"P. N. Elrod - Jonathan Barrett 01 - Red Death" - читать интересную книгу автора (Elrod P N)

"You'll tender your apologies to Mrs. Nooth. She was very offended."
And very forgiving. And in the kitchen. "Indeed, Mother? I shall go to he
r immediately and make amends."
She'd heard me but had not listened. "Where were you, Jonathan?"
"Inspecting the fields," I answered easily. It was mostly true, but I resented
the fact that this woman was turning me into a liar.
"Never mind that. You've far more important duties before you than fannin
g. From now on you will leave such menial work to those men who have been
hired for it."
"Yes, Mother." My head was spinning with that peculiar disorientation that
I associated with intoxication. With each passing minute the wine soaked
more deeply into me, increasing
its effect, but I was careful not to let it show.
"As long as you're here I want to continue our talk about your education. Y
ou may be excused, Elizabeth."
From where I was standing, I could clearly see the flash of anger in my siste
r's eyes at being dismissed as though she were one of the servants. Her mouth
tightened and her chin lifted, but she said nothing, nothing at all, quite l
oudly, all the way out the door.
Mother did not ignore her so much as she simply did not notice. Her attentio
n was fixed entirely upon me. She crossed the room to the chair she'd claime
d next to Father's desk and arranged herself. I was not invited to sit, nor
did I ask to do so. It might unnecessarily prolong our interview. My stomach
, presently awash with wine, would provide me with a valid reason to depart
soon enough. I was still hungry, but that was outweighed by the need to hear
her out, the need to gain information in order to present a logical argumen
t against it later. With Father. I knew better than to contend with his wife
, who was familiar with only her own unique logic and no one else's.
She produced her ivory scratching stick from somewhere and tapped it light
ly against the palm of one hand. "And now, Jonathan," she announced import
antly, "we will talk about what you are going to do once you get to Cambri
dge." She paused to poke vigorously at a spot above the nape of her neck w
ith the stick. My teeth instantly went on edge.
Never, never in all my life was I so glad to be drunk.
Some twenty minutes later Mother generously excused me, by which time I'd de
veloped a pressing need to rid myself of all that wine. A good deal of it st
ill remained behind in my head, though, for it was aching badly. The pain so
 interfered with my thinking that afterward I couldn't decide whether to vis
it the kitchen or retreat in misery to my room to sleep it away.
Jericho resolved things when he emerged from the hall leading to the kitchen
carrying a covered tray.
"Is that for me?" I asked hopefully in response to his smile of greeting.
"Miss Elizabeth suggested it," he said. "Something to see you through until
supper."
'Then God bless her for being the dearest, sweetest sister anyone ever had.
Where is she?"
"Out taking a ride of her own."
"Yes. Since Mother came back the horses are getting more than their share
of exercise. Come, put that down somewhere."
"I would myself suggest that you take it in your sitting room. To avoid inter