But first, you and I must come to an agreement. He mustn't see us if he's not well enough to know us. For then, we will have time to convince him. I would like to come, but I cannot stay. I will be moving to the house this evening, and I will be too busy to watch him. Now, how do you feel about it?" "Well, actually, before I can say yes, I must ask why." I crossed my arms. He laughed. "Come now, Elly, don't you want to be part of all this?" I nodded. "If we can protect the man you love, then we have a duty to do it. You saw what happened to the people on the road, did you not? And with you as his wife, you would be so much safer. At least until we get you a proper escort, of course." He grinned. I was in a dilemma. I thought he was a kind man, a strong man, but I also realized he was the leader of the family's people, and who was I to question his wisdom? "Well," I said, leaning back, "I would like to join you. But not until he is well enough to accept me. I am afraid I would end up in his heart and not in his life if he were to see me and know me and then be taken from me." He nodded his head. "I agree. But he must get well soon, mustn't he?" "Yes," I said slowly. "He must get well." ## 9 Earl Fitzwilliam was weak when we came, but he opened his eyes and saw my face as I bent down to kiss him. His arm shot out, and I grabbed hold of it. The muscles in it were still strong, I noticed. When his eyes focused on me, they widened and he reached out to me with one hand and held me near his face. "You have come back, Ellie," he whispered. "Thank God." I nodded, not daring to speak. I wanted to weep, but I thought it would upset him more. "Where have you been? You have brought me news of Lizzie. I have dreamed of her, and now I can see that she is well." His eyes grew distant, and he sighed heavily. "I had prayed to see her again. I knew it was not to be. I knew it had been too much to ask of God, but he has answered my prayer in this." I sat silently on the edge of the bed, wondering at his words. I was sorry he was not well enough to leave his bed, and I prayed that all would be well in the future. The fever was leaving him now. I waited for him to talk again, hoping that he would speak of Lizzie, knowing he would want to see her. "I am sorry to have so long kept you waiting," he said to Lord Percival. "But you are right—I would have asked you and Ellie to help me if I had not had a visitor this morning." "A visitor?" Lord Percival smiled. "So, you must tell me everything. For a patient to have visitors, he must be recovering quickly, no?" "Ah," Earl Fitzwilliam said, "your questions will be answered by the one who brought me news of Lizzie. Come closer, Ellie. Allow me to introduce you to my savior." I jumped off the bed and came to stand next to Lord Percival. "My savior?" Lord Percival questioned. "What do you mean, my friend?" Earl Fitzwilliam reached over to touch the side of Lord Percival's face. "You have done so much for us." I watched him closely, wondering what he was talking about. "But I did nothing but watch him," I said, interrupting before he could say anything more. "You and your people did everything else." "Yes, you did nothing more than what you were told to do, Ellie, but do not look upon me so coldly, child. Your heart is frozen and cold—I saw that in your eyes. But as I told you, this is a strange place. We try to do good in the strange places of the world. You were the one who could have died last night—in fact, I was sure you were going to die. You were very close to the river, and that river is not healthy. You and my brother will be able to help those living here." He reached up his hand to touch my arm. "You will be happy here, Ellie. But if you want to find out who and what I am, you will stay close to me." He nodded his head. "I would tell you more, but there is one more person you should meet before you decide what to do. A person you will know right away. Her name is Sarah, and she is the person who brought me my news about Lizzie, and she is the woman you need to go to, because you want to learn more about the man who holds you in his heart, I am sure of that. You will need to speak to her. But she is a stubborn woman, I tell you that right away, and so, you must be quiet. Understand?" "Yes, of course," I said quickly. He looked at Lord Percival. "You are a good man, my friend. There is no one who loves my sister more than he does." Lord Percival nodded his head. "I am honored to have been called your friend." "And you have more than friendship," Earl Fitzwilliam said. "When you are well again, you can return with us to my house and say that you had fallen in battle to save my life. I will ask no one any questions." "You have done more than enough for me already," Lord Percival said, "and no more will be asked of you." "Good," Earl Fitzwilliam said. "I have sent for your physician." "Thank you." Lord Percival smiled. "He is not a physician," Earl Fitzwilliam said. "He is called Denton. You might not like him, he is rather strict, but you will be able to tell that he has been around the world, and he is not afraid of anything—only fools. You have met him." "I have met him," I said. "Good," Earl Fitzwilliam said. "She saved my life once," Lord Percival said. "Ellie," Earl Fitzwilliam said, "my brother has much to say of you. He speaks highly of you. If you want to hear more, you must not be offended by what he says. You have saved his life and his wife's life, but you are free to speak your mind on these matters if you wish." I smiled, knowing he was teasing me. "I will tell you that you are well again, and you are no fool. It is because I do not think you are that I am happy to see you. But I would like to go and see Sarah now." "No one stays with him except me," Earl Fitzwilliam said. "And he must get used to seeing his wife go about his room without a husband, and he will need you when he is well enough to travel. Just think of it as a honeymoon. We would like to get married this evening. Will you stand up with me when the priest comes to marry us?" Lord Percival and I nodded. "Now, you will need to stay away from everyone," Earl Fitzwilliam said to me. "It is best if you never come into the room when I am with Sarah, and you will be quiet and stay out of everyone's way." He smiled. "My brother has decided that this house is too cold and dark, and that there will be too many people. He is getting rid of a few to make room for us." "You have more enemies than you can count, but they will not make their move against you as long as he is with you," Lord Percival said, patting Earl Fitzwilliam's hand. "We will be close by and by our side. I am sorry that you must endure this change, but you have suffered more than enough without us. I am happy you have Ellie and now Sarah. I can tell you have a true heart and are good to everyone around you. The world will be a better place with you in it. Now, let me help you." "Yes," Earl Fitzwilliam said, "and remember that you must not stand up for anything, no matter how you feel. You are to be our guest." "Well, you must give your consent before I go, Elly," Lord Percival said, and Earl Fitzwilliam raised his hand to silence his friend. "Yes," I said quickly, "we will be married. I thank you both." I had not said I would marry him, but he seemed happy to hear this and smiled at me. "We should make love," I whispered in his ear. He burst out laughing. "What if Earl Fitzw