Sea of Secrets: A Novel of Victorian Romantic Suspense Read Online Free PDF

Taking a deep breath for courage, I looked at the duchess. “In fact, ma’am, one reason I wished to meet you was to ask if you might know of a family who needs a governess. I have never worked as one before, but I am qualified to teach Latin and Greek as well as French, and my history and mathematics are fairly sound. I had hoped you might be able to suggest someone who would be willing to employ me. I have no one else to ask, and I”—there was no sense in disguising the urgency of it—“will need to find work at once.”
    I waited, searching for a hopeful sign in her face, but her expression was—deliberately?—neutral. She set her teacup down with a faint chinking sound, her eyes fixed on me. Then, abruptly, as if recalling herself, she turned to the others.
    “Miss Yates, do forgive me,” she said with a bright smile, “I forgot that I am keeping Felicity from her lessons. You have been very patient to let me detain her so long, and I’m sure her cousin will understand if she excuses herself. Oh, and Aminta, would you be an angel and speak to Cook? I have not yet settled tonight’s menu with her; she must be in a taking by now. I’d be so grateful.”
    It was delicately handled, but no less definite a dismissal. The other ladies immediately rose and said their goodbyes to me before leaving us. Almost at once the double doors closed behind the last rustling skirt, and I was alone with the duchess.
    “I hope I was not rude to send them away,” she said, but she was perfectly composed, and poured us both more tea. “Perhaps it was unnecessary, but I thought you might find it less awkward to discuss the matter in private. You’ll forgive me for being personal, child, but why are you in need of a position? I understood your father to be well situated financially. Has he suffered reverses of late?”
    “Not financial ones.” I hesitated, staring into my teacup as I tried to decide how much to tell. There was no way I could make her understand the strange gulf that had always existed between Father and me. How could she believe such coldness could exist between parent and child, she who had evidently lived all her life secure in the admiration of those around her? I decided to tell her a part of the truth, a part that she might be able to accept.
    “Since my brother’s death, I have been more of a burden to Father than a comfort,” I said carefully. “He set great store by Lionel; we both did,” and for a moment I had to stop and swallow hard before I could continue. The duchess patted my hand but did not interrupt. “It would be impossible for me to take Lionel’s place, or to cease reminding Father of his loss. It would be better for both of us if I went away.”
    “And you must support yourself? You have no protector?”
    “None.”
    She regarded me in silence for a few minutes, with no trace of the frivolity she had shown until now. For the first time her bearing seemed more that of a duchess than a belle. Her expression was pensive, with a kind of understanding that suggested decades more experience than I possessed; the butterfly of a moment before, who gave the impression of having known no greater sorrow than a torn petticoat, had given way to a woman of dignity and perception. The metamorphosis was disconcerting: which was the true duchess? And was I safe to trust so chameleon-like a creature?
    She was watching me with a scrutiny so keen that I dropped my eyes to my hands, fearing she would guess my thoughts. At that moment I could have believed that she had the power to read my mind.
    “I think I understand,” she said finally, and again I was surprised at the gravity of her tone. “You find it impossible to remain under your father’s guardianship, and you are unwilling or unable to benefit from his money or connections. You are prepared to work at the lowest occupation available to a gentlewoman, and are forced to seek a position from a distant relative who is essentially a stranger