Page 124 of The Painter and His Poet

THIRTY-FIVE

HARLOW

“What on earth is wrong with you, Harlow? You’ve been jumpy all week!” my mother exclaims, throwing her hands up in the air in frustration.

“Nothing is wrong, I’m just tired, that’s all,” I reply, closing the lid to my laptop and reaching for my phone resting on the table between us. After packing up and shipping the paintings earlier this week, Sterling left for London this morning, and I’m a nervous wreck. The private viewing of Sterling’s art has already commenced, and I’m terrified of what’s going to happen.

My mother continues to speak, but I barely register her words as I glance at the last message Sterling sent me just over an hour ago.

Everything is going to be okay. I’ll call you as soon as it’s over.

“Harlow, are you listening to me?! We have company arriving very soon!”

“Company? What do you mean we have company?” I ask, my head snapping up.

“Robert has invited Councillor Hoxton and his wife Elodie to dinner–”

“No!” I exclaim, pushing up from my chair as fear cascades down my spine.

“What do you mean,no?” My mother looks at me aghast. I’ve been so distracted that I hadn’t even noticed that she’s dressed up to receive guests.

“I… I’m…” I stammer, struggling to come up with a reasonable explanation for my reaction.

I know I need to calm down, but how can I when Councillor Hoxton is on his way here, even though he’s supposed to be in London for the viewing? Panic floods my mind as anxiety tightens in my stomach. Even if I manage to reach Sterling, he’s over two hours away. What am I supposed to do?

“Harlow!” My mother yells, grabbing my shoulders and shaking me. I blink rapidly, trying to regain control and think clearly.

“Hello? Where are you both?” I hear Robert call from down the hall.

“I’m not feeling well,” I snap, breaking free from my mother’s grip. “I’m going to my room to lie down. Have a nice evening.”

“Absolutely not. You will attend this dinner. It’s incredibly rude not to,” my mother insists, but I ignore her and rush toward the hallway, colliding straight into Robert’s chest.

“Harlow, are you okay?” he asks me, his hands flying out to grasp my shoulders as he steadies me. “You look as though you’ve seen a ghost.”

“Stop coddling her, Robert. She’s not feeling well,apparently, and is refusing to have dinner with us and our guests,” my mother says, joining us both.

My gaze lifts to Roberts, his eyes searching mine. A frown creases his forehead. “You’re unwell?”

“Yes, I’m suddenly feeling a little lightheaded,” I whisper, taking a step back as his hands fall from my shoulders. It’s not a complete lie, I do feel lightheaded just not for the reason he might think.

“Robert, is everything okay?” a familiar voice asks.

Behind Robert, Councillor Hoxton appears, his snakelike gaze assessing me. My skin crawls with unease and I feel all the colour draining from my face. Frozen in place, it’s all I can do not to throw up.

“Oh, everything’s fine, John. Just a bout of dizziness, Harlow was just heading to her room to lie down for a bit,” Robert explains smoothly, stepping to one side as he gives me room to pass.

“There must be something in the water. Elodie has been feeling under the weather too. She wasn’t able to make it this evening after all.”

“Oh no, that’s terrible, poor Elodie,” my mother states, though there’s a distinct undertone of annoyance that is hard to miss.

“Indeed, it is a shame,” Robert adds, throwing a look at my mother. Seems like I’m not the only one who can sense her insincerity.

“I think I should go for a walk outside, get some fresh air,” I interject quickly.

Robert studies me for a moment, a flicker of suspicion crossing his features. He’s not stupid, he knows something is going on, but I’m not about to stick around long enough for him to press the matter. I need to get hold of Sterling.

“Alright, take a walk. Perhaps when you return you can pop into the dining hall and let us know that you’re okay?” Robert asks, giving me a gentle smile.

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