Page 65 of A Governess' Forbidden Flame
Fortunately, they were wrong. The carriage arrived swiftly, and the door opened, only to reveal Dr. Thorne, who leaped out with his black leather satchel.
“I was told there was an emergency and that I should come at once,” he explained, eyeing Sebastian. “As it seems, I was right to leave my other house calls.”
“Hopefully, it is just a graze, doctor,” Sebastian explained as Dr Thorne approached him. But he feared that it was much worse than that.
Instantly, he remembered Frederick’s words.I hope you lose your arm.The thought made him shudder, but he convinced himself that people lived without legs, without eyes, without tongues. He still had the other hand. And he had what mattered the most, right by his side. One arm was a price he was willing to pay for that.
“I’ll be the judge of that,” Dr. Thorne replied, eyeing the wound with a frown. “I will need warm water and clean towels.”
Minutes later, they were all in the drawing room with all the necessary tools and things that the physician had demanded of them. Dr. Thorne worked silently and diligently, with a calm demeanor that bespoke of years of medical experience. Sebastian wondered if the man had ever seen a pistol wound. Curiosity got the better of him.
“Doctor, have you ever cleaned a pistol wound?” he asked, wincing slightly at the sting as the doctor examined the wound, his jaw tightening in silent resilience.
“I have,” Dr. Thorne replied without taking his eyes off of the wound. “You wouldn’t believe how many hunters are clumsy enough to shoot either the people by their sides or even themselves.”
“Themselves?” Anna gasped in shock. “You mean, they actually shoot themselves?”
“By accident, of course,” Dr. Thorne explained, as the distant murmur of manor’s daily activities seeped through the closed windows, a reminder of life continuing beyond the momentary turmoil.
This provided some comfort for Sebastian. The knowledge that life went on no matter what soothed him. By tomorrow, he was certain that the entire village would know that the curse was simply a convoluted screen for something that was finally explained in rational terms.
The members of his family were not cursed to die young. That would not happen to either Anna or himself, or even Amelia for that matter. They were all finally safe, and life would go on.
“Sometimes, they are just clumsy,” Dr. Thorne continued with his explanations, although Sebastian didn’t think that it was necessary. “And sometimes, it is a matter of old, rusty pistols and guns that are not taken care of properly.”
He paused for a moment, pulling back to take a closer look at what he had done. The wound was carefully wrapped with clean bandages. Sebastian tried to move his shoulder, but it was too painful. He wasn’t able to hide it.
“You were very fortunate, Your Lordship,” Dr. Thorne pointed out respectfully. “The bullet only grazed you. If it had been aimed slightly lower, it could have shattered bone or even worse. This way, you should be fine in a couple of weeks, provided you do not lift anything heavy or do not put too much strain on that arm.”
Sebastian frowned. “So, basically, you are telling me that I will be useless for the next several weeks?”
This was the first time Sebastian had ever seen Dr. Thorne smile. “Yes, that is what I am saying. But I am also saying that you are one fortunate man, Lord Ravenscroft. Rejoice in that fact.”
Sebastian smiled back. “I will, Dr. Thorne. Thank you.”
Just as Dr. Thorne stood up and readied himself to leave, he seemed to remember something else. “Oh, one more thing…You know that I have worked closely with your family for generations, Your Lordship. And I have always respected your desire for privacy. Well…I’m afraid that we had a new servant girl who heard what happened to little Anna while I was divulging it to my wife, and this girl took it upon herself to sharewith the others in the village. Needless to say, she is no longer in my employ. And I apologize for any inconvenience that this might have caused.”
Sebastian thought about it for a moment. Perhaps, if Frederick and Vivienne hadn’t heard about Anna’s injury, they would not have come, and they would still have been scheming against him and his family. Perhaps, in time, they would have come up with a more deadly plan that would have had devastating consequences.
He smiled at the man, shaking his head. “No need to apologize, I assure you, Dr. Thorne. I believe that fate arranged things exactly as they should have been.”
“If you say so, Your Lordship.” Dr. Thorne shook Sebastian’s hand upon leaving. “I can find my own way out. You just rest and let others take care of you this time.”
“Don’t worry, Doctor,” Anna suddenly responded. “We will be happy to do so.”
Dr. Thorne smiled yet again. It was impossible not to, for the drawing room was filled with hope and love, brimming out of every single person there. The man left, greeting everyone, leaving the four of them behind.
“Well, now that all of this commotion is over, I do believe we are all in need of some rest!” Sebastian exclaimed, feeling overwhelmed.
At that moment, he noticed Amelia and Anna exchange a meaningful glance. “Oh, no…” he shook his head in mock terror. “What now?”
“Haven’t you forgotten something, Uncle?” Anna wondered, on the verge of exploding into a chuckle. It seemed that even Nicholas knew exactly what they were referring to, but he was also unwilling to shed light on it before Sebastian had a chance to guess.
“Maybe.” Sebastian scratched the back of his neck with his good hand. The other, he remembered not to move unless it was a matter of life and death. “But I almost died for your information. I am allowed to forget a thing or two.”
“All right, all right.” Amelia took mercy upon him, walking over to him and patting him gently on the shoulder that did not take a bullet. “He’s got a point. Help him out, Anna.”
“You forgot about the secret door, Uncle!” Anna exclaimed, and only then did it hit him.
