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“As am I,” Harriett said, coming in. Ignoring Manchester, she gave Jamie an encouraging smile. “Are you all packed and ready?”
He nodded.
“Excellent. Reverend Thomas should be here soon.” She sat down next to the boy. “I’ve written to the vicar all about you and the others, so it’ll be like you already know each other. Now Jamie, I want to ask you to do something for me.”
Jamie’s brow wrinkled as he shifted to face her, all seriousness. “Anything, ma’am.”
“There is another boy named Jack who will be going with you to Newcastle. He’s been here only a short time and doesn’t know any of the others yet. It would
mean a great deal to me to know he had someone looking after him. Can you do that for me?”
“I’ll be glad to, ma’am,” said Jamie at once, his voice sounding suspiciously thick.
She ruffled his hair. “Then it is settled. Now, if you will excuse Lord Manchester and me, we have some business to discuss.” She rose, but before she could reach the door, Jamie came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. She turned and knelt, hugging him to herself. “It’ll be all right, Jamie. I promise. I shall expect to hear from you as soon as you’ve learned your letters, right?” He nodded against her shoulder. “There’s a good lad. Now off with you before you make me cry,” she said with a little laugh.
He pulled away, sniffling a little—but not crying. “I’ll not forget you, ma’am. I will write, I promise. And I’ll make you proud.”
“I know you will, Jamie. You’re a young man of your word. Now make sure you haven’t forgotten anything. I’ll send Brigitte for you when it is time.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Your Grace?” she said, looking at Manchester.
He rose. “Goodbye, Jamie. And thank you.”
The boy smiled and ducked his head as she turned and swept from the room with Manchester in tow. They traversed the hall in silence until she reached the doors to the administrative offices.
“Why were you questioning him?” she asked, doing her best not to sound accusatory.
“I was curious. If I intend to be involved, there are things I need to know.”
“You have but to ask, and I will be happy to tell you whatever you wish to know.”
A faint smile flickered at the corners of his mouth, and she knew he’d understood. Moving ahead, he opened the door and held it for her. “Managing the finances of this place is well within my capabilities, but there are other considerations. I know what a child needs in order to survive and thrive physically, but I know nothing of how to deal with children on a personal level.”
“You seemed to be doing well enough with young Jamie,” she said, slipping past as quickly as possible.
“No.” He shook his head. “I am too imposing a figure. He was quite nervous until he saw you. You know how to talk to children, how to put them at ease. If I am to be around them, I shall need such skills. I have no desire to be looked upon as the bogeyman every time I appear in the halls.”
She would have laughed had he not appeared so perfectly serious. “You do realize that, with the occasional exception of inspecting the premises, you never actually have to set foot beyond your office?”
“Yes, but that is not how William conducted business here, is it?”
Harriett blinked in surprise. Since when was he concerned with what his brother had done?
“I’ve heard the others,” continued Manchester. “Nurse Hayes speaks of how my brother ‘made the rounds’ and visited the children every day when he was here. I’ll never be William,” he said, looking her in the eyes. “But I can be taught to be more like him.”
“Why?” she blurted before thinking better of it. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t—”
“Yes, you should,” he insisted. “You and my brother began this charity for the right reasons. I never mentioned it, but when he first had the idea for this place, William took me with him to see several of the other orphanages here in London. They are nothing like this.”
How well she knew it. Having been to visit others in an effort to forge partnerships, she’d seen what they were like—and she’d determined that the Foundling Hospital would be different.
“I run my estates well enough,” he continued, “but my ways are not yours and this place is not an estate. I would out of sheer ignorance destroy what you’ve built here. I understand that now. There are complex systems in place here, systems that are working well. I’ve no wish to upset them.”
It took great effort not to gape at him in openmouthed astonishment.
He continued, his expression growing pained, “I realize it is an enormous personal imposition, but I am asking you to teach me more than the running of a charity. Which is why after you leave, I would like for you to remain available for consultation on matters pertaining to this place, should the need arise. It is my understanding there is a committee of ladies that—”
