8
A
sharp knock broke through the haze of dreams, and Malinda opened her eyes to
the intrusion. “Hello?” Her voice sounded groggy, even to her own ears.
“I’m
sorry, Lady Timberlin, but the little miss, well she—”
The
person on the other end of the door could not finish the sentence before
Malinda threw back the covers. “I’ll be right there.” Her legs sprung from the
bed and carried her swiftly across the room. “Take me to her right away,
Hargrove.” Since it was only her second night at the manor, there was no way
she was going to find her way to Sophia’s room by herself.
“Right
away, my lady.”
Malinda
could see the smile that Hargrove was trying to hide. Malinda smoothed her
nightgown around her, as it had bunched up around her knees. She quickly ran
her fingers through her hair as she followed after him, all the while trying
her best not to trip over her feet. She must look a sight. Malinda was thankful
that Hargrove’s candle did not give out too much light to show her disheveled
appearance, and hoped that they would not run into many other people this late
at night.
When
they finally reached Sophia’s room, Malinda could hear the whimpers from
outside the door. She yanked the door open swiftly, fearing that the little
mite had suffered abuse at someone’s hands. When Sophia’s small body launched
at her she barely had time to prepare for the barreling child. She sank down to
her level and cradled the child in her arms. “Thank you, Hargrove. I think I
will take it from here.”
She
watched as Hargrove nodded politely to her and bowed away from them both. “Poor
Sophia. What is wrong, my love?”
When
no words came from Sophia’s mouth, Malinda ruffled her hair and soothed her as
best she could. How does one soothe a fear when the cause of the fear itself
was unknown? Malinda scooped the child up in her arms and sat down on the bed
with her. She rocked her back and forth, humming any song that she remembered
from her childhood, until Sophia’s eyelids started to droop down. She placed
Sophia back in her bed and covered her up with her tiny blankets. Malinda ran
her fingers through Sophia’s hair, humming a melody that came easily to her.
When she heard the slight sound of snuffled breathing coming from the little
girl, Malinda knew that it was safe to say that Sophia had drifted off to a
deep sleep.
Malinda
finally took a moment to look around the room. It was a big enough room, but
nothing in it reflected that it belonged to Sophia. There were no dolls, no
books, and absolutely no toys, just like the nursery. The walls were a dull
gray, so lifeless that anyone in the room would look pale if they stood inside
the walls too long. There was no window in the room at all, which made the
walls seem even smaller. What was wrong with these people? Children deserved to
be carefree and young. This room was certainly not appropriate for a child.
Children should have rainbows and lollipops, not a pale, stale, understated
mausoleum that sucked the life out of you. Why treat a child like a somber
adult? There would be plenty of time to act grown up.
Malinda
made a decision right then and there, that as soon as she met her husband, she
would demand that things be changed right away. She would be more than happy to
see to the hiring of an appropriate nursemaid for Sophia. She would even be
happy to shop for the things they would need to change Sophia’s world. It was
not like the master of this house could not afford these things. There were
many extravagant items that occupied the large manor, and some of them were
completely useless in her opinion. What good were fine paintings and
tapestries, when you could never touch them, never use them for anything but
something pretty to look at? Malinda would never understand the purpose of such
things. She wondered if she would ever feel at home at Wickford Manor or if she
would always feel like the farm girl pretending to be someone her destiny
A
sharp knock broke through the haze of dreams, and Malinda opened her eyes to
the intrusion. “Hello?” Her voice sounded groggy, even to her own ears.
“I’m
sorry, Lady Timberlin, but the little miss, well she—”
The
person on the other end of the door could not finish the sentence before
Malinda threw back the covers. “I’ll be right there.” Her legs sprung from the
bed and carried her swiftly across the room. “Take me to her right away,
Hargrove.” Since it was only her second night at the manor, there was no way
she was going to find her way to Sophia’s room by herself.
“Right
away, my lady.”
Malinda
could see the smile that Hargrove was trying to hide. Malinda smoothed her
nightgown around her, as it had bunched up around her knees. She quickly ran
her fingers through her hair as she followed after him, all the while trying
her best not to trip over her feet. She must look a sight. Malinda was thankful
that Hargrove’s candle did not give out too much light to show her disheveled
appearance, and hoped that they would not run into many other people this late
at night.
When
they finally reached Sophia’s room, Malinda could hear the whimpers from
outside the door. She yanked the door open swiftly, fearing that the little
mite had suffered abuse at someone’s hands. When Sophia’s small body launched
at her she barely had time to prepare for the barreling child. She sank down to
her level and cradled the child in her arms. “Thank you, Hargrove. I think I
will take it from here.”
She
watched as Hargrove nodded politely to her and bowed away from them both. “Poor
Sophia. What is wrong, my love?”
When
no words came from Sophia’s mouth, Malinda ruffled her hair and soothed her as
best she could. How does one soothe a fear when the cause of the fear itself
was unknown? Malinda scooped the child up in her arms and sat down on the bed
with her. She rocked her back and forth, humming any song that she remembered
from her childhood, until Sophia’s eyelids started to droop down. She placed
Sophia back in her bed and covered her up with her tiny blankets. Malinda ran
her fingers through Sophia’s hair, humming a melody that came easily to her.
When she heard the slight sound of snuffled breathing coming from the little
girl, Malinda knew that it was safe to say that Sophia had drifted off to a
deep sleep.
Malinda
finally took a moment to look around the room. It was a big enough room, but
nothing in it reflected that it belonged to Sophia. There were no dolls, no
books, and absolutely no toys, just like the nursery. The walls were a dull
gray, so lifeless that anyone in the room would look pale if they stood inside
the walls too long. There was no window in the room at all, which made the
walls seem even smaller. What was wrong with these people? Children deserved to
be carefree and young. This room was certainly not appropriate for a child.
Children should have rainbows and lollipops, not a pale, stale, understated
mausoleum that sucked the life out of you. Why treat a child like a somber
adult? There would be plenty of time to act grown up.
Malinda
made a decision right then and there, that as soon as she met her husband, she
would demand that things be changed right away. She would be more than happy to
see to the hiring of an appropriate nursemaid for Sophia. She would even be
happy to shop for the things they would need to change Sophia’s world. It was
not like the master of this house could not afford these things. There were
many extravagant items that occupied the large manor, and some of them were
completely useless in her opinion. What good were fine paintings and
tapestries, when you could never touch them, never use them for anything but
something pretty to look at? Malinda would never understand the purpose of such
things. She wondered if she would ever feel at home at Wickford Manor or if she
would always feel like the farm girl pretending to be someone her destiny
Similar Books
