One of the few things Sean knew about babies was that they have a soft
pulsing spot on the top of their heads which is very vulnerable, so he
clung to his daughter in terror that he drop her and in equal terror
that he crush her. Until Ruth stopped laughing, relieved him of his
burden and said,
'Come up to the house. You're just in time for tea.
They crossed the lawn slowly, each of them holding one of Storm's
hands, so that the child need no longer concentrate on balancing and
could devote her whole attention to the fascinating manner in which her
feet kept alternately appearing and disappearing under her.
'Sean. There is one thing I have to know before anything else.'
Ruth was looking down at her child, not at him. 'Did you She paused.
'Saul, Could you have prevented what happened to him. I mean, you
didn't Her voice trailed off.
'No, I didn't,' he said harshly.
'Swear it to me, Sean. As you hope for salvation, swear it to me,' she
pleaded,
'I swear it to you. I swear on . He sought for an oath, not on his
own life, for that was not strong enough. 'I swear on the life of our
daughter, ' And she sighed with relief. 'That was why I did not write
to you , I had to know first. ' He wanted to tell her then that he was
taking her away with him, he wanted to tell her about Lion Kop and the
huge empty house that waited for her to make it into a home. But he
knew it was not the moment, not immediately after they had spoken of
Saul. He would wait.
He waited while he was introduced to the Goldbergs and was left with
them when Ruth took the child into the house to deliver her into the
care of the nurse. She returned and he made small conversation during
tea and tried not to let them see it in his eyes when he looked at
Ruth.
He waited until they were alone together on the lawn and then he
blurted it out: 'Ruth, you and Storm are coming home with me.'
She stooped over a rosebush and picked a butter, yellow blossom, then
with a slight frown on her face she broke each of the tiny red thorns
off the stem before she looked at him.
Am I? She asked innocently, but he should have been warned by the
chips of diamond brightness in her eyes.
'Yes,' he said. 'We can be married within the next few days. it will
take that long to arrange a special licence and for you to pack.
Then I'll take you to Lion Kop, I haven't told you about . . .'
'Damn you,' she said softly. 'Damn your conceit. Damn your arrogance.
' And he gawked at her.
'You stroll in with your whip in your hand, crack it once and expect me
to bark and jump through the hoop. ' She was working herself into a
fury now. 'I don't know what dealings you've had with women before,
but I for one am not a camp, follower, or do I intend being treated
like one. Did it ever occur to you for one single second that I might
not be prepared to accept this favour you intend bestowing on me? How
long did it take you to forget that I have been a widow for three short
months? What supreme lack of perception made you believe I would run
