By The Sea, Book One: Tess Read Online Free PDF

of Miss Cornelia Winward that you are gifted
with a needle, and she has asked for your services personally. It
is, of course, a tremendous opportunity for you, Tess," Mrs.
Bracken added unnecessarily.
    There was no question in the housekeeper's
mind that Tess would accept: the position promised prestige, better
wages, better working conditions. It was a far better position than
even the still-room maid's. Tess, reeling from the upheaval that
had shaken the Moran family, was madly assessing their shifting
finances: Her fathers and brother's wages had disappeared in one
blow. For Maggie, no change. For Tess, half again as much. But
could she afford to abandon Maggie to the hard labor of the laundry
room?
    "I assume, Tess, that the distressed look on
your face means that you can't find appropriate words to express
your gratitude." There was dry menace in Mrs. Bracken's voice;
obviously she remembered Tess's agony of indecision months earlier
in New York.
    "Yes, ma'am," Tess answered with a touch of
dryness herself, "that must be it." She would work it all out
later, with Maggie, in their room.
    "Good. It's settled then. For the next few
weeks you will be instructed by Marie. If you can afford lessons in
hairdressing, I should very much advise it; Miss Cornelia is very
particular about her coiffure. Until Marie leaves, your chief
responsibility will be to keep up Miss Cornelia's rooms and of
course her wardrobe. You will occasionally accompany Marie and Miss
Cornelia—to tea, tennis, a picnic, a ball, perhaps. I must also
request, though I am well aware that it is not the ordinary thing,
that for a while you help keep up the guest rooms as well. As soon
as I can find additional chambermaids to replace the ones we've
lost today, that temporary duty will of course drop away. Since it
is summer and there are no fires to make up, your duties as
housemaid are considerably reduced."
    "Yes, ma'am. I understand."
    "Well, then. For the moment, there is
nothing further. You will get together with Bridget and bring her
up to date on the present laundry routine; she has not worked in
the laundry room in over a year, and meanwhile the Bradford washing
machine has been installed. But first, I would very much like you
to see Jinny about helping her prepare some of the guest rooms. She
is quite overwhelmed; and meanwhile new carriages seem to be
arriving on the half-hour. That will be all."
    "Yes, ma'am," Tess said one last time.
"Thank you, ma'am." She rose to leave.
    Mrs. Bracken's eyebrows lifted in ironic
surprise. "Tess," she said, calling her back in mid-exit, "I have a
good opinion of you. You are a seemly young woman who avoids the
idle gossip of the hall. You dress with attention and take pains
with your hair and skin. It is to your great advantage that you
have learned to read and write and have made an effort to rid
yourself of the worst of your Irish accent and distressing
colloquialisms. Do not think such ambition goes unobserved. You can
do quite well for yourself, if only you apply discipline and
diligence. Mrs. Winward is not an ungenerous employer, though she
may seem remote at times. Remember that."
    Tess, not yet eighteen, stunned by the
dramatic mix of good fortune and unjust reversals, did her best to
look the part of a well-mannered servant who was at home in the
world of elegant carriages and costumed balls, trans-Atlantic
liners and private railway cars. "I shall certainly do my best,
ma'am, and I think that my best will suit Miss Cornelia very
well."
    Mrs. Bracken, thin and stiff, gave the tall
and graceful Tess a long, appraising look. "I'd like to think so,
too."
    ****
    The next seven days could fairly be said to
have transformed Tess's life. Although Tess was familiar with most
aspects of domestic service, she knew little about the duties of a
lady's maid. Lady Meller had been attended by old Prudhella, who'd
served on the Meller estate all her life. As a result, Tess had
never had occasion to lay out a riding habit