Page 85 of Foes, Friends and Lovers
Her gaze locked on the pair by the anvil, she nodded.
Madge set down her tongs. “You’re a stone sculptor? Then you’ll want to take a look at the local stone—Blisworth stone, it’s called. It’s a gray-tinged limestone, well-formed—I’ve heard it takes edges well. It’s used a lot around here for building.”
“Is it?” Hamish looked interested. “Are there many statues made of it?”
“A few.” Madge rattled off descriptions of several pieces to be found in local country-house gardens. “And, of course, you should take a look at the various carvings in the ruins.”
“Ruins?”
Caitlin and Gregory both grinned at the expression that dawned on Hamish’s face as Madge described the ruins as only another artist could.
Caitlin ducked her head and whispered, “I’d forgotten about the abbey church. There’s all sorts of carving in there.”
Gregory nodded, amused at how visibly Hamish’s inner artist was shining through as he asked questions and Madge replied.
Eventually, now radiating enthusiasm, Hamish asked, “Is it easy to get blocks of this stone to work on?”
“Well, the main quarry’s at Blisworth, just southeast of Northampton, so only a few miles away. And they often have blocks they’ll let you have for a shilling or two—the pieces they carve off to make the larger blocks they need for buildings. The offcuts are often of a decent size and, being limestone, easy enough to cart around.” Madge beamed at Hamish. “Mind you, if you do go to the quarry for stone, make sure you take Pa”—she tipped her head at Henry—“or me along. We know the overseer, and he’ll do right by you if one of us is with you.”
Hamish seemed lost in Madge’s smiling eyes. Then he drew in a deep breath, his chest rising dramatically, and nodded decisively. “Thank you.” He glanced at Caitlin and Gregory. “I might take you up on that.”
“Any time.” Madge turned back to her anvil and her stubborn piece. “Now, to get this right.”
“I’ll leave you to it,” Hamish said, “and thank you again.”
“My pleasure.” Madge spared Hamish one last big smile before refocusing her attention on her work.
Growing thoughtful, Hamish joined Gregory and Caitlin, and after calling a general farewell to Henry, Blackie, and Madge, Gregory, Caitlin, and Hamish strolled out into the weak, nearly midday sunshine.
They were halfway to the house when Hamish planted his boots and halted.
Caitlin and Gregory stopped and looked at him.
He met their gazes and almost defiantly declared, “I want to stay.”
Caitlin beamed, and Gregory smiled. “As I said earlier, as with Rory, you’re welcome to stay for however long you wish.” He glanced at Caitlin and added, “And if, in time, you decide to start your own business, as Rory is, we’ll be able to accommodate that, too.” He met Hamish’s eyes and confidently stated, “Bellamy Hall is large enough to absorb quite a few more businesses, and at present, we don’t have that many on the artistic side of things. You’d be a welcome addition if you stayed.”
Hamish clearly wished to seize the offer, but hesitated. He studied Gregory, then looked at Caitlin. “From what I gathered, Rory more or less pays his way by working his magic with the cattle. I’d need to do something similar—I can’t be a burden on others while I work on my pieces. That wouldn’t be fair.”
From her eager expression, Gregory assumed Caitlin had already thought of that and seen the obvious solution.
Sure enough… “The Hammersleys,” she said, “run sheep at Home Farm. Not specifically for breeding. More for wool with meat production on the side. Perhaps you might be able to help them?”
Gregory caught Caitlin’s eyes. “Why don’t you and I take Hamish to Home Farm this afternoon and introduce him to Malcolm?” He looked at Hamish. “I’ve only been here for about a month, but from what I’ve gathered, Malcolm could use a pair of knowing hands with the flock, especially as his son, Gordon, is wanting to go off to study engineering.”
“That,” Caitlin said, decision in her tone, “would take care of virtually three birds with one stone.” She looked at Hamish. “If you’re willing to consider working with Malcolm?”
Hamish thought, then nodded decisively. “Aye. I enjoy working with sheep, and if that gives me a way to sculpt with good stone, I’m more than happy to help the man out.”
“Excellent!” Gregory said and meant it.
The bell summoning them for luncheon tolled from one of the turrets, the sound rolling out over the surrounding buildings and gardens.
“Let’s go in for luncheon.” Smiling, Caitlin waved Hamish and Gregory on and fell in to walk between them. “Then this afternoon, we’ll head to Home Farm and introduce Hamish to some Sassenach sheep.”
Four short days later, it was obvious to all that Hamish had rediscovered and, this time, fully embraced his calling. It transpired that, as well as being a gifted stone sculptor, the big man was also an experienced stonemason.
As he’d explained after offering to fix a cracked section of the kitchen garden wall, “It was the only thing about working with stone of which Da approved.”
