Lou’s cart rocked prominently as it crossed the lush, grassy hills that led up to the Kelly house that was set farther from the road than their barn.

  He tried to keep a pleasant expression on his face, and maintain a relaxed position in the driver’s seat. However, his nerves were starting to get the best of him.

  What if I get there and Oliver gets irritable about how I’m showing up when he needs to work? Well it doesn’t matter. I’m just there to say thanks to Mrs. Kelly!

  Gods, what if Oliver thinks I’m lonely and have become desperate for his company?

  I mean… that isn’t what this is about…

  No! No it isn’t! I am… I am merely checking on him because he was so persistent with showing up at my house for ages, and then suddenly stopped.

  Giving his head a small shake, Lou proceeded onward, while also trying to bolster his mind and emotions in an attempt to exude friendliness toward the family that had been antagonistic to him on several occasions.

  Upon pulling up to the front of the house that he had not seen during his last impromptu visit, Lou took stock of the sight before him.

  It was a two story house, with pale blue shutters matching the front door, and a stately stone chimney. The front yard of the house was nothing but backed dirt and a rope tied between two posts where shirts and trousers of various sizes fluttered in the breeze.

  There was an abandoned game of horseshoes, and even a small leather ball that lay inconspicuously nearby.

  The second Lou passed through the opening in the wooden fence toward the door, he could hear shouting and clamoring from within the home.

  There weren’t any noises of distress as far as he could tell, but rather it sounded like it was containing young children, and the appropriate chaos that went along with such a thing.

  The fingers on his right hand curled into a momentary fist before he continued up to the door.

  Rapping his knuckles against the painted wood, Lou then heard something clattering, a young child screaming, and then the sound of chastizement from Maureen Kelly.

  Though it was muffled, he could still make out the words:

  “... I told you not to touch… When you’re older…”

  Lou waited a good long while before knocking again once the crying of the child died down.

  When he did, he barely even finished before the door was thrown open with great force.

  Maureen Kelly revealed herself, her youngest daughter on her hip, her strawberry blond hair tied back, and her cheeks pink.

  “What- Oh. Brother Lou!” she breathed heavily, as fresh shouts erupted behind her. “How can I help you?”

  Lou could tell from the way her eyes shifted that she was fighting the urge to turn around and see what mischief her children were getting up to.

  “Er… I came by to say a proper thank you for the food you sent me. It was a wonderful-”

  Yet another banging sound had Maureen whirling around. “BRODY YOU SIT DOWN AND KEEP YOUR HANDS TO YOURSELF OR YOU WON’T GET ANY DESSERTS FOR A MONTH!”

  The roar had the room fall silent, and even Lou felt the urge to back away cautiously.

  “B-But it was Franny!” came the tearful reply.

  Maureen took in a deep breath before she returned her attention to Lou. “Sorry for the commotion, Brother Lou, Brody was getting into trouble today, so his father sent him inside to be with me.”

  The monk bobbed his head and gave what he hoped was a reassuring smile, even though he was still more than a little rattled by the impressive bellow from the matron of the Kelly family…

  “It’s quite alright, I’m sorry for just dropping by. I actually wanted to bring you a token of thanks for all the food you’ve gifted me, but it’s in my cart. Would you mind if I asked your son to help?”

  “Oh– Goodness, you didn’t need to do that, Brother Lou! It was the least we could do after Oliver struck you!”

  Despite Maureen’s objections,Brody stood up from where he sat beside his sister Franny, and trudged outside. His head hung, and his shoulders slumped forward dejectedly.

  “Ah, thank you, young man!” Lou called out happily.

  The little boy didn’t say anything in response.

  Following after him, Lou gave a quick bob of his head over his shoulder toward Maureen, signaling he’d be back.

  Catching up to the youngster thanks to a short jog, Lou cast him a sidelong glance as he reached his pony.

  “I can’t thank you enough for helping me get this down,” Brother Lou called out sunnily as he reached across the bench and plucked up a white box that he handed to Brody that required the boy use both of his hands, then a basket covered with a tea towel.

  “Your welcome,” Brody mumbled while still keeping his face turned down.

  “I hope you and your siblings enjoy blueberry tarts! I made sure to buy them when they were fresh this morning from the bakery.”

  Brody didn’t say anything, only stopped walking, and kept his face turned down.

  Lou was just starting to open his mouth to ask if something was wrong, when the boy burst out in tears.

  Caught off guard, Lou glanced back at the open doorway to hopefully see Maureen standing there witnessing the occurrence, but something must have required her attention indoors as he instead found it vacant.

  Crouching down beside Brody, Lou internally winced. He had no idea how to talk to children…

  “Mind if I ask if something is wrong?” he asked patiently.

  “F-Franny never gets in trouble! But she always starts things!” Brody managed through sobs. “O-Only Oliver ever defends me, a-and he’s not going to be h-home for another week or more! Oliver loves blueberry tarts!”

  Lou couldn’t think of anything to say.

  So Oliver had left town… without saying anything about where or why he was going…

  A sniffle from Brody napped his attention back to the more important matter of the crying boy in front of him.

  “I’m sorry to hear that. It sounds like a really frustrating and lonely time.”

  “There are seven of us, not including my mum and father… I’m never lonely.” The bitterness in Brody’s voice was undisguised.

  Lou gently patted the child’s arm. “Just because there are people around you, doesn’t mean you can’t feel lonely. Sometimes not having someone who understands you as a person, or your thoughts and feelings can make you lonely even if you are surrounded by lots of people.”

  The little boy frowned in confusion, but appeared to be trying to understand as he worked through the monk’s words in his mind.

  “Mind if I tell you a secret?” Lou lowered his voice and smiled kindly.

  While Brody still hadn’t looked at the monk yet, he did become incredibly still.

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  “I’m often quite lonely, but just like you, I didn’t feel that way when your brother, Oliver, was around.”

  Brody’s gaze snapped up to the monk.

  “You have to keep it a secret though,” Lou pressed while noticing that Brody had the exact same eyes as his older brother…

  “Why is it a secret?” Brody asked, his freckled face red and blotchy from his tears.

  “Ah… That’s because… Well, you see…” Lou trailed off, his mind turning perfectly blank.

  “Brody, everything alright?” Maureen Kelly reappeared in the doorway; this time without the baby in her arms, leaving her free to rest her hands on her hips.

  Looking to his mother, the boy nodded once, then scampered over to her while still holding the box of treats the monk had brought.

  Maureen eyed her son warily as he proceeded into the house, leaving Lou to slowly follow in his wake.

  “Again, Brother Lou, this wasn’t necessary-”

  “BLUEBERRY TARTS?!”

  An excited shriek from behind the woman interrupted her yet again, prompting her to drop chin with a weary sigh.

  “Would you like to come in for a cup of tea, Brother Lou?”

  The monk bobbed his head with a smile, and he was about to follow Maureen into her house, when it dawned on him…

  Lou had not farted once since arriving at the Kelly farm.

  “W-What the-”

  “Franny, you aren’t having any until after dinner. Now, take your sister to go for her nap.”

  “Awe!” The redheaded girl was already pouting.

  The monk blinked himself back to the present.

  Whatever the reason for the abrupt end to the most juvenile trial he had ever heard of, Lou was grateful for it.

  As he finished entering the house and shutting the door behind himself, Lou was able to take in the surroundings of a large, comfortable room that was both the kitchen and the sitting area, with the great stone fireplace on the wall to his right, and not far back from that, the stairs to the second story.

  “Do you take milk or honey in your tea, Brother Lou?” Maureen called out, revealing the secondary fireplace where she was in the process of hanging her kettle over.

  Stepping farther into the house, Lou observed bunches of herbs crowded her cooking table, with thick chicken breasts already stuffed with what looked to be cheese and spices. However a corner had been taken up by the white box Brody had set down.

  “Ah, neither, thank you.”

  With a small breath, Lou could smell that the predominant herbs on the table were parsley and chives. He smiled at their fresh scents.

  Making his way over to the table that sat between the sitting area and dining area, he set the basket in his hand on the table before making his way back over to the cooking table where Brody stood watching him.

  “I heard Oliver is out of town from Brody here,” Lou began conversationally. He hoped he didn’t seem too interested…

  “Ah yes. He is off looking for a wife!”

  Lou’s stomach twisted unpleasantly, and he suddenly found it incredibly hard to speak.

  “Hard to believe that my eldest is already at that age where he should be doing such a thing, but then again I was even younger than he was when I married Patrick.”

  Clearing his throat, Lou reached up and scratched his head as he pretended to keep looking around the room.

  “Yes, I’ve heard time flies with children.”

  “Oh! Now that you’re here in Oxby you could marry whoever Ollie chooses!” Maureen straightened from the hearth, her idea bringing a sunny smile to her face.

  Lou however was starting to feel a little nauseous…

  “That I could. Tell me how… How is your husband doing with him absent?”

  “Ah, three of my older sons are helping him just fine. In fact it was mostly because of you that Patrick realized now was a great time for Ollie to go. You see when he was spending so much time with you, he realized he could manage without him just with the four boys we still have at home,” Maureen explained appreciatively while touching Brody’s shoulder.

  Lou swallowed and gave a closed lip smile back.

  When he couldn’t bring himself to say anything, he instead turned to Brody who was watching him with his head tilted.

  “Do you want to play outside?” the lad inquired abruptly.

  “Brody! Come now, Brother Lou doesn’t-”

  “I’d love to!” Lou replied with great enthusiasm.

  Whatever excuse he could take to avoid talking about Oliver getting married, he’d take it.

  Brody grinned excitedly up at him, revealing gaps in his smile where his adult teeth hadn’t fully come in yet.

  “Oh, you really don’t have to do that,” Maureen called out quietly.

  Lou gave a quick wave. “It’s quite alright. He was a great help bringing the tarts in, so how about we play one game, and then I come back in to have that cup of tea?”

  Brody, with all the energetic impatience his eight years granted him, was already seizing Lou’s hand and yanking the monk out the door with impressive strength.

  With the monk stumbling after him, Maureen was left staring after the pair with a mixture of bewilderment, and good humor.

  Once in the dirt yard, Brody released Lou’s hand and turned around to face him while starting to hop up and down.

  “What would you like to play?” the monk queried while gradually forcing his mind to turn blank.

  “TUSSLE!” Brody shouted, then surprised Lou by lunging at him.

  Caught off guard when the child seized his forearm, Lou stumbled back, and instinctively waved the arm Brody had in his grasp.

  The movement sent Brody flying backward, and Lou watched with wide-eyed horror as the boy landed across the yard on his bottom.

  The monk stared with open dread at the child while remaining completely still.

  What had he just done? He probably had hurt the boy, and how in the world was he going to explain how he managed to-

  “THAT WAS AMAZING! BROTHER LOU PLEASE DO IT AGAIN!”

  Brody roared while clambering up to his feet and charging the monk again.

  Lou backed away, terrified once again that he was going to harm the child, and so he did the only logical thing he could think of…

  He threw his arms in the air, and allowed himself to be assaulted once again by a member of the Kelly family.