“Yes, I remember. But how did you know to come to the Dower House for me?”
He shrugged. “Those currently in residence at Kilham Abbey, although devoid of manners, could not deny me the information I sought.”
“I would imagine not, Giles.” She allowed herself a smile. “I’m sure you can be most persuasive.”
He waved that aside. “When the needs arise, yes. The main thing is that I found you in time. And now, here we are, you are recovering well, out of bed and asking questions.” He looked at her. “I shall do my best to answer them.”
“I scarce know where to begin,” she replied, “since my mind keeps coming up with more.”
“Then start with the simplest. Sometimes those answers will cover many of the more complicated enquiries.”
“Why are there no maids?”
“An excellent beginning.” He kept his eyes on her, watching for her reactions, learning about this new Lady he’d be serving for an undetermined length of time. “The charter for Wolfbridge specifies that no other woman may reside at Wolfbridge, other than the Lady herself.”
“Really?” Gwyneth’s eyebrows rose. “How unusual.”
“In fact, there are maids. We have several who come in every day, two of whom are daughters of Mrs Barnsley. All are local girls. They work during the day, late morning through midafternoon, mostly, and there is little interaction with them at those times. They are quite happy with that and of course they receive a wage for their services.”
“So my room…”
“Was, and will continue to be, cleaned when you are not there. Along with laundry and other household chores.”
“So I have no personal maid?”
“Lady Adalyn worked around that very question,” answered Giles. “She came to an arrangement with Jane Barnsley, as she was then. Jane arrived from her home nearby every morning. She tended to Lady Adalyn’s needs, took care of her clothing and so on, and then departed. Everything else Lady Adalyn required, we were able to provide.”
“I see. I must give thought to my needs in that area, I suppose.” Her face gave away little of her thoughts, but she was obviously turning this over in her mind. She looked back at Giles. “Why are there no women? How did that come about?”
“It goes back to the original Lady Wolfbridge. Upon her husband’s passing, she was besieged by suitors, all interested more in the property than her Ladyship. She grew more and more frustrated and then found herself enamoured of one of the gentlemen on her staff. She would have married him, I think, but as luck would have it his eyes turned elsewhere.”
“Oh dear,” Gwyneth winced. “That must have been a disappointment.”
“I’m sure it was. Especially when she discovered he’d also fathered a child with one of her maids.”
“A charming man indeed.” Gwyneth’s tone was dry. “I assume she kicked him out?”
“She did. Along with every other woman. From that point on, she was the only female in residence, and she made sure the tradition would continue. It must have been a challenge and I’m sure many legal minds must have pounded on her door, but she held fast.” He smiled slightly. “I am of the opinion she had influence with some highly placed nobles in the Parliament of that time, because she accomplished the impossible. Wolfbridge was secured against any kind of entail other than that dictated by her Ladyship. And it has been thus ever since.”
“That is impressive,” she nodded. “A truly forceful personality I would think.”
“I probably would have enjoyed meeting her.” He chuckled. “Working for her might have been another matter entirely.”
She shared his laughter, shaking her head. Then moved forward with her questions. “The gentlemen who live here. Can you tell me about them? What are their duties?”
Giles took his time in replying. “Their duties, my Lady, are whatever you tell them to do.”
“I have complete control?”
“You do, yes.” Giles steepled his fingers and looked at her over the top of them. “Obviously it would be better not trying to take over the kitchen, or the finances. Jeremy has his finger on the pulse of this house and runs it very efficiently, Evan is the master of everything edible, and Royce will be overseeing the crops along with all else to do with the financial end of running the Manor. Those are accepted duties, and I would not advise altering them.”
“From what I have seen so far, I would agree. But I think there is more, is there not?”
“Only if you want there to be,” he said gently. “The fundamental principle of Wolfbridge is that we try to bring ourselves to the very best that we can be. We’re not perfect, but we try to be better, to…as our motto says…bring the light unto ourselves.”
“Yes, an excellent mandate,” she agreed.
“This may involve a variety of things, my Lady. Including developing close and affectionate ties with your gentlemen. After all, being loved is one of the best ways to bring light into a life.”
