Page 14 of Lady Audacious
Mrs Blaine proved to know the value of silence and bustled about in the kitchen without saying anything while Odile sat at the table with her travelling writing case open in front of her and penned a letter to Mr Sandwell. She explained that she had decided to stay at Fox’s Reach and asked him to put the financial arrangements in place that they had touched upon. She would need access to funds to pay for the many things that she would need, not least of which was new clothing for herself. As things stood, she looked dowdy, little better than a servant and anything but a figure of authority. She thought of all the hours she had spent at Miss Mackenzie’s, dreaming of clothing herself in the finest silks and satins. She could now do so—and would but for the fact that she had nowhere to wear them. She could, however, purchase some practical new clothing and vowed never to embrace the colour grey ever again.
‘There, that’s all done,’ Odile said, holding a wax seal over the range before folding and then sealing her missive.
‘Harris will be back soon and those lazy girls should be here any time now,’ Mrs Blaine said, plonking herself down on a stool opposite Odile. ‘They can start by giving this kitchen and the scullery next door a thorough cleaning. I don’t like a speck of dirt in my kitchens.’
Odile nodded her approval, convinced that she had heard the scuttling of rodents’ feet during the night. ‘Quite right,’ she said.
‘Ah, that sounds like them.’
A cacophony of voices outside the kitchen door preceded a girl with bright red hair sticking her head around it.
‘We’re here, Mrs Blaine,’ she said, wrinkling her nose as though she disapproved of what she saw. The girl behind her, a timid little thing with lank brown hair pulled back into a tight bun that Odile knew from experience would be tugging at her scalp beneath her white cap, stepped into the room behind her. Two strapping lads of no more than sixteen followed them, screwing the caps they had removed between their hands.
‘About time, an’ all,’ Mrs Blaine replied, tutting. ‘I dare say you dawdled all the way, otherwise it wouldn’t have taken half as long. This is Miss Aspen. Miss Aspen, this is Doris and Ruby,’ she said, pointing first to the redhead and then to the other girl. ‘And these dolts are Albert and Jed. They’re good hearted, the lot of them, and here to work. Now then, you will take your orders from me inside the house and from Mr Harris in the grounds, and I’ll have no lip.’
‘Excuse me, Mrs Blaine,’ Odile said, holding up a hand to stem her flow of instructions. ‘I am in charge here and everyone will do as I say. Don’t make the mistake of assuming that you can take advantage of my youth or unmarried status, since you will soon discover the error of your ways. Mrs Blaine is in charge of the kitchen and the household, and Mr Harris is in charge of the grounds and the maintenance of the building. You will report to them in the first instance and they will take their orders from me. I will give you all two weeks’ trial, and if I am satisfied with your service then we will make your positions permanent. Is that clear?’
‘Yes, miss,’ they all responded, although Doris, Odile noticed, was sullen and the last to open her mouth. If she was expecting to have things easy, she would soon discover that she had miscalculated.
Mrs Blaine looked at Odile with newfound respect and nodded her approval. Odile smiled, having overcome her first hurdle. She left the girls with Mrs Blaine and heard the cook issuing instructions about buckets and scrubbing brushes. She showed the lads into the drawing room and gave instructions for the motheaten drapes and cushions to be removed and burned.
‘These settees are good solid oak, miss,’ Albert said. ‘Nothing wrong with them and they’ll clean up a treat. You just need to get new cushions made.’
‘So they are, Albert. Well spotted.’
Encouraged that Albert had shown initiative, Odile continued to give instructions regarding the small salon she hoped to make habitable, as well as the one usable bedchamber. She wouldn’t be able to take her meals in the kitchen now that she had servants. They would probably resent her presence, even though she would feel more at home with them than in any fancy drawing room. Her life had changed already, and she needed to adapt accordingly.
Hers would become an invidious situation, she realised, since she wouldn’t fit in with the servants and wouldn’t be accepted by the local gentry either. She was a young, unmarried woman living alone and unable to explain the source of her wealth. She shook her head, aware that she would be looked upon with suspicion. Her ability to enjoy her own company was, she realised, likely to stand her in good stead. Perhaps she would get a dog. She had always had a liking for animals, but Miss Mackenzie refused to have so much as a pet rabbit on the premises on the grounds that all animals were dirty creatures that bit and required constant attention.
By the time she had finished giving the boys their tasks, Harris had returned driving a scruffy yet serviceable curricle pulled by a sturdy-looking horse. She thought it might have been a cob, but was far from certain. The horse was black with large hooves and heavy feathers as thick as the mane that fell across one shoulder. Odile thought him most impressive, and patted his neck cautiously.
‘That’s Patrick,’ Harris said, watching her as she introduced herself. ‘He’s strong but placid and will serve his purpose. I dare say he’ll make himself useful by eating down the pasture,’ he added, indicating the fields on either side of the house.
‘I am sure he will.’ Patrick pushed his nose against her shoulder, as though agreeing with her, making her smile and helping to ease her wariness. ‘Do they belong to the property? I hadn’t thought to ask.’
‘They do. I’ve been letting a local farmer use them for his sheep every so often, or they’d have become completely overgrown. Of course, you can do whatever you like with them now.’
‘The sheep sound like a good idea,’ Odile said. ‘I’ve heard that they are experts at clearing pastures of absolutely anything.’
Harris flashed a brief grin. ‘You’re not wrong there, ma’am.’
‘Right then Harris, let’s put the obliging Patrick through his paces and drive into the village. I will fetch my bonnet and reticule.’
Odile was conscious of people stopping in their tracks and sending her curious glances as she sat beside Harris and he drove Patrick at a walking pace down Arundel’s main street.
‘Have I got a smudge on my nose?’ she asked.
Harris removed one hand from the reins and waved the suggestion aside. ‘Word’s spread like wildfire that you’ve taken up residence at Fox’s Reach. People are curious to get a look at you.’
‘I’m sure they will be very disappointed by what they see,’ she replied, glancing down at her despised grey gown. ‘Let’s deal with my letter, Harris, and then we are for the haberdashery. At risk of sounding vain, how quickly will they be able to make me some new gowns?’
‘It ain’t my area of expertise, ma’am, but they stock a few readymade ones and anything you want made can be done fairly quickly for a price. The general store has a good second hand section if you’re in a hurry.’ He sniffed. ‘Not sure they’ll have anything to suit your requirements though. Their things are practical rather than decorative.’
‘Don’t worry, Harris. I am easily pleased and have never thought of myself as decorative. I am well aware of my limitations and don’t put on airs. Anything will suffice, just so long as it isn’t grey.’
‘Right you are.’ Harris left the curricle at the mews attached to a tavern called the Portcullis.
‘You are welcome to wait for me here,’ Odile said, having alighted from the conveyance. ‘I don’t suppose I shall get lost, and I imagine haberdasheries hold little interest for you.’
