Mask of Duplicity (The Jacobite Chronicles Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page A

others, especially if he could then take the credit for any success, while avoiding the blame for any failure.
    He had envisaged coming home to a bereft and helpless sister surrounded by luxury, and had planned to get her out of the way by marrying her off as soon as possible, then buy himself a commission with his father’s money and install a housekeeper and steward to maintain the house for when he came home on leave, or wished to entertain his officer friends. He had no intention of letting Beth take control of his business and house, but as he didn’t know what he was going to do now, he said nothing.
    The return of the excited servants from their day out saved him from having to comment on Beth’s proposal. She heard them, and suggested that she go out first to tell them of Richard’s arrival and arrange them in a line to be presented formally to him. He agreed to this, and observed discreetly from behind the curtain as Beth went out to meet the staff. He saw with distaste how they crowded round her in a far too familiar way, laughing as they shared their tales of the day’s exploits with her. Beth was holding a child in her arms, its grubby face sticky with sweets. Who did the child belong to? he thought. Married servants with children usually lived outside the household, somewhere nearby. And what was the mistress of the house doing allowing a grubby urchin to tangle its filthy hands in her hair, laughing as a young dark-haired woman, presumably the mother, came to her rescue? Clearly they had been allowed far too much licence. He also saw that some of the people were giving Beth small presents; a ribbon, a cake, even a book, which she exclaimed over. How could they afford to buy gifts, if they had not been paid? Either his sister was exaggerating the financial situation, or she paid the servants far too much, if they could save enough to buy fripperies after receiving no wages for three months.
    As he went out to introduce himself to the staff, his mind was seething with all the new information he had to process. He had made no decision as yet, but one thing was certain. Things would have to change. He was the master now, and soon everyone would know it.
    * * *
    Richard spent the first couple of days settling in. His luggage arrived, and Beth, in conciliatory mood, moved out of the front bedroom with its view across the lane to the nearby church and village green, helping the maids to prepare it for him. She moved into a slightly smaller bedroom at the back of the house which overlooked the stables and yard, and spent a lot of time cleaning, hanging pictures in an attempt to cover up the faded wallpaper, and generally making it her own. This also gave her an excuse to keep out of her brother’s way for a while, which she hoped would have the dual purpose of giving him time to forget the bad start they’d made, and also to become accustomed to his new role as master of the house without her interference.
    She only interfered once, and he would never know about that. After she had arranged the servants in a line in the yard on their return from the fair, Richard had stalked out to advise them all peremptorily that he was the master now, that he expected unquestioning obedience from them, and that he would tolerate no impertinence. With that he had marched off, leaving all the staff deeply concerned and not a little hostile. Beth had been aware that he was probably covering up his nerves with brusqueness, and knowing the personalities of her staff, decided to try to smooth his way a little.
    To that end she gathered all the servants together in the kitchen for a secret meeting on the first night, after her brother had retired to bed. She then tried to reassure them that Richard’s bark was certain to be worse than his bite.
    “He’s used to dealing with rough soldiers,” she said to the sea of sceptical faces. “No doubt they require very strong discipline. He’s not accustomed to being the master of a