it was too late. And when he saw me with Richard, he obviously thought to deflect the blame.”
“Why did you not tell anyone, Andrew?” Sebastian asked gently.
Andrew’s lower lip trembled as he stared down into the bowl. “H-he said he’d hurt Mama if I did. Said if I spoke a word, M-Mama would be arrested and hanged. So…so I stayed quiet.”
“Oh, Andrew.” Clara struggled against the tears clogging her throat as she bent to embrace her son.
She understood now why Andrew had maintained a distance from her during their brief stay at Floreston Manor. He’d been afraid that if he let down his guard around her, he would say something to expose Fairfax, a confession that would then have repercussions for Clara.
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered.
“You did the right thing, Andrew,” Sebastian said. “Never doubt it.”
Andrew looked at Clara. “Will I stay with you now?”
“Yes.” She glanced at Sebastian. He returned her gaze, and a warm understanding passed between them. “You’ll stay with both of us forever.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Wakefield House presided over the land like an aged matron who still retained vestiges of a youthful beauty. The sun cast a burnished glow on the rustic brown stones and the expansive gardens. Red and orange leaves carpeted the grass, and the wind carried a fresh tinge of salt. The hills of Dorset rolled toward the sheer cliffs that plunged into the sea, foaming waves crashing at their base.
Sebastian took Clara’s hand as she descended the carriage. He lowered his head to brush his lips across her cheek, pleasure warming his chest when she smiled at him. He then turned to help Andrew down the carriage steps.
“You’ve not been here before?” Sebastian asked.
Andrew shook his head. Since their return from Brighton two weeks ago, he still favored gestures over speaking, but slowly his confidence in speech was beginning to return. More important, the haunted look in his eyes was lessening, eclipsed now by the curiosity and happiness every seven-year-old should possess.
Together they walked to the house, where a line of five servants stood waiting for them. Sebastian had arranged for the staff and the opening of the house prior to their arrival, though as he glanced at the cracks spreading through the window glass and the weeds in the neglected garden, he realized the extent of the work still to be done.
Anticipation lit inside him at the notion of restoring and repairing this property that meant so much to Clara. He would do it for her, but also for himself and Andrew, because he wanted Wakefield House to be more than a place for them to escape London. He wanted it to be their home.
Inside, the furniture and floors were worn but clean, the curtains parted to allow the late autumn sunlight to stream through the windows. Sebastian stopped at the entrance to the drawing room. “Oh, no.”
Clara paused to peer around his shoulder. She laughed. Strewn about the tables were machine parts, gears, and wires. Automata lined the walls—birdcages, mechanical animals, acrobats. A creature that appeared to be an elephant sat atop the piano.
“Did I forget to tell you?” Clara asked. “Uncle Granville spent a great deal of time with us when we stayed in Dorset.”
“Yes, you forgot to tell me.” He glowered at her. “And I neglected to consider the fact that your uncle is a consequence of marriage to you.”
She shot him a smile. “Too late now, isn’t it, husband?”
Too late, indeed. To his great good fortune.
Andrew darted forward to pick up a mechanical turtle, the shell a gleaming design of green metal. He turned the key and grinned as the creature plodded forward on thick legs.
“Oh!” Clara went to a large, closed trunk that sat near the windows. “I didn’t think it would have arrived yet.”
“I had Giles bring it directly from the museum,” Sebastian said.
“Andrew, these are all for you.” Clara unlatched the lid and opened the trunk to reveal the myriad of toys and automata inside. “Uncle Granville made most of them, and others were sent by fellow inventors.”
Andrew hurried to peer into the trunk. Clara took out a wooden acrobat and demonstrated how it flipped into an intricate spin. Andrew laughed.
“Isn’t it wonderful?” Clara handed the toy to her son.
Andrew dug into the trunk and began removing wooden trains and boats. Sebastian watched as Clara straightened and approached him again, a smile curving her mouth and a light glowing in her eyes.
His heart swelled, all the shadows of the past slipping away. The loss he had