Читать книгу A Man's Black Heart - Nuria Farai - Страница 7

Chapter 2

He was there just two days afterwards. He couldn’t resist to see her again. She never had left his mind, no matter how occupied it was. In the late afternoon, he drove to the address she had left him with, and was surprised to see a well-kept three-storey, whitewashed building with a pretty, flowery garden behind it. There were pots of colorful flowers outside of every large window. It was a house of care, quite obviously. He rang the door, wondering how she would take his early appearance. The door opened, and out she came herself. She was as beautiful as in his memory, but now her hip-long hair was all the way down, only held back by a small clip at the back of her head to keep it out of her face. She had magnificent, thick, golden hair. Truly, the woman was an angel descended on earth. „Mr. Black!“, she exclaimed, then smiled benignly. „How very kind of you to come and visit us!“ „Good afternoon, Miss Arnheim“, he tried to smile. It felt strange. He could not remember the last time he had smiled properly. There was a contented smirk at the wedding of his sister months ago. She opened the door fully, and he stepped in. „You should not open the door yourself, Madam. I can imagine you have some antagonists, out there.“ People like the deceased Diggins, who kept children as work slaves, and lost income when they left the street. „Oh, but Mr. Jones is here, he is just having his afternoon tea with the children. I was about to join them. Would you care to have a piece of cake?“ He almost grunted with amusement. A piece of cake? That was something which in his whole life, he had never been asked once. „Sure“, he managed to mumble in some effort at pleasantness, and as he entered the cosy, luminous living room, he spotted children sitting on soft, pretty sofas, looking well-fed, well-dressed … and at peace. He had never, not one day in his life as a child, felt remotely as they now did. And she was the cause of this. If he had known someone like her in his youth, life could have gone differently. Perhaps, he would still have a heart. He looked at the kids, and they looked at him - both with unease. A lanky boy with a handsome face stared at him. „Mr. Black“, he mumbled, and bowed his head in deference. „Aye. Good afternoon, children“, he added, as the beautiful Ms. Arnheim shot him a nervous look. Did she think he had come here to scare her flock? But no, she beamed. „Children, this is Mr. Black, as Oliver pointed out. He is visiting us to learn what we do here. He is a business man.“ „And I was a street child“, he pointed out calmly, but his heart felt icy. The children gaped. Oliver said with hard admiration: „And you built your own business, and now you are rich.“ „Yes.“ There was a small silence, then Ms. Arnheim said with a little smile: „Then perhaps Mr. Black can show us all how to become rich.“ The children laughed, and he grinned. „Please have a seat“. She pointed amiably at an armchair, and his stomach lurked at her kindness. As he made his way to the ridiculously welcoming, fluffy seat, a rough voice behind him said: „Ryker.“ He wheeled around. How had he not noticed the man before? Had his instincts left him? She had said there was a Mr. Jones here, too. But then he saw the man, and smiled. Seth Jones could stealth like a cat. He was the best of pick-pockets, at some time - and worse. „Seth.“ They shook hands, a grin on their hard faces. „So you work here now. Are you the baker?“, he jested. The other man chuckled. „No, I do the men's work around here, reparations, plumbing, gardening - and shopping for the larger items. And I also answer the door.“ „Except when you are having cake“, and they both grinned, as they had never had cake as children. „It’s a mighty delicious cake Ms. Arnheim makes.“ He looked at her inquiringly. „You bake?“ She nodded simply. „Yes. And I cook. Although we now have a wonderful cook, Mrs. Vanderbeek.“ „I wonder your tongue is not all twisted with these names, Seth“. „Aye, but there are many benefits in working here.“ Yes, like looking at the gorgeous Ms. Arnheim. He would work here himself, if he could. Ms. Arnheim now approached, holding a plate with a delicious-looking cake in one hand, and a cup of coffee in her other. „Please.“ „Thank you.“ The children stared at him as he took the spoon, eyed the cake, and slowly, cautiously, took a bit unto his fork. They watched meticulously, as he opened his mouth and put it inside. As he chewed, they eyed him, still. „Children, it is not polite to stare“, Ms. Arnheim admonished gently. „But he looks like he’s never had cake“, a small girl said. „Belle!“, she exclaimed, coloring. „It’s alright“, he said, wiping his mouth with the flowery serviette she had given him. „This is the second time I eat cake.“ „Oh“, they all said. There were suddenly tears in Ms. Arnheim’s sensitive green eyes. She quickly turned around, seemingly looking out of the window. „I wonder where Mr. Vanderbeek is staying“, she said with a shaky voice, trying to give an air of lightness. „He helps me with the repairs“, Seth explained. He kept a sympathetic eye on the woman. A sting of jealousy went through Ryker, which he quickly subdued. He had little heart left, so he could not feel jealousy. She returned to the center of the room, and seated herself in a chair on his right side. „The cake is spectacular“, he said in an attempt to cheer her up, and she smiled sadly. „Mr. Black, the children would like to sing a song for you, if that’s alright. We then have a music lesson and later, drawing“, she explained. „Our teacher is coming in soon.“ „What else do you teach them?“, he asked interestedly. „Mathematics, English, history, natural science, and religion. The elder children learn French, some Italian, as well as philosophy, including political sciences.“ „Honestly?“, he managed to correct himself in time, for there was a coarse word of incredulity on his tongue, and Seth chuckled silently. „Yes.“ „And what is it good for?“ She looked at him indignantly, and he suddenly felt the strong urge to touch those sassy, ruby lips. „You are yourself well-educated, Mr. Black. Did it not help you to build up your life?“ Yes, but my fists and my cunning helped me much more, he wanted to say. But he saw the anxious expression in her face. She wanted him to speak well of her endeavors in education, to motivate even hardened children like Oliver. „Undoubtedly. Every thing one knows helps to understand the world more, and to stand out from the mass of uneducated poor“, he said calmly. He shot a glance to Oliver to emphasise this was meant for him. The boy swallowed, then nodded grimly. „Shall we take a tour de maison?“, Ms. Arnheim asked friendly. He nodded, and got up immediately. „I’ll show Mr. Black the house, and then we will join you for your music lesson and the song, alright?“ „Alright, Louisa“, they said in chorus, and a little girl came to hug her. She lovingly caressed her dark locks. „I’ll be back soon, Thea“.

„They call you by your given name?“, he asked in surprise, as they mounted the stairs. „Yes. You may also call me Louisa, if you like“, she said in her usual kind manner. „I … I’m Ryker“. Why was he stammering? „I like your name“, she said gently. She was so close now, he could see her fine-pored skin, and the long, dark-blond lashes. And the gold in her long, wavy hair. „You are staring“, she smiled. „Sorry. You are very beautiful. I hope you know how to take care of yourself“, he mumbled. She colored with pleasure. „I do. Come, please.“ She showed him the top rooms, were the children slept, the bathrooms, the homework room, the small library full of children’s books and illustrations, but also encyclopedias, atlases, dictionaries and science books, as well as some novels. Downstairs, they visited the kitchen, the dining room, the pantry, the play room. „I admire your work. You have my respect“, he said gruffly, because his chest felt all contracted. If only he had known her when he was a child. She lay a slender, perfect hand on his arm, then stiffened slightly, when she felt the muscles. He was a man, after all, and she suddenly seemed to realise it. Her lips quivered a little, and he thought he much preferred to know her when they both were adults. „I’m so sorry for you. I wish I had known you as a child. But then, of course, I was a child, too.“ „How old are you?“ „I am twenty.“ „And you do all this.“ „Other woman already have a family. And work very hard. Too hard. This is an extremely cruel world. In Germany, poverty is not so pronounced. England is a country of strong class divides and extreme poverty. It breaks my heart.“ „And yet, it is not broken. It is strong, and enterprising.“ He took her hand gently, and removed it from his arm. She looked flustered. „Let us join the kids for that song", he said softly. If she continued to quiver and stand so close to him, he might kiss her.