Page 65 of Indecently Employed
Her father, now completely bald on top, let out a disappointed sigh as he removed his pipe from between his teeth. He looked very much the impoverished country clergyman, ruddy-cheeked behind his whiskers, his black broadcloth frock coat threadbare. He sat on the other side of the fire, in a timeworn armchair that featured heavily in Susanna’s childhood memories. For he’d always sat there, watching the women’s proceedings, rarely deigning to offer more than a baffled shake of the head, or even worse, a dry quote from scripture to elucidate them. Or more specifically, to elucidate her. For somehow it had always been Susanna in need of instruction, never Maddy. She’d never given that much thought before, but she did now.
Madge, her niece, a small slip of a young girl, watched wide-eyed from her perch in the far corner of the room, a half-finishedsampler in her lap. Dinner had ended as it began, in silence. And then they’d all retired to the parlor in silence as well.
Susanna found the entire routine dreadful. The first several days she had scolded herself for such prideful airs, for thinking that she somehow deserved the glittering lifestyle and gourmet fare of her employers. But after Orville’s outlandish request of her that afternoon, Susanna felt no guilt. She would not remain here, and she refused to feel poorly about it. Even if she ended up in a cheap boarding house, the atmosphere and conversation would be more palatable than this stifling sullenness.
When Susanna did not respond to her mother’s vague scolding, Maddy frowned, and tightened her grip on the sock she’d been working on. “He said you refused to stay on and instruct Madge.”
Susanna silently prayed for her poor niece, having to constantly be spoken about as if she were not in the room. She glanced at the girl and gave her an apologetic smile before answering.
“That’s correct. I currently have a position.”
“But your position should be here, with your family. Isn’t that right, Papa?” Maddy’s voice pitched up at the end of her entreaty, a bothersome habit she’d retained from their youth. “For if any provide not forherown family, and especially for those ofherown house,shehath denied the faith, and is more hateful than an infidel!”
Their father raised a brow in surprise. “Timothy 5:8. Not the exact phrasing, but close enough. Well done, daughter.”
That stung. For Susanna was practically certain that the words had not sprung forth naturally. More likely that Maddy had committed it to memory the day before, or even that afternoon when Orville had confessed his failure to secure Susanna’s compliance. So Maddy had decided to call in the highest law: David Abbotts. For that had always been the way of it.
“More hateful than aninfidel,” Maddy repeated, a smugness about her dark eyes as she fixed them on Susanna.
Susanna blew out a sigh, and set aside the old copy ofThe Monthly Revelthat Ajax had lent her.
“If you like, I shall make inquiries about town. I could even place an advertisement if you wish.” It had been years since she’d spent this much time in Deverill Green, and she wasn’t familiar enough with the decent families to know whether there were any young ladies looking to make their own way, but a well-worded ad would likely do the trick.
Maddy scrunched her brows, her lower lip jutting forward ever so slightly. Her hair was neatly tucked over her ears, shiny and smooth. Susanna had always been jealous of her sister’s hair, which was straight as a pin, in contrast to her own mass of wild curls.
She thought of Ajax burying his face in her hair, breathing in its scent, making her laugh by composing rhyming couplets extolling its magnificence. Somehow she’d come to admire it as well, forgoing the severely plaited styles she had been accustomed to her whole life. Now she took her time every morning, loosely twisting the coils and using only as many pins as were needed to hold it back, not caring if a lock escaped here or there. It made her feel beautiful, seeing herself as he saw her.
“No,” Maddy said, a sulk still permeating her features. “You know as well as I that we cannot afford another mouth to feed.”
Orville coughed harshly, then stood up and excused himself from the room.
The sound of the fire crackling was nearly a roar in her ears. Or perhaps that was Susanna’s own indignation, as loud as a crashing wave. The mantel clock added to the ambient chorus, its heavy ticking pounding out a beat as her thoughts built upon one another. Of course. They did not intend to pay her. She was to instruct Madge with nary a handful of pence for pin money.And likely they expected her to entirely take on the role of Gertie as well. And be glad for the roof over her head.
“I see,” she said, hiding her hands beneath the folds of her dress, for she did not want anyone to see that they were clenched into fists.
Several minutes passed in an unhappy silence, and Susanna thought the subject dropped, until Maddy suddenly spoke up again. “We cannot afford to pay anything the likes of earls could afford,” she spat out with vehemence. “Or Sedleys.” Maddy hesitated before speaking the name “Sedley,” as if it were a curse.
Susanna didn’t know what to say. Her sister’s entire demeanor had shifted, regressing back to their girlhood days of screaming and hair-pulling. She cast a worried glance to their mother and father, who carried on with their respective staring into the fire and pipe-smoking, as though nothing were amiss. The red flush on Madge’s cheeks was the only sign that anyone else had noted the rage coming off Maddy.
Maddy flung her darning down on the couch next to her, in her husband’s recently vacated spot. “I saw that gown. The blue striped one. You must get such pleasure looking down on us as we toil away here, doing the Lord’s work, while you flit about in brand-new silks.”
“Maddy,” Susanna started, shocked, ready to deny the unjust accusations. But then she paused and frowned. “You went through my personal effects?”
Maddy bit her lower lip and looked away, reaching for her mending once more.
“My bag, my private things. You went in our room and dug through them without asking?” She’d been rooming with her niece, for space at the parsonage was limited, especially with Maddy and Orville occupying the sisters’ old bedroom.
Maddy raised her brows, but still avoided acknowledging Susanna’s question.
Surprisingly, their father cut in from his chair by the fire. “Maddy,” he said in a stern voice.
Her sister’s eyes flashed, and she hissed through clenched teeth. “Yes, I did. I needed to sort Madge’s winter coat. It is hardly my fault that you keep your bag open and unsecured.”
Susanna stood up, furious. “You have never paid me the respect you give to others. It is not fair, and I will not allow you to continue treating me this way.” She was shaking, but she could not let this happen. Not again. The thought of Maddy’s greedy fingers clutching at her new dress, her best dress, the onehe’dgiven her… Susanna took a deep, steadying breath and stood tall.
“Susanna!” her mother cried out.
At the same time, her father scolded, “Girls!”
