Элизабет Джордж Спир - The Witch of Blackbird Pond / Ведьма с пруда Черных Дроздов. 10-11 классы

Kit didn’t know what to say and just stared at him. She was still looking for an answer when Judith, who was standing near, spoke. “Dr. Bulkeley’s sermons are always inspired,” she said, “especially when he preaches about the final judgment.”

John looked at Judith with surprise and respect. Under the white bonnet he noticed her serious face and her blue eyes. Now Dr. Gershom Bulkeley himself came up to them, too. He took Kit’s hand in his. “So this is the orphan from Barbados?” he said. “How grateful you must be, young lady, for the kindness of your aunt and uncle.”

Had Uncle Matthew informed the whole town that he had taken her in out of charity? If so, then she was obviously a surprise to them because she didn’t look poor.

“You must bring your new pupil with you when you come to dinner at our house on Thursday,” smiled Rachel Wood. “And now, Katherine dear, here are other neighbors you must meet. This is Mistress Ashby and her son, William.”

Mistress Ashby was a fashionably dressed woman, and her son William Ashby looked at Kit with admiration. She noticed that and gave him a big bright smile. Now poor William was speechless.

On the way back Judith quietly asked Kit about the handsome man she had talked to.

“Handsome? Do you mean John Holbrook? I met him on the boat. But most of the time he sat by himself and studied.”

“You seemed to know each other quite well. Do you fancy him?” asked Judith.

“Oh, no!” protested Kit. “What made you think of such a thing?”

“I just wondered,” Judith said. “But you certainly impressed William Ashby.”

That was true. “But only because I was someone new,” said Kit.

Chapter Six

“Such an excellent dinner, Mistress Wood. Especially your apple pie,” said Reverend Gershom Bulkeley, putting down his linen napkin. The preparation of this dinner had taken almost four days. Dr. Bulkeley had been pleased, but had anyone else? Matthew Wood had Eaton little and not spoken a word. Rachel looked tired, and even Mercy was unusually quiet. Only Judith had enjoyed herself. In the candlelight she looked beautiful, and Reverend Bulkeley smiled at her. But mostly he paid his attention to Kit as he had understood that her grandfather had been Sir Francis Tyler. “Was your grandfather a loyal subject of our good King James?”

“Well, of course, sir.”

“And you yourself? You are a loyal subject also?”

“How could I be not, sir?”

Matthew pushed back his chair. “Her loyalty is in no danger in this house! What are you trying to say, Gershom?” he asked angrily. “I am a selectman in this town. I am not disloyal!”

“I didn’t mean to offend you, Matthew,” said the older man. “I know that you are not disloyal – not yet.”

“Are you saying that because I don’t like this new King’s governor?”

“Governor Andros was appointed by King James. Massachusetts has accepted that.”

“Well, here in Connecticut we will never accept it!”

“You are wrong, Matthew!” cried Gershom Bulkeley. “If you do not live to see the evil results of it, your children or their children will. Such views can lead only to revolution and war!”

The two men sat staring at each other across the table. Tears filled Rachel’s eyes. Then Mercy spoke. “Reverend Bulkeley, would you read to us this evening?” she asked gently.

Dr. Bulkeley smiled. “I need some rest, but my young pupil here is a very good reader.”

Matthew Wood put the heavy Bible in front of John Holbrook, and Rachel moved the candlestick nearer. John had been silent all evening, and now he seemed pleased to be in the center of attention. Now he looked at the Bible in his hands and asked his teacher, “What would you like me to read, sir?”

“I would suggest Proverbs 24:21,” said the old minister.

John began to read: “My son, fear the Lord and the King…”

Matthew Wood was about to say something when his wife stopped him gently. When the reading was finished, Reverend Bulkeley began the evening prayer. At one time Kit opened her eyes and saw that Judith was studying John Holbrook. Then one phrase of Dr. Bulkeley’s prayer caught Kit’s attention. “And bless our sister in her weakness.” Was he talking about Mercy? After a few days in this house Kit had stopped noticing Mercy’s lameness. No one ever mentioned it. Mercy certainly wasn’t weak. She did a full day’s work and more. Also Kit saw that Mercy was the central figure of this family. She softened her father when he was in his bad moods, supported her gentle mother, preached her younger sister, and had helped Kit to join their family circle.

When the prayer ended, the thanks and the goodnights said, Rachel spoke to John Holbrook. “I hope you will come again,” she said kindly. “We would like you to feel welcome in our house.”

John looked back at Judith. “Thank you,” he answered. “I would be very happy to come again.”

As the door finally closed behind the guests, Matthew Wood turned angrily to his wife. “That is the last time,” he said, “that I will have Gershom Bulkeley under my roof!”

“Very well, Matthew,” answered Rachel. “But do not be too hard on him. Gershom is a good man.”

“No, he is not. He is a hypocrite! I’ll have no more texts read at me in my own house! But there is one more thing I forgot,” he added. “Today young William Ashby asked my permission to see my niece.”

There was silence in the room as everyone turned to look at Kit. “You mean to see Katherine?” asked Rachel.

“That is what I said.”

Kit’s cheeks turned red. Judith opened her mouth to say something, looked at her father and closed it again.

“I suppose we can agree,” said Rachel. “He is a good member of the Society.”

“His father is another King’s man,” said her husband. “He proposed the council to join with Massachusetts. But what can we expect, now that we have a Royalist under our own roof?”

“Well, I told you so!” Judith finally said later when the girls were in their room getting ready for bed. “I knew by the way he was looking at you after the Meeting.”

Kit was curios now. “Do you know him well?”

“Who doesn’t know about him?” said Judith. “His father has the best land on which he will build the house for Master William when he decides to get married. He was almost ready to do it, but then you came along.”

Suddenly Kit remembered. That first morning, when she was trying on the dress, Judith had said…

“Oh, dear,” Kit exclaimed, “I don’t want this William to come and see me. I’ve only met him once, and I don’t have a word to say to him. I’ll tell Uncle Matthew in the morning.”

“Don’t you say anything to Father!” Judith cried. “William never asked to see me. But, as a matter of fact, Kit, you can have William. I’ve changed my mind. I’m going to marry John Holbrook.”

Chapter Seven

What could she say next? Kit sat looking at her hands while William Ashby sat opposite her across the wide table. She knew that if she looked up she would find the young man’s eyes fixed on her. For the last half an hour they had sat like this. When a young man came to see a girl, what did they talk about? Kit had tried her best, but William seemed happy just to sit. Was it Kit’s duty to lead the conversation? From the kitchen across the hall Kit could hear the voices of the family. Tonight she wanted to be with them. She would welcome even the Bible reading at this moment. She sighed and tried again, “Is it always so cold in New England, even in May?”

“I think this spring is a little warmer than usual,” William answered.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door, and Kit heard John Holbrook’s voice. Her aunt welcomed him in. “Why don’t you both come and join us?” she suggested to Kit and William.

William relaxed a little. John and he shook hands. Judith got excited and started laughing happily. Mercy’s eyes were shining with pleasure. Even Matthew managed to ask William politely, “Has your father sown his fields yet? I noticed that he’s cutting some trees.”

“Yes, sir,” replied William. “That is because I’m planning to build my house next autumn.”

Kit stared at him. William had not said so many words all the evening. Aunt Rachel encouraged him to continue. “My husband tells me that you have been appointed a Viewer of Fences,” she smiled. “That is a fine honor for such a young man.”

“Thank you,” replied William. “The Assembly has decided that there should be no unclaimed land in our county.”

“Of course,” said Matthew. “Why should we leave land for the King’s governor to give it to his favorites?”

William spoke to the older man respectfully. “Aren’t you afraid, sir,” he asked, “that we will anger the King by such actions? We cannot be against him. If we accept his governor now, we will get some rights and privileges. But if we anger the King, we may lose them all.”

Kit could not believe her ears. William Ashby was very smart and could speak very well. He even argued with her uncle! With this new respect she gave him a smile that made him speechless again. At that moment Matthew Wood pushed back his chair and stood up. “What do you, young man, know about rights and justice? But you’ll learn. You will remember my words: some day you’ll learn and be sorry!” He left the room and went upstairs without saying goodnight.

It was already eight o’clock and seemed like the longest evening Kit had ever had. William stood up. “Thank you for your hospitality, Mistress Wood,” he said politely. John followed William’s example. As the door shut behind them, Kit felt relieved. “Well, I’m so glad that that’s over,” she said. “He’ll never come again. He didn’t say a word to me all evening. And then Uncle Matthew started…”

“Oh, they all know about Father,” Judith replied. “But William said that he was building his house, didn’t he? What else could you want him to say? Don’t you know anything, Kit? William’s father gave him that land three years ago, on his sixteenth birthday, and William said that he would never start to build his house until he decided to get married.”

“That’s ridiculous, Judith! He couldn’t mean such thing so soon. Could he, Mercy?”

“I’m afraid he could,” Mercy smiled at her cousin’s confusion. “I agree that William was telling us that he has made a decision. Whether you like it or not, Kit, William is going to come again.”

“But I don’t want him to!” Kit almost panicked. “I don’t want him to come at all. We can’t even talk to each other!”

“It seems to me that you’re too choosy,” said Judith. “Don’t you know that William can build the best house in Wethersfield if he wants to?”

Rachel put her hand on Kit’s shoulder. “I also think that William is serious,” she said gently. “Don’t worry, dear. No one will make you marry him right now. William is a very fine young man. Of course you feel like strangers now. But I think it will change very soon.”

But will it? A second Saturday came, a third, a fourth, and William’s visits became regular. The young man seemed to enjoy those evenings. For him it was enough just to sit across the room from Kit and look at her. He was the most popular bachelor in Wethersfield, and a handsome one, too. Sometimes, when William’s eyes were on her face, Kit felt excited in a way that was strange and not unpleasant. Maybe Kit wouldn’t have thought about William so much, if there had been anything more interesting going on in Wethersfield. But every day was the same, and housework filled every hour from sunrise to dark. Kit hadn’t liked any of this work. She was Katherine Tyler! She had not been born to do the work of slaves! And William Ashby seemed to be the only person in Wethersfield who just admired her and didn’t expect her to work. That is why she started looking forward to Saturday evenings.