"Ardath Mayhar - The Clarrington Heritage" - читать интересную книгу автора (Mayhar Ardath)

ones. Now they were inspecting her so sharply that she wondered if he might be
angry to find this intruder in his household.
When he smiled, she was reassured. "We have ... or had ... no daughter.
We needed one. Welcome, dear child. I only regret that as things worked out
there was no one here to welcome you in person, when you arrived. But we'll do
everything we can to make up for that, rest assured. Come and meet your new
mother."
Ben had told her earlier that his mother asked to be brought down from
what they called the hospital suite, for the occasion. She looked fragile but
lovely, her iron gray hair carefully done. Her makeup, however, couldn't hide
her deathly pallor, and the nurse in Marise knew that she was in pain.
Marise knelt beside the electric wheelchair and looked up into the
woman's pale eyes, which were totally unlike those of both her sons. Mother
Clarrington looked deeply into her eyes, as her husband had done, as if
searching for something, fearful of finding it. The sadness of her gaze warmed
as she smiled at last.
The thin hand reached to grip her shoulder with surprising strength. "I
can see it," said Mother Clarrington. "You are good for Ben. He is more
relaxed, happier than I have ever seen him. We are more than grateful, my
dear, for your care of him.
"I must confess I was afraid, when we heard of your sudden marriage,
that some gorgeous hussy had taken advantage of his weakened condition. Once I
saw him, this morning, I knew the truth. You saved him when we were all bound
by our own illness and responsibilities and could not even be beside him. Be
happy, my dear."
She sighed deeply and made a gesture with one frail hand. The stocky
little nurse came forward as she said, "Forgive me. I must leave you now.
Edenson!"
The nurse was at her side at once. Marise smiled at her. "Miss Edenson,
if you need a day off sometime just let me know. I will gladly look after Mrs.
Clarrington. I am fully qualified, and I understand how confining it can be to
have a patient who needs round-the-clock care."
The woman's steely eyes glinted at her with something like resentment.
"I am able to care for Mrs. Clarrington quite adequately without help," she
said in a brusque tone. "But thank you." There was no gratitude in her
expression as she opened the big doors.
Mother Clarrington looked up as Marise rose from her knees to stand
beside her. There was apology in her glance; then she turned her chair and
trundled away to the small elevator let into the wall beyond the stair.
As she watched the elevator door close, becoming a tapestry instead of
a door, she felt a strong hand grasp her elbow. "I'm Ben's Aunt Lina," a gruff
voice said.
Marise turned to meet this last member of the family. "Ben has talked
about you so much!" She reached to hug the old woman. "He says you raised him
even more than his mother was able to. He was lucky to have you, with her so
ill all through his childhood." The scent of sandalwood wafted from Aunt
Lina's sweater as she put her arms about the woman's shoulders.
Aunt Lina returned the hug awkwardly, as if she were unused to
demonstrations of affection. Her furrowed features relaxed, and the startling
jade green eyes examined Marise closely. As had been true with every member of