“But you have not told me where you got your injury from?” Augusta pressed.
“I told you already,” Charity said firmly. The moment was getting heated.
“But…” Augusta interjected.
Matilda’s gaze flicked towards the door and then back, as if she expected someone to burst in and punish them for speaking too loudly. “We should not be arguing. What if we get taken away again?”
“There will be no such thing,” Charity said quickly in a softer voice. “You both are safe here.”
“And who exactly is keeping us safe at present?” Augusta asked with folded arms, “We do not know what has happened to you, where you went, and who this man is. Only that he is somehow better than uncle, but that is not much of a high bar to begin with. Then, you have strange bruises, and you refuse to tell us anything about that either.”
It was not as though Charity wanted to keep things from them. More so, she just wanted to prevent them from getting overwhelmed. It was a lot to take in, and she just wanted to protect them in whatever manner possible.
There was a loud knock on the door, and without waiting for permission to enter, Duncan appeared a moment later. He had a serious expression, which was not unusual for him.
“Get dressed, we are to leave now.”
Charity felt something in her chest loosen at the sight of him.But her sisters did not seem to have the same reaction.
“If I can say something,” Augusta turned on him at once, clearing her throat. “You have only just met us, and you are already issuing orders. What is the urgency? If you could tell us that….”
Duncan’s gaze shifted to her slowly, not particularly surprised.
“You were brought here for your own benefit, and you are free to walk back to your uncle’s house if you wish, though I will not escort you there.”
Matilda made a small sound and reached for Charity’s hand.
“I do not wish to go back,” she said quickly, as if the idea itself frightened her.
Augusta shot her a look that saidbe quiet, then turned back to Duncan. “And who are you,” she demanded, “to speak of escorting us anywhere, as if we are your responsibility?”
Duncan did not step into the room to loom.
“I am the man who will keep you out if you do as you are told for the next hour, because your uncle’s men will notice your absence soon enough.”
Charity could see that her sister was conflicted. Augusta was not someone who liked being ordered or spoken to in an authoritative way. If Duncan were to continue, Charity worried that a scene would be caused.
She could not allow it to turn into a scene.
“Please, Augusta,” Charity said, in a half-chiding and half-pleading voice. Then gave her a look as if to saynot now, please.
Augusta opened her mouth to speak, and then her gaze went to her sister's bruised cheek. Almost immediately, Charity could sense that Augusta had a change of mind. She gritted her teeth and swallowed her anger. Which was a great relief to Charity, even if it was temporary.
“Fine then. I will not ask further questions for now,” Augusta spoke. “But we shall speak of this later.”
Charity nodded, sighing. She knew that her sisters would not go without answers for too long and that eventually she had to give them an explanation.
They were owed some answers, though Charity did not know just how much of the truth she could tell them.
Duncan’s gaze moved to Charity then, and for a moment, the sharpness in his eyes eased as if he were checking her, making certain she was upright and not about to faint.The gesture was so subtle that she was the only one who noticed, and it sent a tingly feeling down the base of her spine.
Oh.Now was hardly the time to be entertaining thoughts such as these. She chided herself internally, but it was hard to let go of the feeling when Duncan addressed her in the very next breath.
“Charity,” he said.
There was just something in the way that he said her name. She swung her legs off the bed and stood, still a little unsteady.
She crossed the room and wrapped her arms around Duncan, pressing her face against his chest. Perhaps she was still a bit out of sorts, for it was not proper to hug a man like this. But it felt like the only way for her to communicate her internal feelings. She needed him to understand that she knew what he had done for her.
