by Evie Grace
‘It is a little harder with you being so young, but I think we can overcome that – you are mature for your age, and I have stated that you have been two years in your last place and can produce a good character for your honesty, morals and education. It crossed my mind to mention remuneration in my original letter of application, but it is thought vulgar to raise such a topic at least until we have secured an interview with the lady of the house.’
Agnes held the envelope, studying the name and address. Miss Linnet? It was the name they had agreed on, but it looked so strange. With trembling fingers, she opened the seal.
Roper House, near Harbledown, Canterbury
Dear Miss Linnet
Bring your character to the house tomorrow. I think very likely you would suit. My daughters are most keen to practise the art of conversation and acquire a certain polish in playing pianoforte to impress in the drawing room.
However, absolute discretion and personal neatness are two things which I expect of all those in my service and if you are not in the habit of practising both, it is needless for you to come.
Lady Faraday
She wanted to throw her arms up in the air with joy and relief that their plan had succeeded thus far, but her heart began to sink at the thought of the practicalities.
‘How will I get away?’
‘As you see, I have forgotten to collect the gloves. It completely slipped my mind.’ Nanny had a small smile on her face. ‘I’ve spoken to your mama and told her that they were not quite ready, and that we would have to go into town tomorrow to fetch them. And furthermore that my uncle wished to present you with a small gift in honour of your wedding.’
‘What did she say?’
‘She seemed distracted, laid low again in her distress – something had reminded her of your father’s passing, their wedding anniversary, I think. It wasn’t hard to press her into agreeing to let us take the carriage tomorrow afternoon. I will ask Mr Noakes to drop us off on the outskirts of town. We can then take a cab to the house and return to meet him as soon as you are finished.’
‘What about going to call on your uncle?’
‘Ah, we will not disturb him. It was merely an excuse.’
Agnes felt a little disappointed. She would have liked to have seen the Cheeverses again. They were the nearest she had to having friends.
Nanny held her gaze. ‘You can change your mind. You don’t have to go through with it.’
‘Of course I do,’ she said, thinking of the alternative.
‘Then you must make your preparations tonight, but be discreet. If anyone hears of this plot, we will both suffer for it.’
‘Thank you, Nanny. I’m sorry that you are risking your position here for my sake.’
‘It will be worth it,’ she said. ‘You don’t have your father to protect you now. It’s up to me.’
Agnes slid the bolt on her bedroom door, laid out her clothes for the morning and copied out Nanny’s character in her neatest writing. She had to make a good impression so a little forgery and sleight of hand seemed a small price to pay, although it did make her feel bad, writing lies about herself. She had been brought up to tell the truth, even though others around her had not always practised what they preached.
To whomsoever it may concern, regarding Miss Agnes Linnet.
I am glad to be able to recommend you a good and honest governess. She is neat in her appearance and has a nice manner, is thoroughly respectable and well conducted. She is capable of performing all tasks within and without the schoolroom with a cheerful disposition. I think she will suit any establishment very well. She can read well and clearly, and is fluent in French.
Mrs Clive Norbert at—
She gave an address in Wandsworth and rewrote it, omitting the comment about the French speaking, not wanting to make too much of herself.
The next day, Mr Noakes dropped Agnes and Nanny at St Dunstan’s, where they managed to hail a cab to give them a lift to Upper Harbledown, and wait for Agnes to complete her business there.
‘Take a deep breath and remember what I told you,’ Nanny said when Agnes disembarked at the end of the drive to Roper House. ‘Be expansive about your education, but as for your personal details, the less said the better. Take courage, child. I have taught you well. You have nothing to fear.’
Agnes turned and walked along the long drive past the iron railings, and the rough pasture and tall trees covered in unfurling leaves. The house stood at the top of the hill, its rows of sash windows looking out across the parkland. It was built in the Queen Anne style with a central triangular pediment and four of the tallest chimneys she had ever seen.
She made her way up the sweep of steps to the front door, then lowered her parasol and rang the bell, the sound reminding her of home. This was the kind of house where she would like to live and work. Although it was older and a little less cared for than Windmarsh Court, it would suit her very well.
She waited for a while but no one came, which put her in a quandary. Was it correct to ring the bell a second time?
As she hovered on the top step in a torment of indecision, the door opened to reveal a middle-aged man with dark hair slicked back against his head, and dressed in tails. His white collar appeared stained as if he had overindulged in Macassar oil. He looked her up and down, staring in a most inappropriate way. She opened her mouth to correct him, but, remembering that even though she was superior to him in every way, she had to pretend that she wasn’t. She wasn’t used to being treated like a servant.
‘Madam.’ He was in his fifties, she guessed, and he had grown flabby on the good living provided by his employers. His jowls wobbled like one of Cook’s jellies when he spoke. ‘May I ascertain the purpose of your visit?’
‘My name is Miss Linnet. I have an appointment with Lady Faraday about the position of governess.’
‘This way.’
‘Thank you,’ she said as he showed her into the hall, his footsteps echoing across the black and ivory tiles. Several stuffed deer with glassy eyes stared down from the walls, and a pair of cloven hoofs sat on the marble-topped side table. Papa hadn’t approved of hunting and Mama would have gone into a faint if she’d seen the household’s trophies.
‘May I take your coat?’
‘I should be much obliged.’ She let the butler take her coat and hang it on the stand in the corner behind the foot of the staircase, before following him past the ebony chiffonier, several portraits in oil of finely dressed men and women and a stuffed boar, into a corridor. He stopped at a door and knocked.
‘Come in,’ a voice said.
The butler held the door open and Agnes entered a small parlour where an older woman with grey hair looked up from a letter she was reading. She removed her pincenez and gazed at Agnes, her expression one of cool appraisal which soon turned to suspicion.
A pulse began to beat at her temple. She wasn’t worried that Lady Faraday would find her qualifications inadequate for the position – she was more than qualified to act as a governess. She was afraid that she would be found out for who she really was, but she had to go through with it, no matter how uncomfortable she felt, because time was running out. If she failed this interview, she would be forced into marrying Philip.
‘My lady, allow me to introduce Miss Linnet. I believe you are expecting her,’ the butler said.
‘Thank you, Pell.’ The layers of silk in Lady Faraday’s dress matched the blues and yellows on the wall, which in turn coordinated with the darker hues in the brocades of the drapes and upholstery. ‘Have some tea sent up.’
‘Very good, my lady. Is there anything else?’
‘That will be all for now.’
The butler nodded and reversed from the room.
‘It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Lady Faraday,’ Agnes said, noticing the burnished steel fire irons and the warm glow of the fire. The ornaments and clock on the mantel were all under glass domes to protect them from the dust and smoke.
�
�Would you be so kind as to take a turn around the room? Pause at the window, if you will. I wish to study your features.’
It wasn’t what Agnes had been expecting. She walked from one corner to the other, then stopped at the window.
‘Turn to the light, just a little.’ Lady Faraday stood up and moved closer, taking time to examine her face and her dress. ‘You have fine hands. Your features are rather too beautiful and your figure is above average.’
Was that a good thing for a governess? Agnes wondered, aware of the critical tone of Lady Faraday’s voice. Was she comparing her appearance with that of her daughters? Did she not want to employ someone who would outshine them in beauty, or was she more concerned about the effect the presence of an attractive young lady might have on the gentlemen of the house?
‘Now come and sit and we can discuss your reference. It is most complimentary but you seem very young to be a governess. In fact, it hardly seems possible that you were employed for long enough to have demonstrated all the attributes stated here.’ Agnes opened her mouth to speak, but Lady Faraday cut her off. ‘I suppose it’s possible that you are one of those most fortunate of ladies who appears younger than she is. You don’t mention your family.’
‘I’m sorry. I find it distressing to talk of them. My mama died when I was quite young, and my dear papa lost his business through grief.’ She’d practised her story until she was word perfect. ‘I was brought up with my cousins at a house on the coast.’ She hoped that the more convoluted her tale, the less likely it was that any potential employer would investigate.
‘Whereabouts on the coast? I’m particularly fond of Dover.’
‘A little further east,’ she said, not wishing to be too precise.
Suddenly, a fracas broke out. A pair of muddy gun dogs, big black creatures with their tongues hanging out and dripping spittle, came running into the room. One jumped on the furniture and ran across the chairs. The other rushed to the far corner sniffing and snuffling at the carpet. They were closely followed by a large gentleman dressed in tweeds and carrying a stick.
‘Sir Richard, what is the meaning of this?’ Lady Faraday made to get out of her seat, then sat back down again.
‘I’ve come to chase out the rat. Pell reported there’d been a rat giving the maids the frights.’
‘How many times? Oh, you are infuriating. When I married a baronet, I expected him to have some manners.’
‘Who is this young lady?’ he said, spotting Agnes.
‘That’s what I’m trying to find out,’ Lady Faraday said sharply. ‘Get yourself and those filthy hounds out of here.’
‘It’s only mud. It’ll wash off,’ Sir Richard said in a booming voice. He whistled for the dogs and stomped off in his outdoor boots.
‘I apologise for the interruption,’ Lady Faraday said, turning back to Agnes as though nothing had happened. ‘Now, where were we? Oh, yes. Did you attend school?’
‘We had an excellent governess.’
‘You say that your previous position was in London with a Mr and Mrs Clive Norbert. I don’t believe that I have met them, but then London is a large city, I suppose.’ Her voice faded then returned. ‘Why did you leave your place?’
‘Because the dear young ladies were quite grown up, and had no more need of my guidance and teaching.’
‘I see. Do sit down.’
Agnes was glad to sit down and take some of the tea that the maid delivered and poured into delicate china cups decorated with hand-painted flowers. She realised that the drinking of tea wasn’t a social offering, but a test of her manners and deportment.
‘You do not say if you can speak French?’
‘Yes, I am quite fluent,’ she said.
‘I see. I believe that French conversation is considered to be a fashionable accomplishment at present.’
‘I am also proficient in geography, singing, piano and painting.
‘You do paint in watercolour?’
‘Naturally.’ She was about to go on to explain that she could paint with oils too, when Lady Faraday nodded and said, ‘It would be rather vulgar for a lady to paint in anything else. Watercolours are far more delicate and suitable for the feminine sex than any other medium. Tell me, how would you plan my daughters’ days?’
‘I would fit their lessons into the family’s routine with time allocated to reading, writing and arithmetic in the mornings, and the afternoons devoted to the other subjects.’
‘Miss Faraday is already most accomplished at music. Her sister will need more attention to her deportment. She is a little wild, while the elder needs to be brought out of her shell. Our last governess was careless in the way she talked of the family in the presence of others. As I stated in my letter, I require complete discretion.’
‘I am used to encouraging the shyest of young ladies to speak with quiet confidence and deport themselves correctly in the presence of others. As to the latter point, I keep my own counsel when it comes to matters that don’t concern me.’
Lady Faraday frowned.
‘I am still concerned that you are very young and too close in age to my daughters. How long did you say you were with the Norberts?’
Agnes began to sense the position slipping away.
‘I was there for a full two years and left through no fault of my own, as you can see from my reference. I am young, that is true, but youth is no barrier to proficiency. I have enthusiasm, vigour, and an empathy with young ladies, more so, dare I venture, than an older governess would have.’
‘You are very sure of yourself.’
‘A teacher must be able to inspire confidence in her pupils by setting a good example.’
‘You have answered well, but I still believe that I should be taking a risk if I should hire you. I shall write to you when I have met the other applicants, Miss Linnet. Good day. Pell will see you out.’ She picked up a bell from the table and rang it, bringing the butler scurrying in to escort Agnes away.
‘If a letter should come for me, I fear that we will not have the time to pick it up from your uncle’s,’ Agnes said once they were seated in the cab on the way back to Canterbury to meet Mr Noakes with the carriage.
‘I will have to call on him again when I have my half-day,’ Nanny said.
‘I wish you didn’t have to go to so much trouble on my behalf.’
‘We’ve gone this far. We must continue this business to its conclusion.’ Nanny glanced at her pocket watch. ‘I hope the driver will hurry. We are due to meet Mr Noakes shortly at the Rose Inn. And collect the gloves.’
Agnes wished she had asked Lady Faraday when she could expect her answer. Her wedding was arranged for two weeks’ time at the beginning of May. She didn’t hold out much hope.
‘So Nanny has gone to Canterbury again?’ Mama said. It was the evening before the wedding, and Agnes had taken Henry to the parlour to sit with her for a while. ‘I can’t help wondering if she has become acquainted with a gentleman other than her uncle.’
‘It is nothing of the sort, Mama. Mr Cheevers is unwell.’
‘Why does she feel obliged to keep visiting him?’
‘Because he took her in when she lost her parents. He paid for her to attend school.’
Mama raised one eyebrow. ‘I did not know.’
Agnes knew that her mother would never have had the slightest interest in Nanny’s history. A governess might be a valued member of staff in some households, but here at Windmarsh she was just one of the servants. She prayed that Mama wouldn’t ask any more questions. She was afraid that her nerves would give her away.
‘You are ready for tomorrow?’
‘Yes, Mama.’ She bit her lip.
‘I will not attend the ceremony. I do not wish to make myself ill.’
‘I understand,’ Agnes said softly. She wondered with a pang of renewed grief what her wedding day would have been like if Papa had still been alive. He would have come to the church with her. More importantly, he wouldn’t have arranged for her to
be affianced to her cousin. She glanced at the clock. The hands of time seemed to be standing still. Where had Nanny got to? When was she going to discover her fate?
She heard the sound of the carriage and the banging of a door. Nanny was home. She returned to the nursery with Henry, and Miriam gave him a glass of milk and helped him get ready for bed. Agnes said goodnight and retired to her room. She walked inside to find a lamp burning and a shadow sitting at the dressing table.
‘Oh!’ She touched her throat. ‘I wasn’t expecting to see you there.’ She moved closer and caught sight of the letter lying beside her hairbrush and comb. Her heart beat faster as Nanny picked it up and handed it to her.
‘Open it,’ she said softly.
With trembling fingers, Agnes opened it up.
‘Well?’
‘It appears that Lady Faraday has no expectation that I will decline her offer,’ Agnes said. ‘She has stated the time that I should arrive – tomorrow morning – and enclosed details of my wages and conditions. I will have half a day off on Sunday, and half on a weekday, and two weeks a year.’
‘Oh, that’s wonderful. I’ve been so worried.’ Nanny stood up and embraced her. ‘Congratulations, my dear. We have done it, and in the nick of time. You’ll have a roof over your head, financial security and company. But’ – she traced the tear that ran down Agnes’s cheek – ‘you are upset. Have you changed your mind? It is not too late.’
‘Oh no. I’m relieved and sad at the same time.’
‘So you will go and leave your old life behind?’
Agnes nodded. ‘I have no choice. My feelings for Philip are unchanged, and I know he will thank me for letting him have his freedom.’ She hesitated. ‘You don’t think they will come after me for breaking the engagement?’
‘I doubt it. They will have to find you first, and I shan’t let on where you are. My lips are sealed.’ Nanny went to her room and returned with a package. ‘I have something for you in the expectation that it will be of help when I’m not there for you to ask – I wrapped it in advance.’
Agnes tore off the brown paper, revealing the dreaded manual of etiquette.