by Fanny Finch
Delia was dismissed, and she made her way up the stairs to find Grace, guessing at where she ought to go based on very simple instructions from the Earl. When she reached the room, Grace was not alone.
“Oh, hello!” said a bright and friendly young woman with starkly red hair.
“Hello,” Delia replied.
“My name is Amy. I’m one of the maids. You must be the governess, Miss Caulfield, as Miss Grace tells me?” she asked.
“You may call me Delia,” she replied.
“Well, Delia, I am glad to have you here. Honestly, most of the staff are so stuffy that I can only pray you are not like them,” Amy said with a laugh.
“I have certainly noticed,” Delia laughed under her breath before going to sit down with Grace.
Amy sat with her.
“You know, this is a very good home to work in and the Earl is a good man. You will just have to adjust a little,” she said.
“It seems as much. I am certainly contented here thus far. That is, I am happy aside from the same allusions you have made to other staff,” Delia replied, trying to remain vague and not complain.
“It isn’t always easy with them, but you will be fine. Miss Grace is wonderful to spend time with, aren’t you?” Amy said, ending with directing her attention to the child.
Grace giggled and Delia was pleased to see it.
Mouthing the words quietly to Amy when Grace was not paying attention, Delia asked, “What about her mother?”
“Dead,” Amy mouthed silently.
Delia felt a pang of sadness for Grace. A child who had lost her mother. It seemed the worst possible thing in the world.
And yet, she knew that it happened to many children. For now, it was her job to provide the comfort that only a mother could give to their child.
Delia hoped desperately that Grace would be happy and the Earl would be satisfied.
Chapter 4
The governess had been in the home for three days and seemed to be getting on well enough. The Earl was pleased that his daughter was enjoying attention she had scarcely before experienced. It was time for her to have a life that resembled that of most children.
He was surprised when he looked out the window of his study and noted that the governess, Miss Caulfield, had taken Grace outside for the day. They were studying, it was clear, but in the outdoors.
The previous governess had never considered such a thing, but Grace seemed to love it. The fresh air was keeping her more alert and any time she seemed bored, Miss Caulfield would have her run in a circle before settling again to move on.
She was very innovative, and he liked seeing that. He was impressed by her methods, even in this short time. For a young woman who had never been a governess before, she seemed naturally equipped beyond most.
There was something intriguing about her. The Earl told himself, as he stood at the window of his study, that he was watching his daughter. But in truth, he knew that it was the young woman that he was staring at.
She was not what he had anticipated. There was something utterly unique about her. From the letter she had written, he would have thought her too young and inexperienced had he not been so desperate.
But while Miss Caulfield was certainly young, she had a wisdom and maturity that he had scarcely seen communicated so well in a woman of her station. She seemed almost more of a mother than a governess.
Miss Caulfield had been moved to a room on the same floor as Grace, but he still had many things that needed to be tended to with his staff. It was frustrating, but he knew that something must be done.
Mrs. Andrews came to the door and he instructed her to have a seat.
“Mrs. Andrews, as I told you before, we need to have a discussion,” the Earl began.
“Yes, my lord. Anything you wish,” she said, suddenly charming and sweet.
“I fear that I have been less than pleased with your behavior of late,” he said bluntly, eliciting a frown from the housekeeper.
“And why is that, my lord? Do I not serve you as you wish? Do everything you command of me?” she asked.
“Mrs. Andrews, you often do things that I have requested, but not always in a manner which pleases me. That is to say, oftentimes your internal thoughts are quite on display and I should have to remind you that you are an employee of this house.
“What I instruct of you is what is expected,” he continued.
“Forgive me, my lord. I was not aware I had caused any offense,” she said, seeming contrite.
“Well, that is all about that then. But I must also address the issue of Miss Caulfield’s arrival. Not only are you aware that the previous governess stayed close to Grace and that is my wish, you also did not offer her tea or any accoutrements. She was not introduced to Grace. All of this ought to have been handled,” he told her.
“I see, my lord. It was my understanding that after the previous governess, you would rather meet the young woman first,” she defended.
“That was wise. But it was not something that had been discussed as it ought to have been. Tell me, how long was Miss Caulfield here before you brought her to me?” he asked.
Mrs. Andrews seemed to be thinking.
“Perhaps ten or fifteen minutes, my lord. Immediately upon her arrival, I showed her to her room. After that, she was brought directly to you,” Mrs. Andrews told him.
The Earl considered it and agreed that this was perfectly reasonable.
“Well then, just remember next time that I should like all our new staff, just as our guests, to be treated well upon their arrival. There is no need to allow them to linger. Thank you, Mrs. Andrews,” the Earl said, nodding to the door.
The housekeeper stood to leave.
“Yes, thank you, my lord. I shall not disappoint you again,” she promised in a way that left him feeling uneasy.
She did not seem entirely genuine in some of her remarks, but the Earl of Dulshire had no real reason to question Mrs. Andrews. She had been a good employee. He had to keep that in mind and not wonder about her.
The Earl sat at his desk to do some work, but found himself distracted and going back to the window. Now Miss Caulfield and Grace were racing to the tree nearby and then back to their pile of books on a blanket.
Upon returning to the blanket, Miss Caulfield seemingly instructed Grace to read aloud. Perhaps five minutes later, the young governess seemed to shout something and they were up and running again.
Whatever her method was, it was keeping Grace on task and interested in her work. He had never seen such activity used before, but wholeheartedly approved.
He sighed and went back to his desk, but little managed to keep his attention. He just continued to picture the joy on Grace’s face and the woman who brought it about.
***
The following morning was Thursday. The Earl woke up early and made his way down the stairs and outside where the coachman was already waiting for him.
The flowers had been delivered the night before as always and the Earl walked the distance to Lydia’s gravestone. He stared at it and finally bent down to leave the flowers.
He wished he had something to say, as usual. But nothing came. It was the same as every time he journeyed to the grave.
But this particular morning, the minister happened to be outside of his parish, despite the early hour. He was pruning the apple tree just beside the front of the church, and the Earl saw him as he was heading to the coach.
“Good morning, my lord,” the minister greeted.
“Good morning, Mr. Rogers,” the Earl replied with a nod of the head and tip of the hat.
“I’m just working on this old thing. I wish someone would come and prune the rotting parts off of me,” Mr. Rogers laughed, which soon turned into a cough.
“Well, Mr. Rogers, at least your rotten parts are bodily. Some of us need someone to prune the rotten parts that we don’t like to share,” the Earl mumbled, suddenly feeling angrier at himself by the minute. The pain of leaving Lydia�
��s tomb was in full effect.
“You must remember, my lord, that it is our Lord who saw fit to take care of that duty,” Mr. Rogers replied.
The Earl felt foolish for forgetting that he was speaking to a minister. Of course the answer would come that the Lord was able to handle it. He had made a mistake for forgetting such a thing.
“Yes, thank you, Mr. Rogers. You are right,” the Earl replied.
“Have you spoken with the late Countess of Dulshire’s family?” Mr. Rogers asked suddenly.
The Earl was unprepared for this question and had no desire to answer it. His late wife’s family were not people with whom he had remained in close contact. They blamed him for her early demise, and the Earl knew that they disliked him and continued to speak against him.
“I am afraid not, Mr. Rogers,” the Earl replied. “May I ask why?”
“Oh, it’s nothing. Only that her brother, Mr. Davis, visited recently. I had not seen him in such a long time and I had wondered if you had recommended him to come and see her,” Mr. Rogers said.
“It was not me, but I am glad to know that he came. I do hope that he found some peace,” the Earl replied, not allowing himself to speak further to the matter.
The two men said goodbye and parted ways. The Earl climbed back into the coach and instructed the coachman to take him back to the house.
Thinking about the fact that Mr. Davis had come to visit Lydia unnerved him. The man had every right. It was good, in fact, that he cared enough about his sister to do that. But he also hated the Earl a great deal, and that was where the Earl of Dulshire was uncomfortable.
But he pushed it aside. It would be ridiculous of him to be angered by the presence of his wife’s family. He had to overcome his insecurities, no matter what they said about him.
The Earl arrived back at the house in time for breakfast. He joined Miss Caulfield and Grace and watched the two interact again.
“Miss Caulfield, I have finished,” Grace said in a sweet voice after some time.
“Yes, Miss Grace, as have I,” Miss Caulfield replied with a smile. “Shall we make our way to your lesson?”
Grace enthusiastically nodded her head, and Miss Caulfield stood, taking Grace’s hand as she did the same. They gave a gentle, unified curtsey to the Earl.
“Just a moment,” he said, considering them. “Miss Caulfield, might I have a word with you?”
Miss Caulfield’s face told him that she was unnerved, but she ushered Grace to her lessons.
“I shall follow you presently,” she said encouragingly.
Grace left with a maid in order to make her way upstairs. Miss Caulfield returned to her seat and waited patiently.
“Miss Caulfield, I must confess that you have surprised me,” he finally said.
“Oh?” she asked, suddenly nervous.
“Indeed. I am rather amazed at how you have handled my daughter thus far. Having observed some of your behaviors with her and how you are teaching her, I am impressed,” he told her.
Miss Caulfield blushed at this and looked away from the Earl. He could not help but notice how it suited her.
“Thank you, my lord. I am glad that you are pleased. Your daughter is very intelligent, she only needs creative ways to bring it out. I am certain that very soon you will see what a great child she is and what a promising young woman she will become,” Miss Caulfield said.
“Yes, I’ve no doubt that under your guidance she will thrive rather magnificently,” the Earl complimented again.
Still the young governess seemed unwilling to accept the compliment towards her own self, but she bowed her head slightly in appreciation to the Earl for his words.
“Do you have siblings, Miss Caulfield? Younger siblings, I mean?” he asked.
“Indeed, my lord. I have an elder sister as well as a younger and two young brothers,” she answered him.
“And did you help with their education at any time?” he continued to inquire.
“Yes, my lord. I enjoyed it very much and it was part of the certainty that I had in choosing this work,” Delia told him.
“Yes, it is clear that you have experience with children. Again, I am very pleased with what I am seeing thus far,” he told her, putting the last bite of toast in his mouth.
“I am glad to hear it, my lord,” Delia said.
“Now, I must be going. But please know that I have spoken with Mrs. Andrews. If you should need anything at all while I am away or should anything arise, she will be available to you,” he assured her.
“Thank you, my lord,” Miss Caulfield replied. She seemed doubtful, but it was the best the Earl could do at the time and he truly hoped that Mrs. Andrews would do what he had told her was expected.
With that, he left the table and made himself ready for the plans he had that day. He would have to pay homage to society, despite his misgivings, and would undoubtedly return to the home exhausted that evening.
But there was something about the time at breakfast that had cheered him and given him a new peace. Perhaps everything would be fine after all. Perhaps his home would be a place of growth for his daughter. And perhaps he was not as bad as he had believed himself to be for the past eight years.
Chapter 5
It was Tuesday, exactly a week after Delia had started her new position, when she had just finished with Grace on her studies for the day. Delia had a bath drawn for the child and was using that time to write a letter to Thea, when she was surprised by the sudden presence of Mrs. Andrews.
“You are needed,” the woman said in her same monotone voice lacking all note of friendliness.
Delia looked at her in confusion. “Needed?” she asked.
“The Earl has asked for you. I don’t know why. It is not my job to find these things out for you,” Mrs. Andrews pointed out.
“Of course, Mrs. Andrews. Thank you for letting me know. I shall go to the Earl presently,” Delia responded in her polite way.
She had always been kind, or at least tried to be. Delia was not the sort of woman to speak her feelings when she was angry or upset. She always made an effort to interact well with others.
But she felt something blossoming within her when she was around Mrs. Andrews. As if she might not manage to withhold her frustrations much longer. She was tired of this treatment and felt it was completely unwarranted.
In that moment, however, Delia had other concerns. The Earl was asking for her and she was uncertain as to why. She hoped that nothing had arisen that upset him.
Certainly he could not have learned of her previous employer and what happened. That would result in an immediate dismissal and she assumed that Mrs. Andrews would have relished being the one to tell her.
But perhaps the Earl was unsatisfied with Grace’s progress after all and had decided that he no longer liked Delia’s methodology with her charge. These and many other thoughts raced through her mind as she made her way to the study.
By the time Delia reached the door, she was certain that she would soon be thrown out and, once more, be in search of a new position. She only feared that she would hurt Grace in the process.
Knocking on the door, she felt that her heart was a louder sound than her fist on the wood. But the Earl called for her to come in, and she was greeted by his charming smile.
“Ah, Miss Caulfield, you have come,” he said, standing.
“Yes, my lord. Mrs. Andrews told me that you called for me?” she replied.
“Indeed. Please, do have a seat,” the Earl instructed.
Delia sat across from him in the same chair as the first day she had met him. Something in his eyes sparkled when he spoke and she could not help but notice it. Still, Delia was frightened that he might catch her staring at him so she glanced at the wall of books instead.
“I pray you, forgive me, Miss Caulfield. But you have been here for a week and I simply wish to know more about the young woman who is acting as governess to my daughter,” the Earl said.
Delia felt a weigh
t lift from her agonized shoulders.
“Of course, my lord. Anything you wish to know, I am quite happy to share,” she lied easily.
“Very well. Then I should first like to know about your family,” he said, leaning back in his own chair.
Delia kept her face even with a quaint smile.
“Oh yes, my lord. I have a tremendous family. My father is merely a merchant, but he is a hard worker. And my mother cared for all of us our whole lives,” she began.
