“How old are you, my dear?”
“Twenty, milady.” There was nothing defiant about this young woman. She knew her place and was careful not to appear she was above it. She was slight in build, her dark hair pulled away from a sylphlike face, white mob cap atop. Large gray eyes studied Maeve.
“Can you read?”
Her eyes dropped to the contents of her cup. “No, ma’am.”
“I think we should do something about that,” Maeve said.
Her shocked gaze flew to Maeve.
Maeve smiled. “I must say, Agnes, it’s quite the feat you managed, handling the household affairs as you did for as long as you did. How on earth did you do it?”
“I didn’t steal nothin’, yer ladyhip.”
Maeve pulled up. “Oh, dear. You misunderstand me, Agnes. I truly am in awe. I’m not going to sack you. I’m beside myself with admiration.”
“Y-you are?” she whispered.
“I certainly wouldn’t have fired my maid if I hadn’t been.” Maeve sipped at her own tea. “How do you feel about stepping in as my lady’s maid? As you are currently aware, I’m in desperate need.”
Agnes still held her cup, not drinking. She gaped. “But… you’re a… lady.”
Maeve stifled her sigh. “Yes, and I require a lady’s maid if you recall.”
Her eyes fluttered with a suspicious glistening. “Are ye sure, yer ladyship?”
“Did you assist Miss Hollerfield and Lady Harlowe with their toilets? With their dress? With their hair?”
She nodded, apparently unable to speak.
“From my understanding, Miss Rowena Hollerfield had been turned out in the first stare of fashion. I take it you had a hand in that?”
She nodded again.
“I knew Corinne. She was a beautiful young woman.” If melancholic. “And you assisted her as well, correct?”
“Yes, milady.” Agnes’s voice did not rise above a whisper.
Maeve took another sip of her tea. “Then the matter is settled. You are hereby hired, with a pay raise, as my personal lady’s maid.” Maeve hid a smile behind her cup and spoke with a blandness that would never fool another soul. Then she frowned. “Of course, I would appreciate any help with Penny and the others. I’m not completely convinced of the McCaskles at this juncture. Has there, um, been any incidents of which I should be made aware?”
Her nose wrinkled. “No. She is much better than Miss Rowena’s old housekee—” she stopped, her cheeks red with embarrassment.
“Agnes.” Maeve reached over and patted her knee. “Please don’t feel as if you cannot speak of Miss Rowena. She was your previous employer. While I was not forced to provide for myself and others as she was forced to do, it would be remiss of me to not acknowledge how similar in temperament we might be. She did what she had to do to survive.”
Agnes stared at her in awed shock. It was almost… flattering.
“I cannot fault her for taking care of her staff so diligently. And Miss Corinne. I admire you greatly, Agnes. You ran this house without a mistress for over a year, my dear. You’ve looked out for Mary and Stephen as well.” She shook her head. “If anyone I know deserves praise, it’s you.”
There was an audible swallow. “Thank you, milady.”
“There is still the small matter of filling the other household positions.” She flung out her hand. “Upstairs maids, a cook, a gardener, and the like.” Again, Maeve found herself stunned at how this uneducated young woman managed Cavendish Square with no one the wiser. It boggled the mind. “I’m most curious, dear, to know how you kept the house running on your own with only Mary and Stephen.”
Breath held, Maeve waited as a range of emotions flashed across Agnes’s face, her struggle evident. But there was something there. Howdida servant keep a house afloat for over a year without funds, without vagrants storming the place? Maeve leaned in and put a lemon square and a biscuit on a small plate and handed it to Agnes.
Agnes downed her tea and accepted the plate. “I should love to learn to read. Mary and Stephen could use some learnin’ too, milady.”
It took a moment for Maeve to readjust her thoughts. Agnes was answering the other question Maeve had forgotten she’d asked. “Excellent,” she murmured. “We shall put together a schedule. There’s certainly plenty of room on the third level for a school room.
