
 
He could understand his sire

growing petulant now that he couldn't move about with his customary

agility and energy, but the wound had been serious and would take time

to heal, definitely much longer than his father seemed willing to

consider or, for that fact, had the patience for.

"Mrs.
 
McGee will be coming here mainly for Andrew's benefit," Gage