"Aunt Jane said I could have them. I told her I'd be ten years old tomorrow."
Caroline winced inwardly. She had no gift for Edward's birthday. "This is hardly the way to repay her kindness."
Virginia struggled to her feet. "When are you burning them, Edward?"
"He does it at night when you're asleep." Charlotte tugged at her yarn, and the ball rolled off her lap onto the floor. She set down her knitting to run after it.
"How are you starting the fire?" Virginia asked.
"The tinder wheel," Edward mumbled.
Caroline set the tin box of soldiers on the bookcase. "You told me you would light candles so you could read."
Having retrieved her ball of yarn, Charlotte proceeded to wind it back up. "He caught his bed on fire once, but the ghost put it out."
Edward glowered at her. "Don't you know when to hush?"
Caroline strode to Edward's bed and inspected the pillows. One was scorched. "Where's your blanket?"
"In that trunk." Edward pointed. "It has a black spot."
"So you hid it?" Virginia regarded him sadly. "Edward, you could have burned the house down."
"No, he won't." Charlotte sat on her bed next to her mother. "The ghost will stop him."
"He wasn't a ghost, you bufflehead," Edward growled.
"Don't insult your - " Virginia paled. "There was a man in here? At night?"
"He was a nice ghost," Charlotte insisted. "He put out the fire and fussed at Edward. Then he vanished."
"He went out the door," Edward said.
Charlotte assumed a superior look. "Did you see him?"
"No." Edward wrinkled his nose in disgust. "It was dark because he put out the fire."
"Enough!" Virginia raised her hands. "Give me the tinder wheel. Now."
Edward trudged to his bed, retrieved the item from underneath, then handed it to his mother. "I'm sorry."
Caroline noted her sister's weary expression. Poor Ginny tired so easily these days. And she was growing increasingly worried about her missing husband. At least now, thanks to Haversham, they knew that their father was safe. "Why don't I take the children outside while you rest?"
Virginia nodded. "Stay away from Miss Ludlow."
"We will." Caroline ushered the children from the room.
The sounds of the harpsichord echoed through the house. Agatha was in the front parlor, entertaining Jane once again, so Caroline and the children slipped quietly out the back door. Since Agatha also frequented the garden, Caroline headed to the path along the river.
The sparkling water and blooming swamp rose comforted her frayed nerves. "No more destroying property, Edward. There is enough destruction in this world without us adding to it."
Edward shuffled his feet. "I said I was sorry."
"You'll have to say it again when Jane's son comes home."
Charlotte slipped her hand into Caroline's. "Do you think he'll marry Miss Ludlow?"
"I don't know." Caroline enjoyed the feel of the little girl's hand, so small and delicate. "I suspect he'll find Miss Ludlow even more distressing than his melted toys."
Charlotte giggled.
Edward raced ahead. "I'm going to hide. I bet you won't be able to find me."
For a moment, Caroline considered the benefits of never finding Edward, then chided herself for mean thoughts. She'd have to ask Dottie to bake something special to mark his tenth birthday.
Her thoughts returned once again to Haversham. It had been over two weeks since she'd last seen him.
She chewed her bottom lip, unsure what to think. She was obviously attracted to him. She'd practically thrown herself at him in the pergola. He was a strong and handsome man of wit and intelligence, but that hardly constituted a reason to kiss him. There was something more, something hard to define, but she sensed that he understood her, that he somehow needed her.
So where was he? Putting out fires in the middle of the night? "Charlotte, this man who was in your room, did he know you and Edward by name?"
"I think so. He called me Princess. At first, I thought he was Papa, but he said he wasn't."
Caroline recalled Haversham using the name Princess for her niece. "When did this happen? Was it the night before Miss Ludlow fell in the pond?" The night he'd first kissed her?
Charlotte nodded. "Yes, I think so."
"Have you seen him since then?"
"No. He disappeared."
Caroline sighed. "I'm afraid he has." Her greatest fear was that he'd left to join the army. Her heart squeezed, and she shoved the worrisome thoughts away. Haversham was big and strong. He would survive, no matter what he was doing. And he would return. He had to.