Amelia couldn’t deny Coventry’s accusation. The fact was, she hadn’t been completely honest with Raphe for the simple reason she’d wanted to work this out on her own. The less he knew about it, the less he’d interfere or deny her.
“I never mentioned its exact location.” She’d told him it was on High Street, just not where.
The maid entered at that exact moment, bustling about as she set down the tray and distributed cups and saucers. When she’d left the room again, Amelia reached for the teapot, happy to have something with which to distract herself for a moment. She poured coffee for Coventry next and then offered them all a biscuit.
“Amelia,” Lady Everly said. She picked up her teacup and cradled the delicate china between her hands. “I would like to know what you plan to do next. From what I have been able to gather from this surprising conversation, you still owe Mr. Gorrell some money and the house you have purchased is not in a particularly good state. Correct?”
“Yes, my lady. I have yet to give Mr. Gorrell another two thousand five hundred pounds.”
“Good heavens,” the dowager duchess breathed.
“Since Lady Amelia finds herself a little short on money,” Coventry said, “I have offered to supply the necessary funds.”
“As a loan, I hope,” the dowager duchess said.
Coventry leaned back in his chair and stretched out his legs. “As a donation.”
His mother stared at him. “You are as cracked in the head as she is! One does not donate such a large sum of money, no matter how wealthy one might be, unless it is to support a viable cause.”
“And I believe this may well be such a cause.”
For the first time since this conversation had begun, Amelia felt supported and understood, which in turn eased her nerves, producing a state of calm that would surely see her through this. Her appreciation for Coventry’s assistance in that moment could not have been greater.
“I cannot wait to hear how,” Lady Everly said.
Coventry met Amelia’s gaze and gave a quick nod. “Go ahead. Explain it.”
“What I wish to do is create a school.” She then spoke of her own experiences growing up in that part of town and how difficult it had been, of how little education the poor children received and how this limited their chances of ever making more of their lives and escaping the poverty they were born into. “It’s an unfair world, but if I can do this, then there might be a little bit of hope for a tiny corner of it.”
“There is no denying the goodness of your heart, Lady Amelia,” the dowager duchess said. “I can think of no other young lady who would go through so much trouble in order to accomplish something like this for others.”
“It is an important project,” Coventry added. “That is the reason for my donation, Mama, although it does come with a few conditions—one of them being that Lady Amelia had to tell the two of you about it.”
“You were wise to make her do so,” Lady Everly said. “With our support, I have no doubt this school will have the beginning it deserves, though I do think it might be prudent to discuss the financial aspects of such a project and the specifics of eventually running a business like this.”
“Which leads us to my second condition.” Meeting Amelia’s gaze, Coventry quietly asked, “Is your business plan ready?”
Unable to hide her enthusiasm, Amelia excused herself in order to go and fetch it. She’d barely slept a wink the night after the ball since she’d expected to make her presentation the following day. When that hadn’t happened, she’d used the extra time to put a bit more work into the plan, adding a few sketches and floor plans for visual effect. “Here it is,” she said when she returned to the parlor.
Coventry’s mouth fell open as he watched her enter the room with rolls of paper bundled under her arms and three folders clutched between her hands. He quickly rose to help her, gathering a few of the items when they began to fall to the floor.
“As you can see, I have quite a few things to show you.” She was pleased to see their surprised expressions and hoped they’d soon come to realize she hadn’t bought the house without thinking a few things through.
Resuming her seat, she picked up one of the folders and opened it. Inside were the papers she’d received from Mr. Gorrell—information on the year in which the house had been built, its size, the number of rooms and other features, along with the previous owner’s tax payments and overall cost of running the home. These numbers had been neatly listed on a thick stack of paper compiled over the course of three decades.
“Having these accounts has been useful,” Amelia said, handing the folder to Coventry. “It has made my calculations easier since I have no experience otherwise with running a house this size. Naturally, the teachers’ salaries will be a bit higher than a maid’s—more on par with that of the housekeeper, I should think.”
“That will probably depend on each teacher’s qualifications,” Lady Everly pointed out.
Agreeing with her, Amelia picked up the second folder.
“After seeing the house for the first time a couple of weeks ago, I decided to work out an estimate for the cost of repairs.” Coventry looked up from the papers he was leafing through with eyes that brightened with interest. “So I went to visit a roofer, a glazier, two carpenters and a few laborers.”
Lady Everly shook her head in dismay. “When on earth did you find the time?”
Amelia shrugged. “It wasn’t so hard to do. A great deal can be achieved if one rises early enough in the morning.” When nobody commented on that, Amelia picked up a folder. “Their offers are listed here, complete with descriptions of each item requiring attention.” She passed the folder to Coventry, whose expression turned to one of surprise as he studied the information she’d gathered. “The cheapest estimate I could come up with,” Amelia continued, “is three hundred pounds. The most expensive would be roughly eight. It all depends on the quality of the materials used and which laborers we hire.”
“You figured all of this out in just a couple of weeks?” Coventry asked.
