Sophia was delirious with fever when Nicholas arrived. Fanny, on the other hand was in utter panic and fury, following close behind Nicholas as he stormed into the cottage and burst inside Sophia's room.
"Open the bloody windows, Fanny!" he cried out as he walked toward Sophia.
The housekeeper did as ordered and suddenly the room had more light.
Nicholas' jaw tightened when he finally had a better look at Sophia. She was curled to one side, cocooned underneath a thick duvet, her face buried in the pillow, drenched with sweat. A cloth had fallen from her forehead on the floor which Fanny immediately picked up and replaced with a new one.
He had not touched her, was not even close enough to breath the same air as hers, but Nicholas could feel the heat emanating from her body. And suddenly he realized she was in a serious condition and he did not know what to do.
"Get the bloody doctor here," he ordered.
"He refused to go, my lord, said I must find a colored doctor for colored people!" Fanny said, sniffing in tears. "I tried everything! I even threatened him but he will not touch her!"
The rage boiling inside Nicholas was ready to rupture and cause havoc, but there were more urgent matters to attend to.
"What have you given her?"
"I gave her a dose of laudanum for the fever and pain, my lord, but other than that I cannot give her anything else. I cannot concoct anything else, my lord, for laudanum is all they are willing to sell." Fanny's words began to be sound gargled as her crying intensified. "They will not sell me anything! Because she is black! This bloody village is bound for hell, my lord, I tell you that!"
"Calm yourself, Fanny," Nicholas ordered despite the many emotions raging inside him.
He bent down and lightly touched Sophia's forehead. He almost flinched at the heat. He took off his coat and discarded it to the side. He rolled up his sleeves next and bent down to get the towel from her forehead. It was almost hot.
"Get more cold water," he ordered to Fanny. "And then wait for the footman and Doctor Johannes. They should be on their way here."
"Right away, my lord," Fanny said, jumping on her feet to rush out the door.
When a fresh basin filled with cold water arrived and when Fanny disappeared to wait for the doctor and the footman outside, Nicholas began working.
He brushed away Sophia's damp hair and shushed her when she tried to limply push him away, shivering from the cold cloth. "You need to cool down, Sophie," he murmured, tearing away the heavy cover from her body.
"My God," he uttered when he realized how damp her nightgown was. He did not know what else to do but hold her hands to keep them away from the cloth over her forehead. "What happened, Sophie?" he asked, knowing she was in no state to answer. Her lips moved but no sound came.
He felt for her pulse. They were palpable and he sighed in relief.
Looking over his shoulder at the door, Nicholas was on the verge of shouting for the bloody doctor. To keep his mind away from other things such as storming out the cottage to strangle one particular village doctor, Nicholas decided to change Sophia's nightgown.
He stripped her of the damp one she was wearing and wrapped her with a robe so it would be much better for the doctor to inspect her later. It was only then that he saw the ugly wound around her ankle. With a frown, he studied it all the while shouting for Fanny.
The housekeeper arrived, out of breath.
"What the bloody hell happened to her ankle?" he asked, pointing at Sophia's right leg.
Fanny blinked and stepped closer. Her hand went to her mouth in surprise. "I did not know it was there, my lord. She did not tell me!"
His eyes flickered with annoyance. "And you did not bother to check?"
"I swear I did not know! I was cookin' in the kitchen and she had been inside the room since this mornin'. It was only then that I saw her in such state, my lord, I swear! I suspected she had not been feeling well since yesterday but I merely thought it was melancholia. I did not think she was injured!" The housekeeper was in total panic once again, her eyes filling with more tears.
Nicholas sighed and closed his eyes to calm himself. "I am not blaming you, Fanny," he carefully said the words. "I merely wanted to know why you did not know she was injured."
Fanny shook her head. "I have no ideaâ" The housekeeper stopped, her eyes rounding with enlightenment. "The only times I do not have her within my sight is when I am out to the market whenever she wanted to stay behind or when she is in this chamber molding her clays."
Nicholas covered Sophia with fresh, thinner linen and changed the cloth over her forehead. "She could not have possibly gotten the wound while inside the chamber."
Fanny sniffed. "It is possible she went outside while I was away, but the footman would have known. He had been guarding the front door ever since that horrible man came here."
Nicholas exposed Sophia's wound. It looked infected and was starting to let out discharges. He cursed under his breath and asked for more clean cloths and water from Fanny. He then asked for Fanny to wait for Doctor Johannes outside while he cleaned Sophia's wound. He then realized that the wound was not just one but four. His frown deepened as he traced them around her ankle.
Once done, he threw the dirty cloth to the side, not satisfied with his work. The wounds needed more than mere cleaning.
Sitting on a stool beside the bed facing her exposed ankle, his eyes wandered over to Sophia's face. She was frowning in her sleep, probably suffering with infection. He wanted to shake her, ask her what she felt, what she needed. Surely there was something she wanted!
Rubbing his hands over his face, he studied the wounds again. As he blankly stared at them, he slowly realized with utter horror the cause of the injury and he jumped to his feet to go out of the room and out into the kitchen. The door to the garden banged open as Nicholas came through, eyes keenly studying the ground.
And there he found it.
The hole was not noticeable, but for someone who had made similar traps, Nicholas easily spotted it. He walked over to the hole and stared down at it. Hands on hips, Nicholas searched for the spikes that ought to be inside the hole and found them strewn at the far side of the garden. He then proceeded to look around and realized that the cottage garden was open and anyone could have planted the bloody trap.
Cursing under his breath, his rage in full throttle now, Nicholas went back inside the cottage. He began to call out for Fanny but realized the woman had been through enough and would probably not survive another round of questioning from him.
Whoever placed that trap in the garden would have to pay later. For now, Sophia's condition was of utmost priority.
*****
Doctor Johannes arrived with the footman two hours later, both of whom riding on horseback. Nicholas remained silent, restraining himself from asking questions as the young doctor treated Sophia's wound. Anything the doctor said, he did not follow up with an inquiry in fear that the man would lose concentration.
Fanny was being comforted by the footman outside. Nicholas stood in one corner of Sophia's bedchamber, arms crossed over his chest.
"Very nasty wounds," said Doctor Johannes as he applied balm over them with an application stick.
Nicholas veered his eyes away from Sophia when she groaned, afraid that if he was to come closer, he would merely scowl at the doctor and demand for the man to be careful.
His eyes landed on the center of the table where a large molding clay lay. He stepped closer and realized it was a bust of a man's head. It was unfinished, but it was a promising project. He looked around the room and saw the changes Sophia had made to the room. It was not aesthetically pleasing to the eyes, but everything was positioned conveniently for her condition.
She has made a home out of her prison, a bitter voice whispered in his head.
Nicholas rubbed his hands over his face in frustration. This was his fault. He should not have brought her here. He should not have taken her in the first place.
Whatever it was she was planning with Durley and Osegod, he could have let the League or the Guards handle. He did not have to get involved.
Yet he knew why he got involved.
Because it was her. She was a part of it.
"She shall live, my lord," Doctor Johannes said from across the room, noticing his distress. "So long as the wounds stay clean and we treat the symptoms of her infection, she shall be fine."
He ought to trust the man. He had saved his family countless of times. But why could he not believe him entirely?
Despite that, Nicholas nodded, his eyes traveling back to Sophia. "Do what you must, doctor."
*****
Nicholas opened his eyes and found Sophia awake in bed, her lids weakly blinking as she blindly stared at nothing. The room was dim as night had fallen aboveground. Faint light from the lamps outside filtered through the drawn curtains and Nicholas doubted she could see anything at this point.
He moved and she turned her head toward him.
"Will I die?" she asked, her weak whisper a sound of salvation for Nicholas. She was talking and it was enough sign that she was getting better.
"No, you will not," he whispered, leaning over to feel her forehead. She was still with fever but not as intense as before. He changed the cloth to a new one. He ought to call for Fanny to prepare food and force it down Sophia's throat, but perhaps it could wait a while. He needed to be beside her for a while. "My sister-in-law suffered a worse injury but she did not die. She is walking with a limp, but she is a happy wife with a new babe." When she did not respond, he took her hand in his and squeezed it. "I have gone through three days without food and I did not die. I thought I would but I did not."
Her eyes closed but her brows met into a frown. He watched her slowly drew in a breath. "You never told me that story."
His jaw tightened. Yes, he had forgotten to tell her that. There still were things she did not know about him after all. "I must have forgotten," he admitted.
"Was it when your father died? You refused to eat?"
He shook his head. "No. It was during one of the expeditions with my brothers when we were younger. I got lost in the dark forest while on a hunt and was not found until three days later."
"You did not eat what you hunted?"
"I tried, but a large bear was under the tree I was on," he said, managing a silly smile now that the memory was more fond.
"How did they find you?"
"I did not wander around. They eventually found me."
"Then it was a good decision to have stayed."
"Because of the bloody bear," he said. "I would have reached the other side of the forest if not for that bloody bastard."
Her shoulders shook with her silent laughter. Nicholas' smile slowly died down as he watched her fall asleep. When he was certain she was in deep slumber, he stood up and ordered Fanny to prepare fresh porridge for Sophia.
He returned to the chamber hours later to find Sophia mumbling for her mother.
He knew she was dreaming about the night she woke up in the brothel.
*****
"Apart from the fever, how have you been faring here?" he asked two days later when Sophia was strong enough to sit up in bed and rest against the bed with a bowl of porridge on her lap. She refused to be fed. "I don't have my sight, my lord, but I have full control of my other faculties," she had said when he tried to insist she needed Fanny's help.
"I have been doing well," she said.
Nicholas' brows cocked high. "No untoward incidents?"
"None I believe that you are not aware of, no," she said, blinking away from his direction.
"No more unwanted attentions?"
"People here are quite odd, but I they do not harm me."
"Why do you keep lying?"
"I am not."
"You have received nothing but insults the moment you arrived here."
"People will always be uncomfortable with things not in norm."
Nicholas sighed. He watched in silence until she was done with her food and offered her water afterwards. When the silence threatened to ensue without Sophia breaking it, Nicholas decided he needed to say something.
"Your brother is still missing. We tried to find him but we are starting to think that he may beâ"
"Marcus has many estates all over the Town. He has properties I cannot count," she calmly interrupted.
"Then why has he not been looking for you?"
"Because he does not know where to look," she uttered with a sigh. "You took me away and no one would dare think you did because why would you?" she chuckled weakly. "Nicholas Everard kidnapping a colored woman!"
Nicholas found her humor difficult to appreciate. "Your brother knows of us. He ought to haveâ"
"He would dare not think you took me. I had told him that I shall notâ"
"You shall not what?" he prodded when she did not continue her words.
She shook her head. Slipping down the bed to lie down, Sophia sighed. "I feel weak, my lord. I wish to rest."
"What were youâ"
She yawned, distracting him, and closed her eyes. "Please tell Fanny her porridge was a big improvement from yesterday."
Nicholas was tempted to tell her about the League's plan but stopped himself. It was not going to happen because he will not allow it. Why tell her? Telling him would merely cause her to shut him out. He was starting to get through to her.
There was very little proof of it, but Nicholas felt he was coming closer to the truth as he did during those days he spent outside her chamber door in Rock'oles, begging for her to welcome him inside.
"You have not told me about how you came upon your wounds, Sophia," he said sternly, changing the subject.
"Accident outside the garden."
"There was an animal trap outside."
"Hmm. So that was what it was."
"You threw the spikes to cover the incident."
"To prevent further accident," she corrected.
"Someone placed that trap there, Sophia."
"I know. I believe they don't grow themselves."
"I do not appreciate the sarcasm at this point. You nearly died because someone hated you enough to want to hurt you."
"Like you do?"
"I do notâ" He stopped himself when he realized she was provoking him. "There is no use talking to you at this moment."
Her lips flinched into a small smile, her eyes closed, half of her face buried in the pillow. She looked utterly beautiful and well today. "I am glad you realized the fact, my lord."
"Then I am leaving." He stood up and when she did not comment, he asked, "You are not going to stop me?"
"Why would I? I am your prisoner here. I am only here to oblige. And I am feeling quite drowsy."
"I am leaving Puck. To go back to Whiston."
"Hmm. Very well."
He started for the door, looking over his shoulder. "I am utterly serious."
"Have a safe journey, my lord. Thank you for saving my life."
Nicholas gritted his teeth. "I do not know when I shall return."
"I shall be counting the days," was her sarcastic, drowsy reply.
*****
Nicholas did not leave the cottage without giving Fanny and the footman more detailed instructions on Sophia's safety. Doctor Johannes shall be on his way by the morrow to check on her wounds. Another footman will be arriving as well to help the other footman guard the entire cottage from front to back, including the bloody garden.
But upon stepping out of the cottage where Sophia was safely tucked in her bed, sound asleep, Nicholas did not directly leave the village of Puck.
He went straight to the village vicar, the person whom the villagers considered their closest messenger of God's law and his people's and therefore the Town's.
The man looked composed as Nicholas sat across from him in his study. He looked around the room, studying the large collection of books.
"You read a lot," Nicholas noted. "You must be a very learned man."
The man assumed a humble mien. "I am, my lord. I try to learn more of the world despite being in such a small and secluded village as Puck."
"Ah," Nicholas said, feigning amazement. "Then you must have more knowledge of the world than I, sir."
"I have more knowledge of God's words, I must say, my lord, and His laws and the laws of His people."
"Then please pray tell which of these books taught you to turn a blind eye when your entire community has been doing naught but condemn a woman of color?" he asked, nonchalantly looking around the room. When his eyes landed back on the vicar, the man had gone pale, his mouth moving as though he was trying to speak. "Surely there is one you have read, sir."
The man's lips formed a thin, sharp line. His jaw tightened as his gaze morphed into a mixture of anger and defense.
"Perhaps the God you know of is different from mine," Nicholas continued, crossing his leg over the other. "Perhaps yours have specific instructions on which color should God's creations come into. Do you perhaps have other colors you consider acceptable for cattle, dogs or even cats? Perhaps none, eh? You merely consider one for humans, after all."
The man's face turned scarlet.
"I would love to know more of this God of yours, sir," Nicholas said. "The words you deliver to your congregation seem to be tremendously effective for they have been all doing the same thing, following your guidance, attacking an enemy as one. Such amazing sense of unity ought to be commended and you are responsible for it, I dare say."
"My lord," the vicar began, but Nicholas silenced him by raising his hand.
"My brother, Benedictâhis wife, Agatha, came from the village of Kaylock. I am not certain if you have heard of it, but her uncle was the village vicar as well." He saw confusion cross the vicar's face. "Agatha was accused of witchcraft by the villagers, including her uncle, the vicar. One night, these villagers gathered together and burned my sister-in-law's home with the blessing of her very holy uncle. She survived, of course," Nicholas said, trapping the vicar's eyes with his intense gaze as he continued, "but her grandmother and sisters did not."
The vicar's eyes rounded with horror. "How could they all commit such evil act!"
Nicholas allowed a sardonic smile as he sighed. "The vicar did what he did as he believed he was saving his people. Agatha was family but he chose to save the many. I believe that is also your goal here, sir?"
"Of course not! I save those who are righteous andâ"
"And you condemn those who are different?"
"No, of course not, my lord! I do not!"
"Then perhaps you can tell your people more of God's words next Sunday," Nicholas uttered, standing to his feet. He looked down at the vicar with eyes burning with contained anger. "Perhaps you ought to start with, 'love your neighbor as yourself'. I believe that is an enormously easy commandment even a child can adhere to."
The vicar stared at him, speechless.
Nicholas righted his coat and sighed. "Miss Sophia was created and born into this world the same way you and I were, sir," he said through his teeth. "Perhaps she also deserves the same treatment bestowed upon those you righteous people believe to be humans, those between what you claim to be white servants and white masters. Choose whichever station you wish her to place, but never mistake her to belong to a herd for she does not walk on fours. If you cannot at the very least do so, then I shall begin to question the kind of God you claim to know so much about for I am certain mine loves a bountiful of colors of all kinds." He stepped back and forced a smile on his face. "I shall be looking forward to the news of your sermon this Sunday. And perhaps you can relay a message from me to the village doctor as well." The vicar swallowed hard, waiting for Nicholas' next words. "Please tell him black and white have the same anatomy and he can treat both all the same. Otherwise, he shall be mending his own wounds the next time he refuses to treat anyone outside his desired shade."
*****
Nicholas arrived in Whiston feeling exhausted. He had not had enough sleep or a proper meal for a week.
His butler had sorted his letters and placed the important ones on his desk.
He opened the small note from Ralph and quickly read through it:
Durley has resurfaced.