“You do that, I’ll ruin him. I’ll make his life so miserable he’ll wish he’d never met you.”
Tim’s eyes flashed with anger, and his hands closed into fists at his sides. He looked away from his father’s face, and that’s when he noticed Charlotte. His brow furrowed.
She reluctantly walked in their direction. “I’m sorry to interrupt,” Charlotte said meekly, feeling ashamed that she’d eavesdropped and also alarmed by the conversation she’d overheard.
Simon turned around slowly to face her. “Well, if it isn’t the charming schoolmarm. How do you do, Miss Rose?” He smiled, but it looked more like a grimace.
“I’m well. I’ll be on my way to see Max.” She continued walking and passed them.
“Max, is it?” Simon sneered. “Are you that familiar with the blacksmith?”
“Yes,” Charlotte said simply, stopping with a half turn to look at him. “Max is courting me.”
Simon snorted. “Well, isn’t he a lucky man? How did he manage to garner your affections? Was it his soot-stained breeches you found attractive? Or perhaps his sweaty pits?”
Charlotte turned around fully to face him. “Perhaps both,” she said, with a haughty lift of her chin. “I respect a man who makes an honest living.”
Simon laughed without humor, then turned his attention back to his son. “Perhaps you should escort the lady to your master’s house. I’ve said all I need to say. It’s your turn to do what needs to be done, and you’d best remember this: I’m quickly running out of patience.”
Simon tipped his hat to Charlotte and walked in the direction of town. Tim stared after him for a bit, then sauntered to Charlotte’s side. They walked together in silence for some time before Tim said quietly, “How much of my conversation with Simon did you hear, Miss Rose?”
“I’m sorry, Tim. It was terribly rude of me to listen for as long as I did, and I’m afraid I heard enough to alarm me. I heard your father say he would ruin Max. What was that about?”
Tim sighed. “I’m in a bind. I’ve been trying for weeks to be shed of it. Normally I would seek Max’s advice, but I don’t want to with this. I feel lost at sea.”
“Perhaps I can help?” Charlotte offered.
Tim didn’t say anything, so Charlotte changed the subject. She handed the boy her copy of Huckleberry Finn. “Do let me know what you think. I love talking about literature with folks. I hope to find more people in town with a love of reading.”
Tim took the book from her. “Thank you.” A moment later he added tentatively, “It’s my love of reading that got me into this quandary.”
Charlotte eyed him with surprise. “How? I’ve never heard of reading causing problems, only the lack of it.”
Tim drew a deep breath. “There’s a book club in town. I’ve been attending for over a year.”
“That sounds like good fun,” Charlotte said.
“It was, until I got it into my head to take an exam offered by a recruiter who attended. It was to test my readiness for college, which I’d never intended on going to. I took the test for the heck of it, but I ended up scoring very high. Higher than everyone else, and I was offered a scholarship. The first to find out was me, the second was Simon.”
“That’s impressive, Tim! What did Max say? He must be very proud.”
“That’s the thing, Miss Rose. He doesn’t know, and I don’t want him to. I want to stay with Max and be a blacksmith, not go off to some fancy college. Not that it would happen even if I wanted it to. The scholarship money would be placed in the hands of Simon, since I’m not yet eighteen. Simon knows this and has told me he intends to keep it for himself. I wouldn’t see a penny.”
Charlotte felt surprised that Simon had threatened something so dubious, but also skeptical about its likelihood for success. “The college would know the money had been stolen when you didn’t attend. There’s no way your father could get away with that.”
“He’s already figured out a way. If he bullies me into leaving town, he’ll be able to say he gave the money to me and I skipped out with it. No one would be suspicious of him.”
Charlotte took in a sharp breath and felt angry on the boy’s behalf. His own father wanted to frame him for theft. “So, from what I understand, you’re refusing to accept the scholarship and leave town, and Simon is angry because that means he won’t be paid. But why and how would he hurt Max?”
“Simon knows that the best way to make me do what he says is to threaten harm on the one person I care about. He’d find a way to take away everything Max holds dear.” Tim gave Charlotte a sidelong glance. “That might include you, since Max is sweet on you. You should stay away from Simon. He wouldn’t think twice about hurting you if it suited his purposes.”
Charlotte rubbed her forehead. “Yes, I’ve already been warned. I don’t know what to say, Tim. There must be a way out of it, surely.”