Millwright's Daughter by Zina Abbott

Author:Zina Abbott [Abbott, Zina]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-11-12T06:00:00+00:00

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Dayton, Ohio – July, 1882

Chapter 12

~o0o~

A t the sound of footsteps upon the stairs, Kit peeked around the corner long enough to see Caroline Arnold descending them with the aid of her cane in one hand and her nurse holding her opposite forearm. Kit smiled as he quietly resumed his seat in the receiving parlor. His employer still struggled, but she was on her feet.

Kit stood when she entered the room. Ignoring him, Caroline waited until she was seated before she turned to the other woman. “You may leave me now. I’ll call for you if I need you. Close the doors on the way out.”

Once the two were alone, Caroline, her pursed lips communicating her displeasure, turned her gaze to Kit. “Did you see what you wished to see, Mr. Halsey? I do not particularly welcome others watching my awkward movement upon the stairs.”

“Quite frankly, I felt happy for you, Mrs. Arnold. You appear stronger and much improved in the weeks since I last saw you.”

Caroline flipped her hand to brush off his comment. “Yes, well, I told you before I have recovered sufficiently enough to take care of my own matters.” She fixed a demanding gaze upon him. “Why are you here without my granddaughter, Mr. Halsey? I received no word other than your report, Eliza’s letter, and a warning you would arrive in Dayton as quickly as the rails allowed.”

“Because I learned something that caught me off-guard. If there is any truth to the matter, then it may change everything.”

“And what is that, Mr. Halsey? My attorney indicated you offered no clue in your correspondence as to why you wished to return to speak with me personally.”

“I was told Joseph Wells is Eliza’s father.”

Caroline, her gaze focused on Kit’s face, slowly leaned back and stretched her neck. Her voice lost some of its starch. “Who told you that?”

“Joseph Wells.”

Silence descended upon the room as the two stared at each other.

Caroline turned away first. Anger lit her eyes. “The wretch.”

Kit leaned forward. “Mrs. Arnold, I need to know if his claim is true. Is it possible Joseph Wells is Eliza’s father?”

Caroline’s voice snapped as she glared at Kit. “For what purpose do you need to know? I am paying you to stop Joseph Wells from harming my granddaughter. I want you to bring her home.”

Kit inhaled and shook his head. “Mrs. Arnold, as I wrote in my report to your attorney, Joseph did apply for guardianship of Eliza. From what I found in the docket at the courthouse, the matter is to be heard before a judge within the next few weeks. If he adds to it his allegation he is her natural father, it may strengthen his case. If he prevails under those circumstances, and I help Eliza leave, then he might very well come after me for abduction. He knows I have been seeing her. If I am to continue, I need to know the full details of what is involved.”

“Are you belatedly developing scruples, Mr.

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