Not, of course, in her employer. The duke had made no appearance in the schoolroom that day, and she was perfectly content to keep it so.
She shut the door firmly behind Jenny, who was already pouring out tea.
“I brought up a little strawberry pie from the kitchen,” Jenny said over her shoulder. “Cook said we might have some. Some of the upper servants have their own small parlours, but not I—I go home to the village often enough that it seems a waste. I see they have not given you the use of one, but you’ve a large, comfortable room.”
“I’ve no complaints,” Maggie said, sitting on the edge of the bed to leave the chair for Jenny. “Have you been here long?”
“Only since Miss Emma came, after the tragedy.” Jenny spoke matter-of-factly, handing her a cup. Then she sat, folding her hands primly around her own.
It struck Maggie then that there was no artifice in Jenny’s visit—no prying, no pretext, no gossiping mission for the housekeeper. She had come purely for company.
And somehow, that was disconcerting.
When was the last time anyone sought my company for its own sake?she thought.Papa only came home in the end to see if I had a few shillings left for him.
A shadow crossed her mind—the sight of her father stumbling home at midnight, unshaven and reeking of drink, his voice wheedling.
“My luck’s turning, girl. I’ve never been a gambler, you know that. Just one good hand and I’ll pay them all. You wouldn’t begrudge your old papa a few shillings more? Just this once.”
And she had given them—all the shillings, then the pennies, until there was nothing left to give.
Maggie closed her eyes briefly. There was no sense regretting it now, but she could not shake the thought that she had helped him to ruin.
Too late, far too late.
“I’m glad you came, Jenny,” she said impulsively. “I hardly dare wander the halls for fear of losing myself again. It can be a lonely business, being a governess—neither servant nor family. Between the two. Belonging to neither. I was reminded of that very clearly at dinner tonight.”
Jenny frowned. “You dined below stairs, did you not? Were they unkind?”
“Oh, no. Nothing of the sort. Only…” She hesitated. “A few of the servants looked at me oddly, as though wondering why I was there. At least, I imagined they did. I began to wish I had stayed in my room. The soup, however, was delicious.”
Jenny laughed softly. “Give them time. The last governesses were frightful snobs. They will assume you are the same—until you prove otherwise.”
Maggie nodded, sipping her tea. “Tell me about them.”
Jenny paused for a moment, gathering her thoughts.
“Well, there was Miss Lawless first. Very strict. His Grace hired her because she was said to be organised and serious—more so than he, if that’s possible. In truth, she was worse. She threw out his schedule and made her own. She made poor Miss Emma cry and would never let her paint. When she began threatening to cane her, I went to Mrs Thornton—who told his Grace—and that was the end of Miss Lawless.”
“Oh, how dreadful! To threaten a little girl?”
Jenny shrugged. “Perhaps only a threat, but I did not wish to find out. In the nursery, I have no authority to contradict a governess, so I did what I could. His Grace said later that if hehad known sooner how cruel she was, he would have dismissed her at once. She left the house in tears, you know.Tears. That woman was made of stone, or so I thought.”
“Gracious.”
“Then came Miss Swaddle. You’ve heard a little of her already. She was determined to marry well—flirted with every man who looked her way. I believe she even cast her cap at the duke himself.”
Maggie smiled faintly. “I cannot imagine.”
“Well, she ignored the schedule too, and his Grace was furious. She left in the middle of the night, weeping. Quite the spectacle. After her came Mrs Ruthborne—older, very proper, determined to have order. She banned me from the schoolroom altogether, which Miss Emma detested. In the end, she could not manage the child, and when the duke saw her teaching, he dismissed her that very day. And then, of course, you arrived.”
Maggie took a long sip to conceal her unease.
So, if I am too strict, I am dismissed. Too lenient, the same. The schedule must be obeyed to the letter—yet a single word from his Grace, and I could be gone by morning.
This was not a comfortable thought. Maggie shifted, clearing her throat.
“Well,” she said at last, “what a pity. Miss Emma must be quite unsettled.”
