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Chapter Thirteen

J ohn ran through the settling dust and caught a glimpse of both orphans. They appeared to be clear of the pile of debris, but Gabriel was lying on the ground groaning, his arm at a funny angle. Timothy stood by him.

“I’m sorry, but I had to move you,” Timothy said, glancing up at John as though for reassurance. It was the first time the orphan had dropped his swagger and appeared afraid.

Though he did not yet fully understand what had happened, he set his hand on the boy’s shoulder to reassure him.

“You did very well, Timothy.” He got to one knee beside Gabriel. “You are uncomfortable now, but it looks like Timothy here saved your life.”

“Thank you,” Gabriel said, his eyes closed in pain.

“Never mind that.” Timothy bent down and patted Gabriel’s other shoulder, causing him to wince.

“Let’s leave him be for a moment.” John stood and turned to tell Geny to keep her distance, but she was gone. In her place was the boy he presumed to be her brother. “Where has your sister gone? Did she go for help?”

“She went to get Mr. Dowling,” the boy replied .

“Very good. Stay back, my lord.” He gestured to Timothy. “And you, too. It is unlikely for there to be more danger, but it is better to be safe.”

John put his hands on his hips and surveyed the pile of stones, then looked at the remainder of the wall, which now had a large opening in the middle. He surmised that any stones that were likely to fall had already done so. Through the hole, they had full view of the chapel. What appeared to be a heavy wooden sculpture of a saint lay at the top of the stones that had fallen into the stable. The wooden cross was still standing on the table inside the chapel, but the reredos had fallen into the stable and splintered to pieces. A smooth slab of stone was visible, leaning against the base of the table. Figuring there was nothing else he could do, he knelt back down again.

Gabriel’s eyes were filled with pain, and John held his uninjured hand, instinctively knowing that physical touch would help the boy to be less afraid. “Lady Eugenia has gone to get help. You need not worry about anything.”

John glanced behind him again, and still did not see Mr. Dowling. He had expected for him to have come running. The earl’s son had gone back to stand at the stable entrance, and he called out to him, “Do you see them yet?”

“My sister is returning, but Mr. Dowling is not beside her,” he called back.

“Go fetch for me one of the saddle blankets,” John said, forgetting for the moment that he was addressing a peer of the realm. The boy did so without hesitation and ran over to John carrying one, which John then placed over Gabriel. “It’s a bit uncomfortable now, but you will soon be as right as a trivet.”

Lady Geny arrived, looking pale. “Gabriel broke his arm?”

“I believe so, but were it not for Timothy, it could have been worse. Where is Mr. Dowling?”

Her face flashed in anger. “Missing. He had said he had an urgent correspondence to write, but he is not at his desk and I could not find him anywhere. I will fetch the surgeon myself. I know where to find him.”

John hesitated. He should be the one going on such an errand, but he did not know where the surgeon lived and they needed to move quickly. He turned to her brother.

“My lord, you will accompany your sister.” It was not a question and not quite a command, but the boy went with her without comment.

Minutes after Geny had gone, Mr. Dowling finally made his appearance and stopped to stare at the gaping hole in the wall that revealed the humble benches inside the chapel. He stepped up to the blanket covering Gabriel. “I have just heard what happened. Lift the blanket so I might see.”

John did as the man asked without comment.

“It looks broken. I will go and fetch the surgeon.”

“You are late for that,” John said dryly. “Lady Eugenia has already gone with her brother to fetch him.”

“Why didn’t you stop her?” Mr. Dowling asked, turning on him. “The daughter to an earl should not be traipsing about the streets in search of a doctor.”

John raised his eyes to Mr. Dowling. “I believe Lady Eugenia’s compassion is too great to allow for any loss of time when it comes to an orphan who is suffering. I did not know where to find the doctor. Had you been on hand, I am certain she would happily have left the errand in your care.”

“Are you accusing me of something?” Mr. Dowling asked.

John looked down at Gabriel who was watching the exchange with dull eyes. “Of course not.”

For something to do, he laid his hand on the boy’s forehead, feeling for a fever, though he did not think one could get a fever from breaking one’s arm. The boy did feel hot. Dowling hesitated briefly then left, and John relaxed slightly.

Timothy was kicking at one of the stones, and he came over to them. “Why’d you go and poke at the wall, Gabe? ”

John held up a hand. “That is something we will go into later when Gabriel has been taken care of by the doctor.”

He sized up the hole. It was now imperative that the wall be fixed as soon as possible, and he hoped that the mason would be up for the challenge. Although it did not appear to be a full load-bearing wall, there was surely structural damage that needed to be remedied if the orphanage was to be safe.

“I was just curious,” Gabriel said through gritted teeth. “I saw plaster through the hole and wanted to see if it would hold. ’Twas stupid of me.”

“I’ll say,” Timothy said, and John silenced him with a look.

At last, the surgeon arrived, and Lady Geny’s brother stood nearby in rapt curiosity, watching everything he did. John gave up telling them to stay back, for he did not think that any more stones would come loose. The surgeon lost no time in setting the bone, which caused Gabriel to fall into a swoon. John glanced over at Timothy who looked as though he were about to do the same.

“You are relieved of your lessons for the morning, Timothy. You may go and join your friends, and I will see you tomorrow morning.”

The orphan was off like a shot, and John turned to Lady Geny’s brother. “You seem to have a stomach for this sort of thing. You are not queasy at all.”

“Not really,” he answered, flashing John a smile. “I found it more interesting than anything else.”

The surgeon picked up his tools and stuffed them into his bag. “Shame you are going to become an earl, then. You might have made a fine doctor.” This caused the boy to beam from the praise.

Geny had been watching everything, and she stood and gestured to two servants coming from the stable entrance. “He is here. You will need to have him brought to his bed and inform Nurse Ramsey about his situation. ”

“Yes, my lady,” one of them said. This was easily done, especially since Gabriel was still unconscious. John got to his feet, his knees stiff, and the earl’s son turned to his sister, his hands on his hips.

“Geny, shall we tour the asylum now? We can begin with the chapel.” He jerked a thumb in the direction of the hole in the wall with a broad grin.

Geny met his look with narrowed eyes. “Yes, indeed. But we will go through the door, like civilized people.” She turned to John. “Mr. Rowles, you have been set back in your work by this incident. We will not trouble you to escort us.”

Her smile was distant, and John understood why. But it didn’t make it easier to see the change. He had been trying to protect her from himself, and of course he could not tell her about his true purpose here. He had no choice but to keep his distance. If only she knew how much it cost him.

He bowed. “Very well. But take care, if you will. This hole has weakened the structural integrity of the building on this side. I would avoid the chapel, and the meeting room which is upstairs, until I can have a look at it.”

Lady Geny nodded her understanding and put her arm around her brother’s shoulders. Together they left the stable. John turned again in the quiet to survey the damage, finally noticing the empty stalls. In the confusion, he had not noticed the flurry of activity as the grooms and stable hands had rushed over to the horses to calm them. They had already led the horses to the far end of the stable, away from the dust and commotion. He was alone on this end.

He walked over to the pile of stones and circled it, examining the statue more closely. It did not appear to be broken. He wondered if this was what had caused the stones to fall—if it had not been properly anchored on the side of the chapel. Otherwise, he found nothing but stones and the broken plaster that had once held it together. There was also the smooth plaster from the inside of the chapel.

He walked around the pile to the other end and found the same thing on the ground, except for the smooth stone that was sitting at eye level on the side of the chapel. He went over to examine it, pulling the loose stones away to have a better look. It appeared to be made of marble—a plaque, it seemed, that had been hidden between the decorative screen and the wall. It sat between the bare stones and mortar on the side of the stable and the smooth plaster on the side of the chapel. He tried to turn it over, but it was too heavy.

“Hey!” He lifted his arm to wave to a stable hand, who came running. “Give me a hand turning this, will you?”

The stable hand attempted to help, but they ended up needing a third person to pull it loose. They turned the plaque to view the opposite side. On it were names, some of which he recognized as being early donors. Next to the names were numbers in pounds, presumably the amounts that had been donated.

“What’s this?” He had spoken his thoughts out loud, and an older servant who had wandered over to see what they were about leaned in.

“This used to hang in the chapel, but I ain’t seen it in years.”

John looked up at him, drawing his own conclusions. “You’ve been here since the asylum opened?”

“Ay.”

John returned his regard to the plaque, thinking it might offer some clues that the ledger books had not provided. Perhaps that was why it had been hidden—although, then why have it made in the first place? He glanced at one of the two stable hands who had assisted him. “Can you get another sturdy fellow and have this brought to my office?”

“Yes, sir,” the man said.