Page 4 of A Duchess to Reclaim (The Devil’s Masquerade #2)

CHAPTER FOUR

T he estate, she discovered, was indeed quite monstrous as she stood before it; appearing almost church-like in its design of multiple steepled roofs, dark grey stone, and curved archways that held several dark wood double doors. She tried, for a moment, to count the windows, but lost track after thirty.

“My, what a house,” Rose sighed, looking up at it.

“So easy to get lost in, I am sure,” Ophelia stated, fanning her skyward tipped face.

“We will help you learn it,” Theo said supportively, looping her arm through Amelia’s.

Amelia gave her an appreciative smile, and together, the four of them made their way up the long steps. Inside they all gasped at the auspiciousness of the foyer; a sweeping, vast room with a cathedral ceiling, dark grey walls, and polished black metal sconces all lining the walls; all of them lit and actively trying to battle the natural darkness of the place.

“This isn’t an estate, this is a castle,” Ophelia joked.

“A rather dreary one at that,” Rose muttered, her eyes on the many shadows.

“Do not worry,” Theo whispered in Amelia’s ear as she suddenly felt overwhelmed. “We shall brighten it up if that is what you wish.”

Amelia tried to smile, but a grimace was all she could muster. For the first time, she started to wonder if accepting Dominic’s deal was a mistake.

Before her mind could run too far in that direction, a set of double dark wood doors opened up to their left, and two long lines of servants came marching out in perfect time, forming a half circle around the ladies. Once the half circle was formed, a matronly woman with a kind face, and a small, eager looking young woman stepped out of rank and curtseyed deeply.

“Your Grace,” the young woman greeted, her voice thick with reverence, “It is our sincere honor to welcome you to your new home. My name is Ada, the housekeeper’s speaker, and this Mrs. Morbate, the Ellsworth estate housekeeper.”

“Speaker?” Amelia asked, curious.

“Mrs. Morbate lost her ability to speak some years ago,” Ada explained, “But I assure you, Your Grace, she is vastly capable of her duties. I simply am able to translate to the others on her behalf when needed.”

“How fascinating,” Amelia breathed, “Is there a language you learned to help her- you-” she paused, casting a kind glance to Mrs. Morbate to let her know she was speaking to both of them, “how to go on with your duties?”

Mrs. Morbate smiled beautifully and nodded as Ada replied, “Yes, Your Grace. It took time to accomplish, but now I understand her perfectly.”

“Well, I would greatly appreciate to be taught this mysterious language,” Amelia said to them.

Mrs. Morbate bowed her head as Ada replied, “As you wish, Your Grace, we would be delighted.”

Dominic could have simply let Mrs. Morbate go when she lost her ability to speak, yet he chose to keep her on and hire Ada to help her. Most interesting, she mused silently.

“A pleasure to meet you both,” Amelia replied, “Might I introduce you to my dear friends, Lady Theodosia, Lady Rosamund, and Lady Ophelia. They will be my frequent guests. I would prefer it if rooms be ready for them at any given time. My friend, the Duchess of Vanderbilt may be visiting occasionally as well.”

“Of course, Your Grace,” Ada replied as Mrs. Morbate nodded. “His Grace has already informed us of this news and their rooms are already prepared. They are positioned in the Duchess wing, with rooms adjoining yours.”

Amelia blinked in surprise.

“He did?” She asked.

“A wing?” Theo asked, turning her head quickly to Amelia. “You get an entire wing?”

“If I may continue with the rest of the introductions, Your Grace,” Ada urged respectfully as Mrs. Morbate beckoned toward a man to her left. Like Mrs. Morbate, he was older, probably in his late fifties or early sixties, and had a kind face above his slightly rotund belly.

“This is Mr. Morbate,” Ada continued, “The head butler and Mrs. Morbate’s husband. He also at times, acts as somewhat of an overseer of the estate when His Grace is away.”

“A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Morbate,” Amelia said.

Immediately she wanted to corral the man into a room and ask the many questions she had about her husband- though something told her the kind-face butler would not speak much on his master. Like Mrs. Morbate, there was a look of deep devotion in his eyes.

“Lastly I would like you to meet Eve, your personal maid. His Grace informed us you would not be bringing one from your home. She is widely knowledgeable in her craft, but if she is not a good fit, do let us know so that we may find a more suitable arrangement.”

“I am sure that will not be necessary,” Amelia stated, looking around the circle for the maid in question.

Another thin, pale, pretty young woman stepped forward, a lock of stark black hair falling from her cap and nearly covering her left eye. She had large dark brown, almost black eyes that were hauntingly captivating. Her dark pink lips spread into a smile as she curtseyed toward Amelia.

“It would be a pleasure to serve you, Your Grace. I am eager to attend to whatever needs you request.”

Though she couldn’t quite pinpoint why, Amelia liked her immediately.

“I am sure you will learn them swiftly,” she replied.

“We have also acquired handmaids for your friends, Your Grace,” Ada continued, and four more women, all pretty, all with unique features, stepped forward.

“This is Bessie, Nell, Hattie, and Nora. They have many other duties they are able to perform when your guests are not here, so please do not fret over their practicality. All of us are skilled in being multifaceted.”

A curious way to put it, Amelia noted.

“Ooooh, how exciting!” Ophelia squealed.

“Thank you for considering my friends, it is greatly appreciated!” Amelia replied, ending with a laugh of surprise.

“Of course, Your Grace,” Ada said as she and Mrs. Morbate curtseyed once more.

“Now if you would like, Mrs. Morbate and I would like to help you settle in. The others are secondary staff, and you may meet them individually at your leisure if you wish.”

“Yes,” Amelia agreed, thankful she didn’t have to memorize so many names at once. There were at the very least fifty other people in uniform.

“I think that would be best. If you would allow me to rest this evening, my friends and I would be happy to start a tour and hold our first meetings tomorrow.”

“As you wish, Your Grace,” Ada replied, both her and Mrs. Morbate once more bowing deeply.

“Mr. Morbate?” Amelia called as the other servants were silently dismissed.

“Your Grace,” he answered with a bow.

“Would you please deliver a message to my husband, wherever he may be in this grand place, and tell him I request his presence over a late dinner in my quarters?” Amelia asked. There was much she wanted to discuss, to learn. Now more than ever.

The butler gave her a sympathetic look, and gave a slight shake of his head.

“I am afraid His Grace is unreachable, My Lady.”

Amelia’s brows knitted together as she felt a well of disappointment.

“And why is that?” She asked.

“Because, Your Grace, he has already departed.”

* * *

“Eve,” Amelia called out from her bath, “May I ask you something?”

She had spent the evening with her friends, trying to get over the shock and disappointment of Dominic’s departure. They had explored the rooms in the Duchess wing, chattered and gossiped about the mixture of beauty and dark mystery of not just the house itself, but the staff as well. They had all tried, at great length, to speak to Ada and Mrs. Morbate about Dominic, but answers, though kind and polite, eluded to no great details.

They had all dined together, then deciding to not call on their maids, helped one another dress for bed and undo the intricate styles put into their hair for the auspicious day. They’d then chatted and giggled long into the night, nibbling on fruits and sipping on wine, until one by one, Rose, Ophelia, and eventually Theo, retired back to their rooms with sleepy eyes and heavy footsteps.

Amelia had tried to go to sleep in the vast, soft expanse that was her new bed, but it was a task she could not complete. Finally she gave up, rang for Eve, and requested a bath.

“Yes, Your Grace, of course,” Eve answered presently, looking up from her stitching. “Do you need me to wash your back? Or perhaps fetch you a different bath oil?”

“No, no, please stay,” Amelia answered, sitting up in the large copper tub, “I want to ask you about your master. My husband.”

Eve went rigid for a moment, her needle freezing just before it was about to delve into the fabric, then her shoulders relaxed, and she continued.

“I do not know much about him, Your Grace,” she said politely. “As Ada told you, I have only recently come into employ at the house.”

“Yes, but you must know something,” Amelia insisted.

“Perhaps you should ask Mrs. Morbate-”

“I have already tried,” Amelia replied, her tone more curt than intended.

She took a deep breath, gathered her senses, and sunk lower into the warm water until the bottom of her chin touched the surface.

“I only want to know who I am married to, Eve,” she said softly, speaking to her more as a friend than an employer. “I thought he was just another Duke with an inflated sense of self, but there is something different about Dominic. Something…more than the nobility that his title provides him. I want to know what that is.”

Silence stretched between them for a long moment before Amelia heard Eve sigh softly, and then the maid put her stitching down to come kneel by the large tub.

“I truthfully do not know your husband, Your Grace,” she said quietly, “But I can tell you my story, and how our paths crossed, if you wish.”

Amelia sat back up, excitement shooting through her as she quickly nodded.

“Until a few months ago, I was a maid in another house for another esteemed family. Not one so regal as the Duke, but still one of nobility. The Lord of that house had…” she stopped, blushing, and Amelia felt her stomach twist.

She knew what happened to many pretty maids. Knew because she’d seen her father corner more than a few.

“Go on,” she urged softly. “I will not judge you, and your employment is not in any danger from me.”

A look of appreciation passed over Eve’s face, and she continued.

“-Had found an interest in me. For quite a while I was able to curb his chase. I’d learned his schedule, made sure to be one step ahead so that I would not be cornered. I thought I was being quite crafty by keeping away from him in his house, but I forgot about the outside. I forgot, or maybe did not even think, that he could possibly follow me while I was out.

“I was visiting a friend one night in the shopping district in London, her mistress was a modiste, and they lived in the apartment above her shop. I left one night, late, and before I took three steps into the alley, he was there, pinning me up against the wall. I fought. I screamed. But even as others could hear me from the outer street, no one came. At one point I was able to wrench my wrist free, and I dug my nails into my master’s face, no longer caring if I lost my position.

I was able to get in a solid good scratch before he pulled out his pistol and clocked me to the head right well.”

Eve pulled back her lock of black hair then, revealing a jagged, lightning-like scar that stretched from her temple to her eyelid, and Amelia winced at the horror of it.

“Oh, Eve,” Amelia whispered, “I am so sorry.”

“I did not faint, but for a long moment I could not see or move my body. But I was awake as he took me to the ground and started tearing at my skirts. I thought it was over, that I had lost and was about to lose my most precious thing. And then suddenly he was gone. Off of me. Then I heard the sound of pain-filled moans and fists against flesh, and then running footsteps.

“I was so tired, so disoriented from the fight that I could not do anything when I was lifted up again other than open my eyes. For a moment, I thought the man was going to finish what my master started, but instead he pressed a kerchief to my head, and asked me if I would like a new place of work.”

Amelia’s brows flew up.

“My husband saved you?” She asked.

Eve nodded.

“He brought me here that very night, where Ada and Mrs. Morbate took me in and nursed me back to health. I have not seen but a glimpse of His Grace once every so often ever since. He is, as Mr. Morbate explained, a very busy man.”

Amelia thought on Eve’s story for a long moment as the water in her bath grew cool.

“Do others who work in this house have similar stories, Eve?” She asked after a while.

Eve was silent for a moment before she replied, “I have not yet spoken to every worker in this house and those that have shared their secrets with me are even less…but yes, it does seem so, Your Grace. And like myself, they rarely catch glimpses of or deal directly with His Grace. He seems to take us in, and as long as we are apt at our duties, allows us freedoms. It is why we are all so dedicated. Why we’re all willing to complete whatever task he asks of us. Even if it is a bit strange.”

“Strange?” Amelia asked. “How so?”

“Sometimes he directs us to disguise ourselves and go to London. To listen to certain people. To bring him information. It feels dangerous sometimes, but he always pays us handsomely for it.”

“But he is kind to you?”

Eve let out a laugh that startled her.

“Oh, Your Grace, I would not go that far,” Eve replied. “He is protective, surely, and he does provide more than most employers. But his disposition is um…surly. Calm, yes, but also quite gruff and a bit-” she paused, as if trying to find the right word. “Feral? Like a trained wolf. Lovable but you never get too close for fear his primal nature will take over.”

Yes, I can certainly agree to that description of him, Amelia thought.

She was quiet for another moment before she said, “Thank you for your story, Eve, and your time. It is growing late. You may go.”

“Are you sure I cannot help you out of the tub?” Eve asked, reaching for the bath sheet.

“I shall be fine doing it myself,” she replied. “I need to think on what I have learned.”

“Are you angry with me, Your Grace?” Eve asked, a worried expression glimmering over her beautiful face.

“Not at all,” Amelia replied, her tone reassuring. “I am most grateful. It seems, actually, that our circumstances to arriving at this house are similar and I must decide how to move forward. Do try to sleep well for we have much to do tomorrow. I shall see you in the morning.”

Eve curtseyed deeply to her then, and after whispering goodnight, left Amelia to her requested privacy. As she stepped out of the tub and began lathering herself in oils, Amelia thought of her circumstances, her future, and everything Eve had told her.

Dominic had mentioned twice now that they were allowed to lead separate lives, that, as long as she could perform her duties as a Duchess, he would ask nothing else of her. Just as he had done with the servants. He’d saved her. Saved them all, it seemed, but aside from honest work, wanted nothing in return.

After slipping back into her nightdress and sliding back into her massive, empty bed, Amelia felt a burst of euphoria undulate through her spine. She could have the life she truly wanted. Not as a constant plaything for a husband or an ousted spinster that only found solace in the space of a country house. She could live a life of adventure; of exploration. All she had to do was pay her due.

As sleep began to tingle its way through her body, Amelia found herself smiling. Her husband might not be doting or in love with her, it was true. But perhaps…perhaps he’d given her something far more precious.