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For a few moments, silence reigned. Then he asked a question I would never have expected.
‘Will you be safe on this trip?’
I had to work hard to keep my jaw from dropping. Uncle Bufford? Concerned?
I hesitated. What to say? Finally, I settled on the truth. ‘Probably not.’
‘But you’re still going.’
‘Yes.’
Uncle Bufford took his pipe out of his mouth and tapped it against his jaw. ‘Well, what did you come to see me for, then? Seems like your mind is already made up.’
‘I came because of Aunt Brank. I thought that maybe you could keep her from completely losing her mind over this.’
He raised one bushy eyebrow. ‘Your aunt lost her mind decades ago. Why would I waste my time trying to do anything about it now?’
‘Err…all right. Point taken.’
‘You don’t want me to pay you an allowance for this trip, do you?’
‘No.’
‘Good. Because you’re not getting one.’
‘Don’t worry. I’ve got all the money I could want.’
‘Do you, now?’ He gave me a penetrating look. But, to my immense relief, he didn’t ask why or from where. Those simply weren’t the kind of questions Uncle Bufford would ask. Where money was concerned, he tended to focus on questions like ‘How much?’ and ‘How soon?’ - but only if he was going to get a share.
‘Your aunt isn’t the only reason you’re here, are you?’
Damn! I had forgotten how astute the old buzzard was.
‘No. She isn’t.’
‘So, who is the other one?’
Who. Not what. Bloody hell, he really was too astute for my liking.
‘Ella.’
‘Ah.’ He nodded, sliding the pipe back into his mouth.
‘Will you keep an eye on her while I’m gone?’
‘I never leave this room. You know that. I don’t tolerate company - especially the company of women.’
I raised an eyebrow. ‘I am a woman. You haven’t thrown me out yet.’
‘You are going away for an extended period, and you don’t want money from me. I am feeling slightly more lenient towards you at the moment.’
Was that a smile playing around one corner of his mouth? His bloody beard was too thick to tell! I narrowed my eyes at him.
‘We’ve strayed from the subject, Uncle.’
‘Have we?’
‘Yes, we have. We were talking about Ella.’
