Page 57 of Fair Weather Enemies
The old man shook his head. “Sorry, son. There’s no inn at Grasmere these days. You should try Ambleside.”
“How far is Ambleside?”
“Forest animals hide? What?”
“No,” Adam practically leaned into the man’s ear and enunciated slowly, “How…far…is Ambleside?”
The man arched his eyebrows again. “Oh, how far! Yes. About five miles, I’d say. You’ll be there well before sundown if you start now. Good day.”
The man shut the door in Adam’s face, barely leaving him time to avoid it smacking his nose. “Well!”
He returned to his traveling companions. Barlow met him. “What did he say?”
“He suggested we make for Ambleside without delay.” He studied Jane, who swayed unsteadily on her feet. “She won’t make it that far. We must let her ride.”
“Agreed.”
He and Barlow removed two bags to create a space behind Beelzebub’s neck. On finishing, he found Jane watching him defiantly.
“I need not ride, Adam. I can walk alongside everyone else.”
“You are not well, Jane. Please, ride the horse.”
She straightened and lifted her chin. “Do you question my fortitude?”
He shook his head. “I would never question that. I recognized your fortitude the day we met, and nothing has changed. However, even the strongest must sometimes quit the field for a while. To rest the backbone, as it were.”
She sighed and rolled her eyes. “Very well.”
Then, with only minor resistance from her, he lifted Jane onto Beelzebub’s back. She fussed briefly with her hem to cover exposed ankles before giving up and leaning onto the animal’s neck with another sigh. Hester watched her niece with grave concern.
“She’s running a fever, you know. We’d best hurry along.”
“Right.” Adam and Barlow each hoisted a bag onto their respective shoulders. Hester stepped into the gap by seizing and tugging Beelzebub’s tether. “Come along, bothersome beast. Give me no trouble and I will not be forced to sell you to a coal mine.”
As if understanding, the horse trundled into motion without resistance. They quickly cleared Grasmere and followed the line of a small lake seemingly carved from crystal. However, Adam failed to appreciate its loveliness. Vanished from his thoughts were estates, gold, and riddles. His only regard was for Jane. She continued to lean against the horse, gripping its mane for support, swaying dangerously with each rock of Beelzebub’s hips. For once, the horse moved along without resistance.
They made good progress, walking faster than they had before, anxious to find an inn for Jane. They left the small lake behind only to encounter another. Adam was watching Jane when she finally sat up for the first time in three quarters of an hour. Her feverish eyes found the lake to her right.
“Oh, how lovely.” A delighted smile grew upon her face as she surveyed it. Then, her eyes rolled up. Adam dropped the bag and caught her before she hit the ground. He carried her limp form into the grass beside the road and set her down. Her skin was indeed warm. Hester nudged him aside.
“Oh, my dear girl!” She placed a hand against Jane’s forehead and began to fan her. Her eyes turned up toward Adam. “What can we do, Mr. Ashford?”
He just stared at Hester, then at Jane, briefly helpless. The sight of her flushed cheeks finally pushed him into frenetic motion. “Remain here. I will find help.”
Without another word, he ran up the road toward a large house perched on a hillside. He had covered only three hundred strides when a middle-aged woman and an adolescent girl descending from the house met him on the road. The woman spoke before he could implore her help.
“Sir, we saw your companion tumble from the horse. Is she well?”
He stopped to catch his breath. “She is not. She is with fever.”
Her face drew tight. She turned to the girl and gripped her hand. “Dora. Hurry to the house and tell your father we are bringing in a stranger with fever. Ask Aunt Dorothy to take you and your brothers to Mrs. Gable’s house for a few days.”
Without question and without a word, the girl nodded and ran up the hillside toward the house. The woman seized his wrist. “Come, sir. We must attend to your friend.”
As they hurried toward the place where Jane lay, he glanced at the stranger. “My name is Adam. Thank you…”
“Mary.”
