At the sight of his mother crying, Henry immediately stood up from his chair and was at her side. He crouched down and wrapped his arms around her thin frame.
She hugged his head protectively and more tears fell down her face. Her expression was full of anguish.
"Why couldn't you have just taken over the stable?" she asked. "Why do you have to go and put yourself in danger like that?"
Henry did feel guilty. It was a pang of guilt he constantly carried with him that his mother was left with only her sister and little word from her son who she never lived without for nearly twenty years.
"I want you to have a better life than you could ever imagine," Henry said. "Imagine being warm every winter and not having to lift a finger to get what you need. You could write all night long if you wanted to."
Celia squeezed her eyes shut at his words.
"I would rather go back to eating once a day if it could mean I know my son is safe," she objected.
