"Oh dear," Mira breathed.
"Oh my," Miss Cullpepper said simultaneously.
"Oh my, indeed. It is Atherton’s residence. It seems, Amelia, that your wishes are about to come true."
Later, after Lady Randolph had left and Lady Cullpepper was getting ready for bed, she called for Mira. "Mira, you will go with Rose to Highcourt Abbey. You must never leave her side. Not until she has found a husband and is married."
"But, my lady, that's not possible," Mira said, immediately thinking of little Clare.
"What do you mean, not possible? It is not only possible, it is absolutely necessary." Lady Cullpepper slammed the hairbrush on the dressing table.
"But I'm in service. I am a mere maid, not a lady. How dare I mingle with polite society?"
Lady Cullpepper stepped up to Mira with flashing eyes. "For some reason I do not understand myself, the princess has taken a liking to you and insists that you come. You will go with Rose. You will be her companion."
Mira shook her head violently.
"What would it take for you to do as I say?" Lady Cullpepper cried. "A year's wage?"
She stilled. An entire year's wage in return for accompanying Miss Cullpepper to the country house party? She'd earned pitifully little with the Cullpeppers, but a year's wage would allow her to leave service. They could all go back to Fowey, she and Clare and Miss Pearson. They could rent a small cottage, and they could rebuild the little village school where Miss Pearson had taught so long ago. It was such a wonderful idea that for a moment Mira was breathless at the sheer magnitude of the idea.
Lady Cullpepper paced the room and wrung her hands.
"Two."
Lady Cullpepper paused.
Mira took a deep breath. "Two years' wage and a release from service with a positive character." Mira's nails bit into her palms as she curled them into fists.
"Impudent girl!" Lady Cullpepper cried. "You're taking advantage of Rose's precarious situation."
"With respect, my lady, I am not. I simply have no desire whatsoever to go there, deceiving the Quality into thinking I am someone I am not. It's not my place, and it's not in my interest."
"Disobliging girl!" Lady Cullpepper fumed. "I don't know why I put up with you."
Mira mentally prepared to pack her bags.
Lady Cullpepper paced the room. "You are resorting to bribery and blackmail, for you know very well that if you do not go, neither can Rose. But very well. I shall give you what you want on the condition that Rose is engaged to the marquess by the end of the party."
"Your Ladyship, we both know that is highly unlikely." Mira stepped towards the door.
"Oh, very well!" Lady Cullpepper cried, after she'd paced and raged some more. "It doesn't have to be the marquess. It can be with any lord, provided he has a title and a fortune. I want her engaged by the end of the party."
Mira paused.
Two years' wages and a release from service with a positive reference.
She turned to Lady Cullpepper. "Very well. I'll do it."
ChapterFive
Their elegant carriagegracefully glided through a picturesque landscape of gently rolling hills powdered by snow. After it drove around a curve, a quaint little village with thatched cottages appeared. The roofs were adorned with a dusting of white, and the chimneys emitted welcoming tendrils of smoke. In the heart of the village stood a church, its age-old tower soaring above the surrounding trees. The sheer quaintness of the scene brought forth an involuntary smile to Mira's lips. As their carriage continued its journey, a group of village children spotted their luxurious coaches and, with unbridled enthusiasm, began to run alongside them. Touched by their innocence and the heartwarming sight, Mira couldn't help but return their cheerful waves with a bright smile.
Miss Cullpepper and Lady Randolph, both sound asleep, missed this first sight of Althorne Village.
How Mira had missed the sounds, smells, and sights of the countryside. After all, it seemed it had been a good decision to come, she concluded.
She lowered the window and breathed in the clean, crisp, cold air.
