My
sister, that kept house for him, have just married, and so now I be come
to take care of father."
"He can take care of himself by all accounts," answered Samuel, but in
quite an amiable tone of voice, because the girl's magic was already
working upon him.
"Can he?" she said. "I never heard of no man that can take care of
himself. Can you? Anyway, my father can't. He's as helpless as most other
men be without a woman to mind 'em. And I love to be here. I was in
service, but this is a lot better than service, and Thorpe-Michael's a
dear little place, don't you think?"
Samuel didn't say what he thought of Thorpe-Michael. He'd got a powerful
feeling in him that he wanted to know her name, and he asked her to tell
him.
"You ain't going to put it down in your policeman's book, are you?" she
said. "Because I sinned in ignorance and it would be very ill-convenient
if I got in trouble with the police afore I'd been here a fortnight."
"You'll never get in trouble with the police," explained Samuel. "In the
first place, Inspector Chowne is related to your father."
"He's my uncle," she answered, "and a dear man."
"And he's a tower of strength," continued Samuel, "and, as for getting in
trouble with me, that I can promise you you never will do if you behave."
She looked up at him under her eyelids and felt a flutter at her
heart-strings, for if ever there was a case of love at first sight it
happened when Chawner Green's younger daughter was catched in the sloan
bushes by Sam Borlase.
Pages:
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151