conversational. He wanted Anna to see that he treated her normally and didn’t look at her with any uncertainty. “There are new things for you to wear, things Dalinda wore.”
She stilled at the mention of his twin’s name. Then she turned the strawberry she held over and over, studying it. Finally, she bit into it.
“You must wonder why I lost my voice. It was when I was a soldier.”
He busied himself spreading butter on a slice of bread but felt Anna’s eyes upon him.
“My father sent me to be in the army when I left Torville Manor. I had to grow up quickly. England is currently at war with France. Bonaparte has thought to conquer all of Europe. The war rages on, even now.”
Dez covered Anna’s dirty hand with his. Gazing into her eyes, he said, “The war was terrible. Men died in droves. As an officer, it was my responsibility to lead them into battle. I would shout orders. Encouragement. It was hard to make myself heard with all the gun and cannon fire. I lost many men, Anna. And it hurt.”
Tears brimmed in her eyes. He thought her lips formed the words I’m sorry so he said, “I know you are sorry. I am also sorry for what happened to you.”
She flinched. Jerked her hand out from under his. Crossed her arms protectively over her breasts.
“I hated the war, Anna. I saw monstrous things. Things I will never be able to forget. You, too, were subjected to horrible things. Though you won’t ever forget them, you can believe me when I say you are safe now. You will never see Gollingham Asylum again.”
Tears streamed down her cheeks. She looked up and shook her head violently. Dez leaned over and clasped her shoulders gently.
“I will never let anything happen to you like that, Anna.”
Doubt flickered in her eyes.
“Your father is dead. He died a few months ago.”
Dez let that information settle in. He could almost see the wheels turning in her head as Anna absorbed it.
“Your cousin, Tom, is now Viscount Shelton. He is the head of your family. He came with me to claim you. To remove you from Gollingham.”
Her gaze fell. She shrugged his hands off and reached for the bread, smearing an enormous amount of butter atop it and then greedily shoving it into her mouth. He sat back, telling himself it would take infinitesimal steps to bring Anna back. At least she had the knowledge that her bastard of a father was dead and had no control over her. Tom Browning seemed like a good man and Dez believed the viscount would also do everything in his power to help his cousin.
Anna finally pushed her plate away, crossing her arms again, a sullen look upon her face. He couldn’t help but ache, seeing the bruises covering her arms. The jagged nails on her dirty hands.
“Would you like to have a bath?”
She shot to her feet, terror in her eyes as she ran to the door and threw it open. As she rushed outside, Dez cursed the mistake he had made. To Anna, the idea of a bath would mean the frigid buckets of water dumped upon her head and tossed against her body. What a fool he had been.
He leaped to his feet and followed her outside. She turned in circles, as if she were an animal trapped by hunters. A faint noise came from her and she slumped to the earth, slamming her palms against the ground in frustration.
Approaching her, he held his open palms to his side, trying to show he was no threat. Dez knelt a few feet from her.
“Anna, I am sorry. I know what my thoughtless words meant to you. You are no longer at the asylum, though. I only thought that you might wish to be clean and wear one of the gowns Coral brought. Remember? Something of Dalinda’s. You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”
He prayed he had gotten through to her.
She stopped beating the ground and looked at him, her suspicion obvious.
“I had Coral put water on to heat. He also fetched clean, cool water from the lake to mix in with the hot. There is a small tub in the corner of the kitchen. I will mix the water together. It will be warm. I promise that it will feel good. Can I do that for you?”
She nodded abruptly.
“I will also need to check your hair for lice.”
Anna shuddered.
“I know. They were rampant in the army. If you