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"That’s enough," Cecilia declared "I will not permit you to question him any further"

"You will not per officer"

It was a pity that Edward could not bring himself to open his eyes, because he would really have liked to have seen the colonel’s face when Cecilia said, "You are not ht intervene," the doctor said

Edward heard someone step aside, and then he felt the mattress dip as the doctor sat beside him

"Can you open your eyes?"

Edward shook his head, slowly this tiht the pain was to keep his eyes tightly closed

"It can be like this with a head injury," the doctor said gently "They can take time to heal, and are often very painful in the process I’s"

"I understand," Edward said He did not like it, but he understood

"That’s more than we physicians can claim," the doctor replied His voice was a bit quieter, as if he’d turned to speak to someone else "There is much we do not know about injuries to the brain In fact, I’d wager e don’t know far outweighs that which we do"

Edward did not find this reassuring

"Your wife has cared for youEdward’s arm "I recommend that she continue to do so, if possible out of hospital"

"Out of hospital?" Cecilia echoed

Edward still hadn’t opened his eyes, but he heard a note of panic in her voice

"He is no longer feverish," the doctor said to her, "and the wound on his head is healing well I see no sign of infection"

Edward touched his head and winced

"I wouldn’t do that," the doctor said

Edward finally pried his eyes open and looked down at his fingers He’d half expected to see blood

"I can’t remove him from hospital," Cecilia said

"You will be just fine," the doctor said reassuringly "He cannot hope for better care than from his wife"

"No," she said, "you don’t understand I have no place to take hi now?" Edward asked He was suddenly reminded that she was his wife, and he was responsible for her well-being and safety

"I’ve rented a room It’s not far But there is only the one bed"

For the first tis of a smile

"The one small bed," she clarified "It hardly fitsover the side" And then, when no one said anything fast enough to stave off her palpable unease, she added, "It is a boardinghouse for women He would not be allowed"

Edward turned to Colonel Stubbs with rising disbelief "My wife has been staying in a boardinghouse?"

"We didn’t know she was here," the colonel replied

"You’ve obviously known for three days"

"She was already situated"

A hard, cold fury began to rise within hihouses in New York Town It didn’t , Cecilia was his wife

And the ars?

Edward had been raised a gentleman--a Rokesby--and there were soot the pain in his skull, forgot even that he’d lost his bloody memory All he kneas that his wife, the wolected by the very band of brothers to whom he had devoted the last three years