Chapter 16 #2
“Clara! Clara!” Emily came racing back, a frantic look plastered upon her face. She panted heavily and pointed in the direction from which she had just run. “The boys… they’ve done something silly. Duke is in danger.”
Clara and Gerald rose at the same time. The emotions that swept through him were pushed aside by a desire to save Duke and prevent any sorrow from entering the children’s hearts.
They broke into a run, with Emily leading the way, pushing through low branches and with bracken crunching beneath their feet.
Clara hitched up her dress and moved as swiftly as she could.
What had the boys done?
She warned them against giving Duke berries.
She would wager that’s what had happened, or they hadn’t been paying attention and Duke had snatched up some berries, giving him a poorly tummy.
It was her fault. She should have been more attentive, but instead she had been distracted by Gerald again.
If anything happened to Duke, it would break the children’s hearts, and she would be the only one to blame because she was the one supposed to be in charge, yet her judgment had lapsed.
Perhaps it was best she didn’t have children of her own.
They broke through the trees. Emily led them to the lake.
Clara saw the picnic basket turned on its side, a pile of berries poured out, some of them squashed.
Sophia was sitting down, weeping, while the boys were at the side of the lake, waving emphatically.
Emily rushed to Sophia’s side, trying to comfort her, but the girl was inconsolable.
Clara quickly formed a picture of what had happened.
Duke was currently sitting on the boys’ boat, tongue showing, one ear pricked up, looking quite happy with himself.
But the boat had drifted to the middle of the lake, quite out of the boys’ reach, and the wind had stilled so that the boat was no longer moving.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry! It’s my fault. I thought he was going to sail to the other side of the lake.
I didn’t know he was going to stop. Now he’s lost forever, and he’s never coming back, and it’s all my fault,” Teddy said, the words rushing out in a loud torrent, followed by tears.
His lower lip wobbled, and his cheeks glistened. Clara gathered him up.
“Duke isn’t lost. We know exactly where he is. We just have to wait for the wind to rise up again and bring him back, that’s all.” Clara squeezed Teddy tightly and tried to wipe the tears away, but he shook his head, wishing to suffer because that’s what he thought he deserved.
“He’s going to think that I was trying to get rid of him. He’s going to think that I hate him! But I don’t hate him. I love him,” Teddy sniffed.
“He knows, Teddy, he knows. He’s not upset with you. Nobody is upset with you. We’ll get him back,” Clara said; she just wasn’t sure how. There was no telling when the wind was going to rise again, and by this point Duke seemed to be getting more agitated.
“Don’t try to swim, Duke! It’s too deep!
” Oliver cried, waving his arms in the air to try and push Duke back.
The dog dipped his paw into the lake and then circled the mast, whimpering because he didn’t understand.
Clara was already picturing a scene where Duke tried to swim back to them, but she wasn’t even sure if he could swim.
He was just a puppy after all, was it an innate skill, or did it have to be learned?
Suddenly Clara wished that she was an expert in dogs.
Even more suddenly, she noticed a shadow flickering in the corner of her vision. It was Gerald’s coat, falling to the ground. He unbuttoned his sleeves, rolling them up to reveal thick forearms. He unclasped his pocket watch and cufflinks, leaving them on the ground with his coat.
“I’ll bring Duke back,” he said in a determined voice, striding towards the lake.
Before Clara could shout any word of warning, Gerald dived in, plunging into the water.
With strong strokes and stronger kicks, he made a straight line towards Duke, only slowing when he realized the ripples he created were making the boat teeter.
His hair was soaked, and his shirt clung to his body. Duke paced around more frantically. Clara gathered the children around, attempting to calm them. Teddy couldn’t look, fearing the worst. He buried his head into the crook of Clara’s arm.
Gerald reached the boat. Duke leaned towards him, sniffing, calm enough for his tail to wag.
Gerald petted the dog and then looked around before deciding on his course of action.
He took hold of one of the ropes and relied on one powerful arm to bring him back to the shore.
The progress was slow. Clara assumed Gerald didn’t want to swim too quickly for fear of upending Duke.
At least the animal was calm now, presumably reassured by Gerald’s presence.
Gerald’s face showed the strain he was under, having to rely on one arm while the other pulled the boat behind him. Thankfully it wasn’t a long swim.
“Look, Teddy, Duke is almost back with us,” Clara said gently, nudging Teddy. Teddy lifted his gaze, peeking out with one eye. When he saw that Clara was telling the truth, he started to brighten and the soft sobs fell silent.
Gerald drew the boat around, making sure that Duke could find his way to solid ground before Gerald. The dog padded off the boat and hopped onto the shore, and the children immediately ran towards him. Clara rose and smiled at the sight, then turned her gaze towards Gerald.
Water sloughed off his body as he rose. His white shirt was practically translucent, illuminating the hard angles of his body, the sharp masculinity that had been hidden before.
Clara gasped as she turned her head, knowing that she was glimpsing something forbidden, yet her eyes rolled, drawn back to him, unable to resist the urge to look.
Gerald shook his hands and wrung the bottom of his shirt. A lump formed in Clara’s throat. Her mind grew hazy, and she tried to quell these unwanted feelings.
“I’m sorry, Duke! I’ll never do anything like that again. I hope you can forgive me,” Teddy said.
Duke promptly licked Teddy’s cheek, and all seemed to be right with the world again.
Emily was the first to run to Gerald, but the others soon followed.
They slammed against his legs with such force that she watched Gerald steady himself, almost falling back into the pond.
They surrounded his legs, and then Duke wanted to get in on the action as well.
Clara was the only one not to approach, and she couldn’t.
She wouldn’t allow herself.
“I’ll fetch you a towel,” Clara said. Gerald’s gaze flicked up at her, and Clara felt something shift inside.
She brushed it off, however, putting it down to the shock at seeing him throw himself into the pond.
However, the image of his strong body, only hidden by the watery veil of his shirt, would linger in her mind for far longer than she ever intended, and it was as though her own mind betrayed her.
She could only hope that in time it would.