“Elspeth,” she said, addressing the young girl, “be about unpacking Her Ladyship’s trunks. And putting yourself to good use, then.”
Mrs. Brody closed the door behind her, leaving them alone. Before she could speak, however, Elspeth stepped forward.
“Mrs. Brody said I should not mention it to you, Your Ladyship. I think it would be wrong of me not to bring it up when it’s on my mind so fiercely.”
Elspeth hesitated, as if waiting for permission.
She nodded.
“I have a half day off on Sunday, and I was wondering if I could make that a half day off on Wednesday, instead. It’s because of my Robbie, you see. He has a half day off on Wednesday and if we had the same half days, we could go home and visit his family in Lollybroch.” She twisted her hands. “We’re married you see, only a few months now, and his mother is ailing.”
“Lollybroch?” she asked. “What’s his family name?”
Elspeth frowned, then smoothed her face of any expression. “Cadell,” she said.
“He’s a blacksmith?”
“His father was,” Elspeth said, her frown remaining in place. “Robbie does the same here. Work at Doncaster Hall keeps him busy, not like Lollybroch. How did you know, Lady Fairfax?”
“I grew up in Lollybroch,” she said.
The frown was replaced by a look of surprise. “The village is not all that large, Your Ladyship. Robbie would have mentioned.”
“We lived outside the village,” she said. “On the other side of McNaren’s Hill.”
Elspeth had such a revealing face. Her eyes were swimming in compassion.
“Are you the MacLeod girl, Your Ladyship?”
When she nodded, Elspeth smiled. “I’ve heard tales of you. Robbie’s family will be pleased to hear.”
“Give them my greetings,” she said. “And my best wishes to his mother. She was always very kind to me when I was a little girl.”
“I’d heard you’d gone to London, Your Ladyship. How strange you married an American and come home. And now you’re Lady Fairfax.” Elspeth’s smile was so bright it could have coaxed the sun out from behind storm clouds.
“Wednesday is fine with me, Elspeth. Would you like me to talk to Mrs. Brody for you?”
The girl looked relieved and nodded.
She and Elspeth spent the next hour finishing the chore of unpacking her trunks and arranging her belongings. After her trunks were unpacked, Elspeth showed her how to work the taps in the bathing chamber.
“We have our own boiler,” Elspeth said. “The old lord was all for us taking a Saturday night bath for services on Sunday. Will the new lord be leading the services, Your Ladyship?”
She hadn’t any idea and wondered if Montgomery knew of that duty.
After they’d finished, she sent Elspeth to her dinner after Mrs. Brody arrived with a tray Veronica had requested. She’d take time with her meal and try not to wonder about Montgomery.
A task she set for herself, and one in which she knew she’d fail.
Chapter 14
The night was crisp, cool, and oddly clear, as if the thunderstorm earlier had washed the air. The damp grass glittered in the moonlight, raindrops sparkling like stars.
Montgomery slowly took the path through the trees.
He felt a twinge in his right knee brought about by the dampness of the night. The accident resulting in his injury had been a foolish one. He’d landed on the roof of a church, but at least he hadn’t tumbled to the ground.
By such small things were his life measured.
