Have Faith

Chapter 17

"You can keep as quiet as you like, but one of these days somebody is going to find you." Haruki Murakami, 1Q84

----  

Chapter Seventeen

"The b ... big d ... do ... dog is ... b ... br ... brow ... brown."

Faith listened as Kit sounded out the sentences in his reading book. As soon as Faith had learned that Cassian was to give Kit reading lessons, Faith had immediately sourced some teaching material for children learning to read. She had tried to find the least childish renditions for Kit, so as not to make him feel behind.

Cassian had been planning on teaching him to read from Utopia.

"Excellent," commended Cassian. "See, now that you have memorised what sounds the letters make, it is easier to put them together to make words."

"If you say so," murmured Kit as he leant on Cassian's desk and turned over the page.

Faith had experience with impatient children. Granted, her daughter was just shy of three, but she still knew that when children wanted things, they wanted them immediately.

When Faith had learned that Cassian was to give Kit reading lessons, she was elated. He was determined to give Kit an opportunity to better himself. It seemed so perfect. Faith had found Cassian. Cassian had found Kit. If this was to be the pattern, she wondered who Kit would find.

There was a selfish part of Faith that was glad that Cassian had a distraction. It had not escaped her attention how unsettled it had been between herself and Cassian since she had revealed herself to him. Faith knew that Cassian would ensure that no harm would come to her or Lucy, but that still did not make things any easier.

Cassian had proposed marriage after all, but their relationship could never go beyond where it was now. And exactly where that was, Faith was not sure.

So she was happy that Cassian had somewhere else to direct his attention.

Faith had kept Lucy away for the first few reading lessons because she had not wanted to intrude. After each lesson, Cassian always insisted that Kit stay for dinner. It was during this time that Lucy had attached herself to yet another.

Lucy had been curious about Kit at first. And as soon as Kit had given her the time of day, Lucy was besotted. She seemed to adore Kit's curly blond hair, and loved it when Kit lifted her up onto his shoulders. It was one of the sweetest sights Faith had ever seen.

Faith had not given much thought to Kit when she had first seen him at the church, and she chastised herself for it now. He had seemed like a sour boy. But Cassian had persisted, and he had extracted a decent and deserving young man.

This had been the first lesson in which Cassian had invited her and Lucy inside. Lucy played like she usually did, though Faith knew she was itching to climb atop Kit's shoulders. Faith cleaned as she usually did, repeated where she had already been so she did not have to leave.

The sight before her was special. Cassian had such patience and compassion. There was not a single man in her acquaintance who could boast such qualities.

Faith had grown up in a society where men were rich, proud, belittling, self-righteous, rude and haughty. These gentlemen would never have looked an inferior in the eye, let alone take one into their homes for literacy lessons.

"Th ... th," hesitated Kit.

"You had the word before. The, remember?"

"Oh, yes," Kit mumbled. "That sound is hard. I keep thinking it is the 't' sound."