“My dear Chuffy, pray see this for the blessing that it is. Now there will be no trial, no scandal and more importantly, no barbaric hanging at the end of it all. God, after all, has been good to Theodore.”
“Do you really think so, Gil?” asked Underwood at length, remembering a charming, portly little man with a ready smile and incisive wit.
“I do, Chuffy. It is not given to many of us to live a long life, and to die peacefully in our beds, without pain, without fear. Theodore’s life consisted of giving the most precious gift of education. No matter how misguided his actions, he sought to protect those he loved from great harm. What better end could there be to any life?”
Underwood glanced towards his wife, who met his eyes squarely, her loving heart displayed within for all to see, “He could, perhaps, have had someone to love him,” he suggested quietly, knowing that Verity could not fail to understand how deeply he appreciated her presence in his life.
“We can all only hope for that,” answered Gil, unconsciously taking Cara’s hand in his own warm grasp.
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Copyright Suzanne Downes 2014
Behind The Horseman (The Underwood Mysteries Book 3) Page 26
