The Countess Intrigue (12 page)

The butler and housekeeper were a married couple, Mr. and Mrs. Patrick. They would be the members of the staff she would work with most closely, and Elizabeth hoped to make a good first impression. She smiled warmly as they welcomed her to her new home.

“Oh dearie, we’re right glad to have you. It’s about time we have a proper mistress. Whatever you need, you be sure to tell us and we’ll do our level best to see to your comfort.”

Elizabeth was surprised to feel tears prick at the back of her eyes and had to clear her throat before thanking her. “I look forward to working with you, Mrs. Patrick.”

“Mrs. Patrick, would you be so kind as to show Lady Elizabeth to her room so she can freshen up while I confer with Mr. Patrick?” the earl had asked.

“It would be my pleasure. Come along dearie.” The housekeeper suited her words to action and escorted Elizabeth through the large house, showing her some of the rooms and chattering along the way. “Down that hallway is the master’s library and the breakfast room.” She indicated two of the doors that Elizabeth could see standing ajar. She was curious which rooms the other doors led to but didn’t bother asking, certain that over the coming days all those types of questions would be answered.

As they climbed the stairs Mrs. Patrick continued to talk although her voice was coming in bursts as the climb was making her short of breath. “The master instructed… that your things… be placed in the room across the hall… from his own… since your suite… is still torn apart… I do apologize, my lady… we ought to have ensured… that the work was finished up… before his lordship… took a new wife.”

Elizabeth was quick to reassure the housekeeper. “Oh, no, no apology is necessary Mrs. Patrick. I am actually rather excited about the prospect of overseeing the finishing of the project. This way I can make it my very own space.”

“Well dearie… that’s a mighty fine… way of looking at it.” Mrs. Patrick stopped to smile at her new mistress and catch her breath as they reached the top of the stairs. After a moment they continued down the hallway. “Your maid and the master’s valet arrived about an hour ago, and your Pansy has been busy getting your things arranged. I do hope you will be comfortable in here.”

“I am sure it shall be lovely,” Elizabeth answered politely.

Mrs. Patrick shot her a quizzical glance. “The master certainly made a better choice this time.”

Elizabeth could feel a blush rising to her cheeks, a mixture of embarrassment and gratification making her feel at a loss for words. She was saved from having to say anything as they reached the end of the hall.

“Here we are, my lady. His lordship’s room is just there” —she indicated the door on the right— “and this here will be yours for now.”

Mrs. Patrick opened the door into a most contradictory sight. Elizabeth did her best to keep a pleasant smile on her face. It was a large room with several large windows providing a good amount of natural light. This was pretty much where the good points ended. The wallpaper, window coverings, and furniture were all showing signs of age and wear. They were very dark and heavy, not at all to Elizabeth’s taste. But she could see that the housekeeper was looking at her expectantly. Elizabeth scrambled to find something to say.

“Thank you, Mrs. Patrick. It looks as though your staff has done an excellent job of keeping this room clean. And the large windows are delightful. It will be lovely to be able to wake up to so much light in the morning.”

Mrs. Patrick beamed at her, clapping her hands. “Oh, my lady, I am right glad that you like it. We are just so happy to have you here. I’ll leave you now to have a little rest, but you just ring if you need anything at all.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Patrick.” Elizabeth was looking forward to having a few quiet moments to herself with the comforting presence of her own maid who had bobbed a curtsy when they entered but remained where she was across the room, hanging things in the wardrobe.

As the door shut behind the housekeeper, Pansy spoke for the first time. “How are you holding up, m’lady?” She looked a little worried.

Elizabeth tried to smile at her but she felt that it was probably looking as slumped as she felt. She sank onto a stool that was conveniently placed near the door. “I will be fine after a little nap or a good meal. Or both,” she concluded with a small laugh. “It looks like you have been hard at work.” There were empty bandboxes piled up next to the open trunk.

“I had hoped to have it all finished before you got here, but we must not have gotten as big of a head start as I had thought.”

“The earl wanted to be sure that we would arrive before dark, so we didn’t dither about our goodbyes as long as I would have liked.”

“Are you feeling home sick already, m’lady?” Pansy asked with concern.

“Not terribly yet, Pansy, but I am feeling nervous.”

“Well, m’lady, one thing I can tell you is that your new husband is very well spoken of within his household. I know I have just gotten here, but all the other servants have had nothing but good things to say about him. I would think if you had something to fear at least one of the others would have warned me in some way.”

“Would they?” Elizabeth countered. “Or if they were truly fearful would they keep silent for fear that their words might get back to him in some way?”

“Perhaps, m’lady. I can see how you could think that. But I have also heard some of the servants whistling. If the household lived in dread of a tyrannical master I rather doubt there would be any whistling, especially with him expected.”

Elizabeth pondered the maid’s words and brightened considerably. “Thank you, Pansy. You are right. That does make me feel more hopeful. But we really have to find out how the previous countess died. Do you think you could try to ask a few discreet questions?”

“Absolutely, m’lady. You can count on me.”

“I know I can, Pansy, and it is of supreme comfort to me.”

“Why don’t you have a lie down for a few minutes while I finish up here? Then we’ll get you ready for your first supper in your new home.”

Elizabeth looked at the bed not finding it at all welcoming. Her thoughts must have been written on her face.

“It doesn’t look very good, m’lady, but I took the liberty of checking the sheets for cleanliness and it looks as though the mattress has been recently aired. The sheets are clean and the bed feels quite comfortable. I think you should try it out and see.”

Elizabeth didn’t bother replying, she just did as the maid suggested, ignoring the look of the furniture and making use of it. Pansy had been right, it did smell fresh and clean, and it was incredibly comfortable and solid after the long, swaying ride in the carriage. Within an instant Elizabeth was able to shed the concerns and stresses of the day and fall into a deep, blessedly dreamless, sleep.

She awoke with a start to the soft sound of her maid calling to her. “Lady Elizabeth, you shouldn’t sleep much longer or you won’t be able to sleep tonight. I’m sure his lordship is going to be wondering what has become of you if you don’t get yourself up and go down for a bite to eat.”

Elizabeth groaned but obeyed the summons. “You are probably right, Pansy, but at this moment I feel as though I could sleep until the middle of the afternoon tomorrow.” Despite her protests she swung her legs over the edge of the bed and slid to the floor. “And the thought of eating holds very little appeal as well. But you are correct, I should probably go and see what his lordship has to say.”

The thought of seeing her new husband set her nerves to jangling, but she did her best to quell them as her maid helped her to change into a fresh dress and tidy her hair. She opted for a simple style and was quickly ready. She left the room and strode tentatively toward the stairs wondering how long it would take her to find her way around the large house. Luckily it was a well-staffed household and there were plenty of footmen about to give her directions.

“Elizabeth, my dear,” the earl got to his feet as soon as he saw his wife hovering in the doorway. “Come in, please. I wasn’t sure if you would be joining me. Your maid had informed me that you were fast asleep when I stopped by your room to check on you.”

Elizabeth blushed. “Pansy didn’t tell me you came to see me, but she woke me up and reminded me that I ought to eat. I’m sorry if you have been inconvenienced.”

“Not at all. After sitting all day, I didn’t feel very hungry so I asked that we be served a cold collation. I figured that way the timing didn’t matter very much and if you joined me, you joined me. If not, it could be kept for another day.”

Feeling nervous and on edge Elizabeth inched into the room. The earl must have been able to tell because he made an effort to put her at ease. His warm smile and thoughtfulness about the meal had her relaxing slightly as she moved further into the room. She finally made her way to the table where he held a chair for her. After he returned to his own seat, he continued speaking in a relaxed, informal tone.

“I met briefly with my steward and the butler. It has been a couple months since I have been here. I am happy to be able to report that it seems all has been running smoothly. I will have to spend the bulk of tomorrow reviewing the ledgers and records, but Mr. Patrick led me to believe that I shan’t be inundated with work, which is a relief. If you feel up to it perhaps we could go for a ride tomorrow and I could show you some of the estate.”

Elizabeth was gratified to hear the eager pride in his voice. It was heart warming to know that her new husband was looking forward to showing off his properties to her. “That sounds like a lovely plan, thank you, my lord.”

“Did Mrs. Patrick give you a tour of the house before you laid down?”

“An abbreviated one,” Elizabeth said with a smile. “She told me she would show me more tomorrow, but I’m not fully convinced she will be able to manage it. The stairs seemed to be giving her a bit of trouble.”

“She will want to show you every cupboard and closet so the stairs won’t be all at once,” came the earl’s reasonable reply.

“That’s true. I look forward to learning everything.”

They conversed comfortably after that while the footmen served them the light meal. When the earl asked if she was very tired, Elizabeth once again felt nerves shake her but he merely invited her for a game of checkers before they retired.

The next day, true to her word, the housekeeper spent the entire morning touring Elizabeth from the cellars to the attics. The three wings of the house left Elizabeth feeling a little dizzy. She had thought she had grown up in grand surroundings but it was becoming clear to her that Heath was on a scale even she was not fully accustomed to. She tried not to reveal her lack of experience to the housekeeper, as she smiled and nodded in what she expected were all the right places.

“It seems to me that this house has been in very good hands with your management, Mrs. Patrick.”

The housekeeper beamed with pride at her mistress’ words. “I have done my level best, my lady. But it is a real pleasure to have someone such as yourself to take over the running of things. And now it seems likely that the master will be in residence more now that he has a good wife. So I will be vastly happy to have your direction.”

“It looks to me as though you are well prepared and stocked up. You will have to keep me informed as things progress, Mrs. Patrick, especially for things like linens and such. It would not do for them to become worn. We will no doubt have visitors from time to time. I come from a very large family and I am sure many of them will wish to visit.”

“Oh how exciting,” Mrs. Patrick declared, clapping her hands. “Now come this way, my lady. I haven’t yet shown you the nursery. Hopefully soon it will be needed.”

Elizabeth could feel heat rising in her face but made no comment as she followed in the housekeeper’s wake.

At breakfast the earl had mentioned he would be free by two o’clock to take her riding so Elizabeth asked the housekeeper to have a tray sent to her room when the tour finally came to an end. She then went up to change into her riding habit.

While she was eating her small repast, Elizabeth quietly thought over what she had seen on her tour. The earl’s staff was clearly hard working. Every room she had entered was clean and well kept. But most of those rooms were also darkly furnished and out dated, much like the room she was occupying. She could understand now why the earl had offered to allow her to redecorate. He might have wanted to make her feel at home, but he was also no doubt quite well aware of the need for updates. As he had suggested, she would start with finishing the project the previous countess had started.

Elizabeth had been a bit uncomfortable to come across a room full of that lady’s belongings. She was surprised it was all still there. The housekeeper had obviously been embarrassed about it, and Elizabeth had tried to put her at ease, but she felt an intense curiosity about the woman and was actually looking forward to digging through her things even though she felt a pang of guilt about her plans.

Mrs. Patrick had been flustered and hurriedly declared she would have some maids summoned to see to removing the items, but Elizabeth had firmly told her that would not be necessary. Shutting the door firmly she had told Mrs. Patrick that the things could remain where they were for the time being. She would see to rearranging the rooms in a certain order and they could deal with that room when they came to it. Mrs. Patrick had accepted her words happily and the tour had continued.

Now Elizabeth began to scheme how she could spend some time in there without anyone finding out. She didn’t want the servants speculating about her curiosity or for the earl to find out that she was investigating his first wife. She resolved to spend a little time searching after her ride with the earl.

“I apologize, Elizabeth, I will not be able to take you as far afield as I had hoped today. The work with my steward is more complicated than I had at first thought.” The earl’s words greeted her as soon as she reached the bottom of the stairs in her riding habit.

Elizabeth was surprisingly disappointed but she tried to save face. “That is quite all right, my lord. If you would rather put it off until another day, I will completely understand.”