The Prodigal Daughter Read Online Free PDF Page A

Tredgold,
who was still standing, she would never have dreamed of sitting in her
employer’s presence unless she was with Florentyna hesitated.
    “The child
should rise thirty minutes earlier each day for the next month and be taught
Polish history. She must learn why Poland is a great nation and why the Poles
were willing to challenge the might of Germany when alone they could never have
hoped for victory. Then she will be able to face those who goad her about her
ancestry with knowledge, not ignorance. “
    Abel looked her
squarely in the eyes. “I see now what George Bernard Shaw meant when he said
that you have to meet the English governess to discover why Britain is great.”
    They both
laughed.
    “I’m surprised
you don’t want to make more of your life, Miss Tredgold,” said Abel, suddenly
aware that what he had said might have sounded offensive. If it did, Miss
Tredgold gave no sign of being offended.
    “My father had
six daughters. He had hoped for a boy, but it was not to be.”
    “And
what of the other five?”
    “They are all
married,” she replied without bitterness.
    “And you?”
    “He once said to
me that I was born to be a teacher and that the Lord’s plan took us all in its
compass so perhaps I might teach someone who does have a destiny.”
    “Let us hope so,
Miss Tredgold.” Abel would have called her by her first name, but he did not
know what it was. All he knew was that she signed herself “W. Tredgold” in a
way that did not invite inquiries. He smiled up at her.
    “Will you join
me in a drink, Miss Tredgold?”
    “Thank you, Mr.
Rosnovski. A little sherry would be most pleasant. “
    Abel poured her
a dry sherry and himself a large whiskey.
    “How bad is FDR ’
    “Maimed for life,
I fear, which will only make the child love him the more. In the future I have
decided FDR must reside at home and will only travel when accompanied by me.”
    “You’re
beginning to sound like Eleanor talking about the President.”
    Miss TreAlgold
laughed once more and sipped her sherry. “May I offer one more suggestion
concerning Flarentyna?”
    “Certainly,”
said Abel, who proceeded to listen intently to Miss Tredgold’s recommendation.
By the time they had finished their second drink, Abel had nodded his approval,
“Good,” said Miss Tredgold. “Then, with your permission, I will deal, with that
at the first possible opportunity.”
    “Certainly,”
repeated Abel. “Of course, when it comes to these morning
sessions. it may not be practical for me to do
a whole month without a break.” Miss Tredgold was about to speak when Abel
added, “There may be appointments that I cannot reschedule at such short
notice. As I am sure you will understand.”
    “You must, Mr.
Rosnovski, do what you think best, and if you find there is something more
important than your daughter’s future, I am sure it is she who will
understand.”
    Abel knew when
he was beaten. He canceled all appointments outside Chicago for a full month
and rose each morning thirty minutes early. Even Zaphia approved of Miss Tredgold’s
idea.
    The first (lay
he started by telling Florentyna how he had been born in a forest in Poland and
adopted by a trapper’s family and how later he had been befriended by a great
Baron who took him into his castle in Slonim, on the Polish-Russian border. “He
treated me like his own son,” Abel told her.
    As the days went
by, Abel revealed to his daughter how his sister Florentyna, after whom she had
been named, joined him in the castle and the way he discovered the Baron was
his real father.
    “I know, I know
how you found out,” cried Florentyna.
    “How can you
know, little one?”
    “He only had one
nipple,” said Florentyna. “It must be , it must be.
I’ve seen you in the bath. You only have one nipple, so you had to be his son.
All the boys at school have two...”
    Abel and Miss
Tredgold stared at the child in disbelief as she continued, “ but if I’m your daughter, why