Sophia exhaled in relief. “How extraordinarily kind. Can we pay her for the expense?”
Miss Hamilton smiled. “It’s already done.”
“What happened next?” Capshaw asked.
“Eli regained consciousness a couple of days ago. He wouldn’t tell her anything about himself—remember, he thought you had washed your hands of him—and she was at a loss. Fortunately, that’s when I found them.”
“Are you mad at me?” a quavering voice whispered.
Eli, now awake, looked up anxiously at Sophia.
Sophia stroked his hair. “No one is angry with you. We never got the telegram. I’m sorry about that.”
Eli smiled at her, then wiped his eyes on his sleeve. “Miss ’amilton tole me. You still want to ’dopt me?”
“Of course,” Sophia said. “But one rule: no more running off. If you have a problem, or something bad happens
