Richard arrived at Darcy House at the time William had requested he be present; in fact, he was a little early. The purpose of his call was to assist in interviewing two candidates for the post of companion for Giana, who had turned fourteen earlier that month.
In many things, William thought he knew best, but his fastidious nature would not allow him to do anything but follow the dictates to the letter which were in his father’s will, that he and Richard were equal co-guardians of Giana.
William had narrowed down the possible companions to two, Mrs Karen Younge and Mrs Gertrude Annesley. On paper, both seemed more than qualified for the role, but only once they had spoken to both and seen how each interacted with Giana, and most importantly, verified their characters, would a decision be made. Initially, William had wanted to choose Mrs Younge based purely on her characters. She listed some leading lights of society, so he had reasoned that if she had been good enough for them, she was more than qualified to superintend Giana. He had been willing to employ her without checking her characters.
To this, Richard had objected most strenuously. Hence, acknowledging their equal roles, William had receded.
Mrs Annesley was to be first. She had very good experience as a companion, and Richard had a good feeling about her. Once they had spoken to her, they would observeher with their ward for about an hour. Mrs Younge was to arrive two hours after the first lady.
The lady arrived a little ahead of the time she had been invited to come. She was very impressive, both in her replies to the questions the cousins shot at her and her unflappable bearing. A footman was summoned and told to lead the lady to the music room. The cousins needed some time to speak. Richard waited and allowed William to order his thoughts before they had a discussion.
“I am willing to own that my thoughts regarding employing Mrs Younge were arbitrary. However, I find Mrs Annesley very compelling,” Darcy admitted.
“All I asked is that you be open to both ladies and not to prejudge them. I particularly liked that she encouraged us to speak to those who have employed her in the past. It tells me she has nothing to hide from us. That is something very critical to our selection process when we choose the lady who will have much influence over Giana.” Richard looked out of the window onto the green. “It is a pity our Aunt Catherine was not feeling up to being in London. I am sure she would have had some opinions about the ladies we are considering.”
“When does Aunt Catherine not have opinions?” William ribbed.
“Then we agree that Mrs Annesley seems to be a good fit?” Richard verified. “I know; we need to see her with Giana, and afterwards, wewillspeak to those she has used as characters.”
“We do,” Darcy confirmed. “However, I ask that you be as open to Mrs Younge as I was to Mrs Annesley. Thereafter, we will have all the information to make a decision.”
So agreed, the cousins made their way to the music room. Giana was sitting on the bench before the pianoforte, and Mrs Annesley, who was unaware she was being observed, was helping their ward with her fingering on a more complexpiece of music. Rather than be shy with her, Giana seemed to be very open with the lady.
At the end of her allotted time, the cousins escorted Mrs Annesley to the front door and thanked her for her time. Darcy told the lady they would make a decision within a sennight.
The next lady, Mrs Younge, was shown into the study less than a minute after the time she had been asked to arrive.
“Mrs Younge, thank you so much for coming to see us,” William began after he asked the woman to be seated. He handed her list of characters to Richard. “Have you worked with young ladies of fourteen before?”
Before the lady could reply, Richard stood. “William, may I see you outside of the study for a moment? I just remembered something I need to take care of.”
Darcy was aware his cousin had nothing planned for that afternoon, as he had made sure he was available to be at the house looking into the companions. However, knowing Richard, he would not have requested they talk unless it was something serious. He nodded, stood, and followed Richard out of the study. He pulled the door closed.
“William, according to her list of prior positions, she has experience as a companion for over twenty years, and as a governess for ten years or so before that,” Richard pointed out, speaking softly even though the door was closed.
“Yes, her experience was one of the things which caught my eye. That, and where she worked before, was compelling.” William looked rather confused.
“If this is accurate, then the woman has worked for around thirty years. How can that be? She does not look like she is a day older than thirty! Did she go into service the day she was born?”
Before he tried to refute Richard’s words, Darcy thought back to seeing the woman, putting aside what he had desired to see after reading her characters. “My goodness, Richard, youhave the right of it. If you had followed your desires to join the army, you would have done well in military intelligence.”
Richard inclined his head in thanks for his cousin’s compliment. “Allow me to speak when we go back in.”
Darcy nodded his agreement.
In the study, Mrs Younge, who was getting nervous, approached the door and put her ear to it. All she could hear was the low murmur of voices. As soon as the door handle began to rotate, she rushed back to her seat and had just regained it when the two men returned to the study. She was certain she had not been observed.
Expecting something nefarious and being very vigilant, Richard had seen the woman throw herself back into her seat. He was positive she had attempted to listen at the door.
“Your list of prior employers is very impressive,” Richard drawled.
“Why, thank you, Sir. I have been most fortunate in those who have seen fit to employ me.” Mrs Younge preened. It was just like George had said; they would accept her unconditionally rather than question the persons who had been listed as those willing to vouch for her.
“Did my cousin inform you it is our intention to contact everyone you have listed as a prior employer?” Richard asked. He did not miss the way the woman blanched and began to sweat. “Also, I am at a loss. How could you have worked for as many years as you have been alive?”
The lady jumped out of her seat. “I-I j-just r-remembered I-I n-n-need t-t-to b-be elsewhere,” Mrs Younge stammered. How could George have made such an error and not taken her age into account?
“Youwillsit, or I will have you restrained until the magistrate arrives, and we have you arrested for attempted fraud,” Richard barked.
