He nearly stumbled over himself when he came into the kitchen and discovered I was there. He looked completely frightened and I thought he was going to flee back out the door. William came in just then and Thomas checked himself. Instead of running he dropped his head quickly and looked at the floor.
I said hello to him, very quietly, as I did not want to add to his discomfort. He didn’t respond until William prompted him to. Even then it was barely audible. William demanded that he speak to me properly and I was astonished at William’s tone. He practically ordered him as if he was a slave. I wish I had the courage to tell William that his tone wasn’t necessary but I don’t feel like I can.
The boy raised his head and in doing so lost the blanket that was around his shoulders. I received another shock when I noticed that his arm was bandaged. I must have gasped because Thomas’s head rose again and he looked completely frightened. He wasn’t looking at me though – he was looking at William.
I recovered and asked him what had happened. He stumbled over his words and William answered for him. Apparently he had fallen out of a tree some time ago and broke his arm. William told me he bandaged it himself.
Thomas bolted from the kitchen as soon as William finished his story.
What a strange and scared little lad.
I asked William more about him and he said that he had found Thomas on the streets in Philadelphia. He had no family and had been on his own for a very long time. At first, William said, he hired the boy to run little errands for him while he was in his medical studies. Then, after graduation, he convinced the boy to come and stay with him.
Poor little man – what a hard life. But I still can’t excuse William for speaking to him that way or forget the way Thomas looked at him.
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The diary of Elizabeth Whetherby - A Historic Fiction
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