“I know, Sir.” Charles nodded.
“I was attacked by hooligans.” Julian said pensively. “They were common street thieves. I assumed that they saw a wealthy gentleman alone, perceived me as being weaker than they and took an opportunity to rob me.”
“Sadly, it happens regularly.” Robert added.
“As it did with your father in France?” Charles asked.
“I beg your pardon?” Julian raised his eyebrows. “My father’s murder is unrelated to this discussion.”
“Is it?” Charles asked.
“You’d best explain yourself,” Robert said sternly.
“Your Grace, Dr. Halifax, my brother—having exhausted our family wealth—took to organizing gangs of pick-pockets and worse who would supply him with the funds he so desperately needed.”
“You’re telling us that your brother—a well-known artist—was the mastermind behind a cartel of criminals?” Julian asked.
“Yes.” Charles blushed. “At first, it was simply robbery. Then, when they met with people who resisted their attempts to strip them of their worldly goods, it became murder. And, then, he saw an opportunity to increase his wealth even further.”
“How so?” Robert asked.
“Murder for hire.” Charles shook his head. “Not just in England. But, in Italy, and…France.”
Meanwhile, downstairs, Adrienne began to pace back and forth in the parlor as Barbara Allen looked on, helplessly—still clutching her child.
“Missus Adrienne,” Marjani said. “I gotta go see ‘bout Gamilla. It’s time for her medicine.”
“Of course,” Adrienne nodded her head absent-mindedly.
“Dr. Halifax told me to make sure she gets her tonic at the same time everyday.”
“Where is Dr. Halifax?” Adrienne asked, still lost in thought.
“He’s upstairs with His Grace and Charles.”
“Charles is still here?” Barbara asked nervously.
“Yes, of course he is.” Marjani answered without looking at Barbara.
“Go on, Marjani, but do come back quickly, if you can.” Adrienne said.
“I will.” Marjani nodded. “I’m gonna look in on Meridian and the children, too.”
“Oh, thank you.” Adrienne sighed. “That would be kind of you.”
“Yes, Missus.” Marjani smiled.
“Wait!” Adrienne said quickly. “I’ve an idea. Would you take Holt…or…” Adrienne paused, unsure of what to call the child.
“Colin.” Barbara whispered.
“Would you please take Colin to Meridian as well? Perhaps she can put him in Fuller’s pram and keep an eye on him while I have a serious discussion with Miss Allen.”
“Oh, I’d rather hold on to him, please.” Barbara interrupted.
“I need for you to have no distractions, Miss Allen. We need to be able to think clearly, you and I.” Adrienne shook her head.
Barbara looked with worry at Marjani.
“Don’t worry, Honey. Your boy will be in good hands with Meridian. I’ll tell her that he’s just visitin’. Ain’t gonna do no harm.”
“You’re not trying to trick me?” Barbara asked. “You won’t give him back to Edward Cage?”
“No, Honey.” Marjani smiled. “Now you gone and done this. If Mrs. Halifax wants to help ya, then, that’s what we’re gonna do.”
“Very well.” Barbara said reluctantly.
“It’ll be fine, Barbara. I promise.” Adrienne added.
Barbara handed the child to Marjani.
“I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Marjani said.
“Do hurry. You know by now that the child has been missed and that they’ll be looking for him.” Adrienne said. “We must act quickly.”
Marjani nodded and exited the parlor.
Hurrying down the passage, Marjani’s eyes widened as she passed Cecil Halifax who was coming in from the courtyard.
“Ah, Marjani!” Cecil smiled pleasantly. “Are you on nanny duty?”
“Yes, Sir.” Marjani replied softly.
“Well, then, let me see my son.” Cecil grinned, reaching for the child that Marjani carried. “How small he still seems…”
Cecil’s eyes widened as he looked at the child.
“That’s not Fuller.” Cecil frowned. “Whose child is this?”
Marjani pinched her lips shut and tried to think of what to tell Cecil.
“Marjani?” Cecil lowered his brow. “Who is this child?”
Did you miss Chapters 1-194? If so, you can read them here.
4 comments:
It seems to me that Cecil, who already has had his hands full with a difficult employer and the problems that came with his wife, is really pretty much of a quiet hero in his own right having taken up to help not only his brother but the host of demons that trail along with Julian and Mr. Punch. So, hats off to Cecil today.
I agree with Dashwood. Cecil is a modest hero who despite his moodiness is perhaps the most rational and steadfast of the lot of them. Robert for all of his loyalty and good intentions seems to be easily confused and while he clearly loves Julian and Punch and their family, he becomes easily flustered. Adrienne reacts out of pure emotion most of the time and though she too is well intentioned, she doesn't always make the best decisions. Marjani is equally loyal but has definite opinions. She never fails to support her friends, but she, like Naasir, is also driven by the mysterious sense of destiny and premonintion. The secondary character of Meridian is so nicely drawn. It's evident that she's amused by the antics of her employers and though she acts in their best interest, it's easy to see that she enjoys sitting back and watching them scramble around. Then, there's Julian, who's not the emotional cripple he was at the start of their adventure, but who is still reserved and cautious and though much stronger clearly not prepared to live a singular life. Throughout, Cecil is the one who is actually an active participant in the battle. Perhpas he acts rashly sometimes as when he went out with a pistol the put an end to Iolanthe Evangeline, but he's a sort of soldier. If Robert is the brains, then Cecil is the brawn. In mnay ways, Cecil picked up where Mr. Punch left off as he became more human. The Punch at the beginning of the story was a warrior, too. I mush prefer Punch as the delightful, steadfast man-child-puppet that he's become, but someone needed to assume the physical acts of protection. It would be interesting to see Cecil's reaction to Adrienne's desired assistance of Barbara. He may end up surprising everyone with what I suspect is a heavily guarded open-mindedness.
As you can tell I really enjoy Punch's COusin and recommend it to just about everyone I can think of. The characters are very neatly defined and the dialogue is always so excellently and crisply written. It's easily translated into modern language without losing its historical accuracy.
Don't get me started on my analysis of the villains. Urika and Iolanthe are equally vicious. Comapred to those two, marie Labeau is quite benign. Arthur is just a dimwhit who is led by his physical desires, but that makes him equally dangerous. Then you have the reluctant villains like the noticeably absent Nellie and the Nanny character who I can't decide if she's entirely twisted or just a pawn of the late Ducchess. Even Barbara herself shows some signs of not being all bad. Her kidnapping of her child shows she has a heart and for all of her taunting and jibes, I think she's genuinelty fond of her brother. These are interesting characters, those who have a hint of decency, but act in awful ways. I don't know about Charles yet. The introduction of this new character was quite brilliant as he fills the void left by naasir's inevitable death, but he brings a new level of confusion by being associated with some unsavory things. I'm curious to see his real intentions. Is he just a young man in search of a new life or is he as manipulative as Barbara or even as evil as Urika?
IT's always such a treat to read this every day. You keep me guessing and it's always so exciting and very often quite touching.
Hello, Dashwood! Yes, I concur! Hats off to Cecil as he does suffer much and, really, handles it all quite well. Let's see how he deals with this latest wrench in their situation. Thanks for reading!
Book Gurl, thank you for your flattering and thorough observations and analysis. I can see you've really been paying attention! I'm so pleased that you're enjoying "Punch's Cousin!" I think we've got a lot more excitement in store. Many thanks!
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