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“And this gentleman, he’s done this before? Brought children like Penny?”
Careful now. “A few times, yes. He’s one of several who do so—all of whom wish to remain anonymous.” She hoped he hadn’t missed her emphasis on that last.
When he finally raised his head, his eyes were unreadable. “Well, the gentleman who wrote this certainly chose a very…unusual seal. You don’t happen to know its history, do you?”
“In fact, I do.” Though she tried, she couldn’t keep the tremor from her voice. “He once told me he had a dream in which an angel spoke to him, instructing him ‘to care for the flock’s lost lambs.’” Lord, forgive me for the lie. “He believes he is charged by God to do this work.” The last part, at least, was true. She’d once heard Tavistoke say heaven had cursed him by opening his eyes and would allow him neither rest nor peace unless he acted.
Woodson’s gaze bored into her. “What an extraordinary blessing, to possess such conviction. Had I received a message like that, I, too, would feel duty bound to obey it. He must be a man of very high morals.”
She nodded. “He’s the very best of men.”
“Tell me, how does such a moral gentleman learn of the plight of a brothel worker and her child?”
“I don’t know. I know only what is in the letter.”
“You did not ask the girl?”
Enough of this. “Penny arrived just l
ast night.” Leaning toward him, she fixed him with her sternest glare. “Monsieur, you must comprehend that these children are often in a fragile state when they arrive. It’s not my way to interrogate them the instant they cross the threshold and therein risk further damaging them. They tell me their troubles in their own time—if they tell me at all. There are some here who have yet to confide in me after almost two years. I don’t press them, for I refuse to make them relive in the telling what I already know they can never forget.”
His gaze dropped. “I did not mean that you should—”
“If you wish to be part of this, you will have to learn to set aside your curiosity and accept that you may never know the entire story.” Her throat constricted, but she forced herself to speak. “Believe me when I tell you there are some you will wish you never knew.” Quite deliberately, she laid a hand on Suzette Bagley’s file and patted it.
It had the desired effect, for he immediately blanched and looked contrite. “You’re right, of course.” Sighing, he glanced at the rows of records in the cabinet shelves. “Each of these represents a life not only saved, but changed.”
“In some cases, more than one.”
“Like Emma and Rose.”
“Yes, and like Penny and her mother.” Taking up the files he’d purloined, she moved to the cabinet and began putting them back in their proper places.
“Could not some way have been found for them to remain together? Did her mother have to abandon her?”
“She did not abandon her,” Jacqueline said, inching away to avoid brushing shoulders with him as he helped reorder the files. His nearness disturbed her more than she cared to admit. “You read the letter. Penny, though she is young, understands this is best for them both. You must accept it, as well. It’s hard at first, but you will grow accustomed to it.”
He stilled beside her.
Jacqueline pressed the folios’ spines into an even line, completing her task in uncomfortable silence. Finally, she had no choice but to face him.
Eyes like twilight just before full dark pierced her. “I’m truly sorry for having forced you to disclose the truth in this manner. I grew suspicious after seeing that carriage here last night, and my curiosity would not grant me peace until I satisfied it.” His lips slanted in a rueful half smile. “I’m afraid patience is not my greatest strength. Please forgive me, and know that I shall do everything in my power to help you.”
His words slipped through the chinks in her internal defenses and wormed their way into her heart. If that wasn’t bad enough, his proximity was wreaking havoc with her senses. Tingles erupted across her flesh as his gaze meandered over her face. He was so close. Being near any man, even Tavistoke, usually caused her unease bordering on panic. But, though her heart pounded away inside her chest, this was different.
Strangely, she didn’t fear Woodson. Indeed, part of her delighted in the intimacy of the moment, reveling in the warm, gravelly rasp of his voice in the quiet little room, in the way he looked at her with such earnestness and admiration.
Admiration? A lightning thrill ran through her even as, in her mind, warning bells clamored, urging her to put more space between them. Her feet, however, seemed not to be paying any attention to the frantic commands.
“You are patient with the girls,” she said. “That is what matters. As for helping, you found a way to acquire the books we need, and I know you have been guarding the school’s back gate.”
His brow pinched for a moment, but then smoothed. “After what happened, I could not rest easy until I knew for certain no one could get in and cause further mischief.”
“Yes, but that was weeks ago. You have since then without fail waited every evening until the gate is locked before going home. I just wanted you to know your kindness did not go unnoticed.”
His eyes lit with sudden comprehension. “Is that why you’ve been bringing me tea every day?”
Jacqueline knew her face must be beet red. “You’ve stood in the cold and the rain, put yourself in danger when you could have gone home and rested in comfort. I thought only to thank you in some small way.”
