Chapter Eight: Alexander

It was about mid-morning on Monday when I arrived at Meadowbrooke Cottage. For a moment, I stood at the road and studied the structure from a distance. A vine was growing wild up the side of the structure, and bushes were overgrown along the walk. Even from where I was, I could see that the gate was rusted, just as William had warned me it would be.

"What am I doing here?"

This shouldn't have fallen to me. There were several things I should be doing at the manor: meeting tenants, collecting rent, or arranging needed repairs. The state of a neighboring cottage was not my concern.

At least I wouldn't need to be involved in any of the preparations for the masquerade ball that was to happen in three weeks.

Why a masquerade? William hadn't had a good answer beyond, "My sisters enjoy it and they're fun for everyone invited."

At least becoming the earl hasn't changed him too much. I shook my head. My cousin had always been fond of fun and creating environments where his friends and family could enjoy themselves. It had been a miracle that this tendency hadn't led him into bad company.

It did make him more generous when others might show some caution. And I was convinced the matter with Mrs. Burke was one of those situations.

"Hasn't the woman cost your family enough?" I'd asked when William had first told me to discover all the repairs needed to make Meadowbrooke Cottage more livable. "Why are you taking on this expense when you haven't met the girl? You said you wouldn't pay another bill until she came!"

"What kind of guardian would I be if I let her stay there, knowing there are problems with the roof?" William had shaken his head. "While you are there, question the maid and whoever else remains. I want to know how it happened that Mrs. Burke's servants let it get to the state it is in."

Did he really think the servants would just admit to their guilt? If they were guilty?

Movement in one of the windows caught my attention. There was a figure in the upstairs window but it was too far to see. A moment later, the person moved out of view. Was it Mrs. Burke? Now warned of my arrival?

Breathing out, I forced the gate open and then strode to the front door. I searched for a bell to ring but finally settled for rapping his knuckles against the oak. Then, I waited. And waited After a minute with no response, I knocked again. Just as I was about to knock for a third time, the door opened.

"I'm sorry," the older woman I'd seen in the church the day before, said, drying her hands with her apron. Her face was lined with worry. "I was working in the back. You are Mr. Turner?"

"Yes, ma'am." I pulled my hat off. "You must be Mrs. Haynes. Miss Ellie mentioned you."

A brief smile brightened the woman's face. "Did she? She's a good girl." The smile faded and she glanced over his shoulder. "Mrs. Burke says you are to make an inspection of the house."

"Yes, but I do not wish to take you from your work. Perhaps Miss Ellie can show me what needs fixing?"

Mrs. Haynes shook her head. "Miss Ellie was sent out on errands this morning," she said, her tone regretful. "Mrs. Burke wants to give you the tour herself."

The news only made an unwelcome task even more burdensome. "Mrs. Haynes! Do not keep Mr. Turner standing on the doorstep!" Mrs. Burke's voice called out. "Let him in. I'm sure he has a great deal to do and we mustn't take up all his time. His cousin would never forgive us."

The woman's eyes widened, but I wasn't sure why. She backed up to give me room to step in. "My apologies for speaking too freely, sir," she said in a low, subdued voice. "I forgot my place."

Ah. It was the detail that I was the earl's cousin that had surprised her so much, but what had she said that she thought she should not have? "No apology necessary," I said as Mrs Burke came down the stairs. "Good morning, Mrs. Burke. I hope I am not too early."

"Well, when in the country, we must abide by country hours." Her voice contained no enthusiasm. "Shall we start with the worst of the damage? It is in one of the bedrooms."

Mrs. Haynes hurried away without another word. "There really is no need for you to show me, Mrs. Burke," I said, trying to keep my tone polite. "I'm sure Mrs. Haynes or your maid are aware of the issues here as they have lived here."

"It wouldn't surprise me if they tried to hide something since it does not reflect well on them."

"Oh? So you blame them for the cottage's state?"

"How can I not?" Mrs. Burke spun on her heel and started up the stairs. She didn't even glance over her shoulder to see if I was following. "I have not been here, so I could not see for myself what things were coming to. And I sent them funds each quarter to ensure any matters were handled in my absence. You can see how that has turned out for me."

She waved her hands at the wall as though that explained the matter. The floral wallpaper had no flaw as far as I could tell. "Then, the servants pocketed the money for themselves?"

"One can only assume! For nothing has been kept up here."

Something wasn't right. "Then, I will have Mrs. Haynes and your maid brought up before the magistrate," I said, though I disliked sounding so harsh. Perhaps it would startle her into speaking the truth.

At the top of the stairs, Mrs. Burke came to an abrupt halt and she turned. "I beg your pardon?"

"Well, from what you have just said, I can only conclude that a crime has been committed in the past ten years. Your household has taken money not intended for them, so they have stolen from you. The next proper step would be to see them charged with the crime. We need the magistrate for that."

"I don't see that what happens in my household is any of your concern and I will enforce discipline if I see fit!"

Interesting. "I quite agree. And yet, you have requested the assistance of the earl of Berdwell in managing your home. I am acting on behalf of the earl. I will need to speak to Mrs. Haynes and your maid to better understand this matter."

There was a pause. Mrs. Burke shook her head and spun around. "Perhaps I misunderstood," she said as she continued on her way. "I will speak to Mrs. Haynes myself and learn the truth. If there is cause for concern or need to pursue criminal charges, I will let you know."

Her sudden change of heart was strange. "If you say so," I said slowly. Should I press the matter? After all, my cousin wanted to know all he could. "Well, show me what needs to be done."

In one of the bedrooms, there was clear evidence that the roof had leaked at some point. However, a quick glance in the attic showed that the roof had already been repaired. A small bed revealed that the maid slept there.

Mrs Burke did not have an answer for when the repair had been made or who had done it. "I will have to speak to Mrs. Haynes then," I said, trying to reign in my triumph. "She has been here for some time, has she not?"

"For as long as I have known," Mrs. Burke said, her lips turning down into a petulant frown. "But I hope you will not distract her today. There is much to do with Harriet about to come home."

"Well, I should check each room to look for any more damage."

"Oh, I don't think there is anything more you need to look at."

"No, I must be thorough. The earl would expect it." As much as I hated using my cousin's name and influence like that, I had the feeling it would be the only way to get any cooperation from the woman. "You did say there were multiple problems with the cottage, did you not? And you have only shown me one thing."

Mrs. Haynes bustled past with linens in her hands. "Why, I'm sure you mean the windows in the blue bedroom," she said, her tone louder than was necessary. "I only mention it as Mrs. Burke was insistent that all issues, no matter how minor, be fixed as soon as possible."

Mrs. Burke's blue eyes narrowed into a glare. I put his hand on the handle of the door closest to him. "Do you mean in this room?"

"That is it exactly." Mrs. Haynes continued on her way.

Without waiting for the mistress of the house to object any further, I pushed open the door. To my surprise, the first thing I saw was two dresses on the floor. The bed was unmade and there was used water in the basin. "Your room, I take it, ma'am?" I asked, trying to ignore the flush of embarrassment that heated my face.

"Yes. I cannot believe Ellie left before finishing her duties." Mrs. Burke pushed past him and began picking up the clothing. "I am tempted to turn the girl out. She really is useless."

"Ma'am, you said the thread was of utmost importance this morning," Mrs. Haynes said from behind me. "You demanded Mi—Ellie to go out immediately."

The mistress of the house's expression became ugly with anger. "Thank you for your reminder, Mrs. Haynes. I'm sure you have tasks you need to handle right now in the kitchen, do you not?"

"It has been some time since the chimney was cleaned in the kitchen. Five years ago, if I am remembering correctly. Miss Ellie and I sewed a dress for the Millers' son to do the task as best he could," the housekeeper—or was she simply the cook?—said, raising her chin. "I hope Mr. Turner will check that as well? You did give your word that you would be improving Meadowbrooke Cottage."

"Yes, yes," Mrs. Burke hissed, waving her hand. "Off with you."

"I will check it myself, Mrs. Haynes," I said over my shoulder. What had she meant there had been a trade? A way to get a necessary task done without using the money provided? And a neighbor boy? Why not simply pay a man who was trained on the job?

Her expression satisfied, Mrs. Haynes nodded before hurrying on her way. "You can see what I have to deal with," Mrs. Burke said immediately. "These servants think they can get away with so much since I have been away."

"I am surprised you have not hired new servants, since you have had so many problems with the ones you have." Though my family had never afforded anything more than a maid of all work to help my mother, I'd seen how my well-off cousins had lived. A good servant was well worth their wage, while those who slacked were sent on their way. "Or were Mrs. Haynes and Ellie replacements for worse servants in the past?"

Her mouth opened to speak but then she paused. "Mrs. Haynes was hired by my husband and he was fond of her," she finally said. "As for Ellie...well, you could say I inherited her as well. She's too useless to go anywhere else so I put up with her."

Again, her wavering opinion was confusing. I put it aside for the moment and made a point of checking the other bedroom. It too had the appearance of being lived in, with water in a pitcher and a closed trunk at the foot of the bed.

Did Mrs. Burke use one as a dressing room and the other to sleep in? It seemed inconvenient to do so with the room across the hall from each other, but what would someone like me know what a woman would want?

This, too, I put to the back of his mind. Perhaps William would know what to make of it. With the bedrooms inspected, I moved down to the sitting room. Nothing seemed amiss there, though the windows did seem to stick. A minor, but easily fixable problem.

Mrs. Burke stayed right on my heels as I made my way to the kitchen. Mrs. Haynes was kneading bread at the table there. She kept quiet as I checked the chimney and agreed that it could use a good cleaning. The woman sent a satisfied look at her mistress.

"Well, I don't want to inconvenience you or his lordship too much," Mrs. Burke said, a scowl on her face.

"Oh, no. Your stepdaughter will want to know she is coming to a safe house, would she not?" I asked. I knew I shouldn't but it was fun to annoy the woman. "Will your gardener be arriving soon? The ivy will need to be tended and of course, the bushes trimmed back."

"Gardener?" Mrs. Burke repeated.

"It has been some time since there has beena gardener here at Meadowbrooke," Mrs. Haynes spoke up quietly. "Mr. Cartwell had been here for ten years, but he wished to be compensated for his work. Loyalty to a family does not put bread on the table."

"Compensated?" This time it was I who was doing the repeating. "Do you mean his wages were not paid before he left?"

Mrs. Haynes nodded. "There was a maid as well, Mary. If she hadn't married, I imagine she would have left us as well."

Again, she made it sound as though there had been no money at all in the household for quite some time. "But Ellie did not?"

Mrs. Haynes' hands froze for a moment. "No, sir. She has nowhere to go." She dropped her gaze back to her work. "She and I have not been compensated for our work either if you must know."

"The earl might have a gardener he could spare?" Mrs. Burke asked, jumping back into the conversation. "Harriet does love a garden. She is so very good with growing things and digging around in the dirt. It would bring her such pleasure to arrange flowers while she is here."

"I will mention it to the earl and see what his thoughts are on the matter." I intended on discouraging it as much as I could. My cousin was already involved too much in the goings-on of Meadowbrooke. "He may decide that it would simply be easier to have the young lady brought to the manor."

Mr. Haynes looked up at that. "I will speak to the earl myself," Mrs. Burke said firmly. "I'm sure he will understand a mother's point of view and what really matters is what would be best for Harriet."

A choking, almost coughing sound came from the housekeeper-cook. "Are you well, ma'am?" I asked in concern.

"I'm fine, sir. Thank you," the woman said, recovering herself. "Miss Ellie will be pleased to hear about the repairs to be done."

Strange that the housekeeper, who would undoubtedly be the senior servant, referred to her underling as 'Miss Ellie', instead of simply by her first name. I shook my head. "Well, I will be on my way. Unless you have another issue to bring to my attention?"

Neither woman seemed to have anything to say, so I took his leave. When I reached the road, I glanced back. More than ever, I felt there was something not right at the cottage, and it wasn't merely a lack of care for the building. Mrs. Burke was up to some mischief, but I couldn't imagine what it could be.

The contradictions weighed on my mind as I began walking. I kept to the road instead of cutting across the pasture. At least, it was a fine day for a walk. In fact, the sun made it a bit warm.

With no one around, I tugged on my cravat and untied it. Next, I undid the button at my neck and felt a moment of relaxation. My mother would be appalled if she saw me so casually dressed where I might encounter someone.

Raising a hand to a passing wagon, I tried not to think about how disappointing it had been not to see Ellie again. We'd only had two conversations, after all, never mind that it had been enjoyable both times. Her openness and honesty had been refreshing compared to the ladies my mother had insisted on introducing me to in London.

And it couldn't be denied that she was lovely to look at, even in her dull and faded gowns.

Slowly, I made my way back to the manor. I had reached the gate when I heard something besides birds chirping in the trees. Was that someone sniffing? Were they hurt?

"Hello?" I called out in concern. "Who is there?"

I caught a glimpse of movement against the gate's column: a brown sleeve. Then, I saw blonde hair. "Miss Ellie?" I asked, both worried and delighted to see her. "Are you well?"