‘Well, he’s not fit to be left, and I’m no good at looking after anybody. But at the same time, I don’t like leaving you on your own with him. What made him unaware of the mire up there on the moss, as everyone local knows it’s there? He might have killed himself, the silly bugger. You’d better stop – he’s going to need you.’ Bill shook his head and looked at Adam who was still mumbling under his breath. ‘Poor bugger, he nearly lost his life in the Crimea, and now he’s like this.’
‘That’s why I can’t leave him. He’s a good man and he needs somebody by his side tonight. Besides, Archie will be here first thing in the morning, so I’ve only a few hours on my own.’ Lucy looked at her father and knew that he respected Adam Brooksbank for serving his country, and for being understanding about the loss of the baby.
‘Aye, well, stay with him then. It’s only right and proper that you do. I’ll stable the horse before I go, so don’t fret over it not being looked after. You sit with him overnight. He’ll get worse before better, by the looks of him. He’s lucky to be alive – the devil must be on his side.’ Bill started to go down the stairs, with Lucy following him, when he stopped at the kitchen door. ‘You’ll be alright, won’t you? You’ll not be frightened if anything happens to him? Locals always had it that this place is bad luck, and they might be right.’
‘I’ll be fine, Father. I only hope that he makes it through the night.’ Lucy’s eyes filled with tears.
‘He’s a good man, Lucy. But don’t you get too close to him. You are just his maid. Your mother said your head was full of thoughts of him. Set your sights on somebody your own age, not somebody who’s a cripple.’ Bill sighed and opened the door. ‘I’ll see to the horse, and one of us will be up to see how you both are in the morning. Or send Archie down, if it’s bad news.’
‘I will, Father, thank you.’ Lucy watched Bill grab Rosa’s reins as the pony stood patiently in the yard, then he led her to the stables behind the house. She closed the kitchen door, once he had disappeared out of sight. She was on her own and it was her task to make sure that Adam Brooksbank lived to see another day. Please God that he did, because she knew she loved him, no matter what her father said.
18
Lucy sat at Adam’s bedside. It was the second day of him drifting in and out of consciousness, and she had heard him shout his dead wife’s name in despair, as he relived his past. She had sat by his side, keeping him cool and giving him sips of water, for the last forty-eight hours, without securing any real sleep for herself – just the odd nap when she found herself slipping into an uneasy slumber as she sat faithfully by his side.
Archie had been her prop outside, keeping the farm working and lambing the last of the sheep, and making sure that all was in order there. He’d come to an understanding with Lucy’s father that he would work for Adam Brooksbank until he regained his strength – if he ever did. Lucy prayed that Adam would survive. The more she soothed his head, the more she realized how she felt about the man whose life hung in the balance. She closed her eyes and felt her eyelids getting heavier as she dropped off to sleep in the uncomfortable Windsor chair, as Adam for the first time in a while lay still and quiet. Perhaps the worst was over now and, with sleep, he’d recover.
Lucy awoke with a jerk, not knowing the time or day, but she quickly regained her senses and remembered where she was and what she was about.
‘I didn’t want to wake you. You looked so peaceful.’ Adam looked up at a wide-eyed Lucy and smiled wanly. ‘How long have I been in this bed? I’ve no idea of time,’ he whispered, as she looked down on him with relief.
‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to fall asleep.’ Lucy pushed back her long hair and looked down at her ward. ‘You’ve been in your bed for two days now. I didn’t think you were going to survive. Thank God your fever has broken. Do you remember why you are here? The bog you were stuck in?’ She looked at Adam as he tried to ease himself up onto his pillows. ‘Here, let me.’ She helped him sit up and plumped up his pillows, so that he could sit more upright in his bed.
‘And you’ve been by my side all that time? You’ve never left me? It seems that I owe you my life, because yes, I do remember you helping me out of the bog that was sucking my life away. If you’d not come searching for me, I’d surely have died of the cold and been sucked down into the peat’s depths.’ Adam closed his eyes, exhausted from the small amount of talking he had done.
‘I couldn’t have done any other. I couldn’t have left you there. And you needed nursing. You were adamant not to have the doctor, and you administered yourself a dose of laudanum, which eased your pain and made you sleep. But it was when the fever came over you that I worried for your life,’ Lucy said as Adam shook his head.
‘Ah, you’ve found out about my weakness for laudanum. I only take it when I’m desperate – I’m not addicted,’ Adam whispered with his eyes still closed, hoping that Lucy would not question him any more about his need for the painkiller.
‘It makes no difference to me. Plenty of people take laudanum, and I’ve known my mother
