Page 79 of The Virtuoso
“We have to hope whoever did this took long enough to comprehend she wasn’t home,” Nick said. “Sawing green wood, even a few inches of it, makes noise.”
“You think I want to risk Ellen’s life on a hope?” Val spat bitterly. “The hell of it is, I can’t determine if it’s her enemies or mine doing this. Axel told you about the bonfires?”
“He did. Which just means we have to be careful, and at the least, you are the target. Burning down the house would not harm Ellen.”
“And wrecking her cottage would not harm me. So maybe it’s the combination of me and Ellen someone objects to.” He paced off a few feet, staring at the ruined cottage. “She loved her little house, Nick. I think it was all she had and the only place she felt really safe. Would you take her to Kent? Or to David and Letty?”
“Of course. Leah would love some civilized company. But let’s get this mess cleaned up and put our heads together later. For now, you have a widow to console.”
***
“This is the last of it,” Day said as he and Phil came in, arms full of the details Ellen hadn’t realized she’d miss until she was in the middle of making her bed: She spied in Phil’s arms some embroidered pillows, her old quilt, her favorite mug, and her brush and comb. She took each item from Phil then stopped and drew in a breath when she saw Day holding out a plant to her.
“What is that, Dayton?”
“It was sitting on your counter. I didn’t know if you’d want it, but it looked lonely and will need watering.”
“You found this weed on my counter?” Ellen took the plant, trying to keep the outrage from her voice.
“I can take it back, Mrs. Fitz,” Day offered as she snatched the plant from his hand.
“God damn him to hell,” Ellen muttered as she hurled the plant, pot and all, out an open window. “Thank you, gentlemen, I’d like some privacy now.” Her back was to them, as thorough a dismissal as she could imagine.
“Mrs. Fitz?” Phil’s voice was tentative. “Shall we send Mr. Windham to you?”
“No thank you,” Ellen said quickly enough that they both beat a hasty retreat. Ellen waited to make sure they’d gone, closed her door, sat on the bed, and cried.
Again.
Out in the yard, Phil and Day crossed paths with Val and Nick, who were returning from an afternoon hauling, sawing, and patching on Ellen’s cottage.
“Are we due for a swim?” Val asked his younger assistants. “Or do we attack the hampers first, and what is this doing in my tidy yard?” He knelt to pick up a badly cracked clay pot, a crumpled plant still housed within.
“We found it on Mrs. Fitz’s counter,” Day replied. “I thought it might be a house plant or one she’d like for her room, so I brought it to her. She pitched it out the window and said it was a weed.”
Val’s brows arched in consternation. “Ellen pitched aplantout her window? You saw her do this?”
“We both did,” Phil said, “but it isn’t a weed; it’s pennyroyal. It makes a nice tea and soothes the digestion like peppermint.”
Nick reached out a long arm and pinched off a leaf.
“Phil’s right,” Nick said, bringing the leaf to his nose. “Pennyroyal can be confused with spearmint because the scent and flavor are similar, but it’s pennyroyal all right.”
Val frowned, trying to recall what the apothecary had said about pennyroyal. “Why don’t you repot it? We’ll take it to your father on Saturday. He can find a use for it, but meanwhile I’d keep it out of Ellen’s sight.”
“Right.” Day nodded. “So dinner or a swim?”
“I vote dinner,” Nick said. “The swim will settle the meal and cool us off before bed.” The boys concurred and struck out for the springhouse.
“Which reminds me,” Val turned to regard Nick as the boys moved off, “where will we put you, my friend? The cots in the carriage house are too small for me and Dare, but they would torture you.”
“I have a bedroll.”
“Would you be willing to take a hammock? Ellen has one that is quite sturdy and she won’t miss it.”
“A hammock would be lovely, but how is it you vouch for the sturdiness of this hammock?”
“Shut up, Nicholas.”
