“What if Mrs. Thurston realizes I am Adèle’s former governess?” I asked.
“That could work to our advantage. She had instructed me to find someone to fill the position temporarily. Certainly she doesn’t want to serve as proctor for the Senior girls, because the stairs are too difficult for her to climb. I could tell her that you are between situations. That might work well, as she is aware that Adela’s governess left under embarrassing circumstances,” Miss Miller said.
“I’m not sure I understand why that is useful. Pray explain your reasoning to me,” I said.
“If Mrs. Thurston believes she could get away with paying a teacher less than custom demands, the situation would benefit her.” Miss Miller’s cheeks turned crimson. “Lady Kingsley demands a strict accounting of all our expenses. This is a small economy, but one that should prove helpful.”
“But Mrs. Rochester is no longer a governess. Her station has changed. She is married to a squire!” Lucy’s gentle tone kept her remark from sounding like a reprimand.
“That is true,” Miss Miller said. “But I am fairly certain that Mrs. Thurston does not know about the marriage. Poor health forced Mrs. Webster to retire rather suddenly. Paperwork piled up as a natural consequence. Maude Thurston has neither gone through nor distributed all the correspondence on her desk.”
So that was why Adèle didn’t congratulate us on Ned’s birth! The girl never received our letter! It most likely sat in that pile of unopened mail on Mrs. Thurston’s desk.
“You are asking Mrs. Rochester to put herself squarely in the path of danger,” Mr. Douglas said, frowning at Miss Miller.
“I should think that Jane might be better served to remove Adèle at once and be done with Alderton House,” said Lucy.
“I admit I did not consider the danger to Mrs. Rochester. Indeed, I was uncertain that there was a danger,” Miss Miller said. “But Mr. Waverly pressed the point—and he is a compelling figure. So he forced me to wonder how to protect the girls. Of course, I knew Mrs. Rochester would share my worries for them. Especially given our history at Lowood.”
She and I exchanged a wordless interlude. The memories of the dying girls came flooding back. No one spoke for them at the time. No one stepped forward to offer them protection or solace.
Miss Miller knew I could not refuse her. Not given our shared remembrances.
“Let me speak to my status: I care little about it. I am new to London, so I have no calls to make and no station to protect,” I said honestly. “Since my husband will not be joining me for several days, I see no harm in this masquerade. As for the girls, I imagine that more than a few were sent to Alderton House because their parents have happily relinquished their responsibility. They are orphans in all but the technical term of the law. Beyond that, I am here to protect Adèle and to see if this school is right for her. This might present a useful manner for making observations.”
“But Jane, it might not be safe! Miss Miller, could you hire another German teacher? Or rearrange the sleeping accommodations so all the girls have protectors?” Lucy spoke with great emotion.
“The layout of the school is such that each of the forms has a separate sleeping room. I watch over the Infants, Miss Parthena Jones is installed with the Juniors, and, thus, the Seniors alone are without supervision. There are too many students to move them all into one room.
“Since everyone is expecting a German teacher, this seemed like a good way to both secure the sleeping quarters and keep an eye on the different age groups,” Miss Miller explained. “I also supposed that Mrs. Rochester’s presence would go a long way toward comforting Adela.”
“That might be the wisest course of action, putting a fox in the henhouse, so to speak, but it is a hasty response to the problem,” said Mr. Douglas.
I wondered aloud, “Why doesn’t Mrs. Thurston sleep in the room with the Senior girls?”
Miss Miller colored slightly. “She is such a sound sleeper that I think it would do no good. Also, I doubt that she could manage the stairs. She is rather stout.”
This explanation strained the seams of credibility, but I let it pass.
“What questions did Waverly ask?” said Mr. Douglas, beginning to pace impatiently. “Pardon my interference, but before Mrs. Rochester puts herself in this situation, I would like to know what Waverly knows. That might shed more light on the dangers.”
“Mr. Waverly wanted a recitation of the events of the morning,” Miss Miller said.
“Review that for us quickly, if you would please.”
“Staff rises at five thirty,” said Miss Miller. “Emma, our maid of all work, rings the bell for the Senior girls at six. Ten minutes later, she knocks on their door. Since the previous German teacher Fräulein Hertzog left us a month ago, we have had no adult in that dormitory. As a consequence, Mrs. Thurston devised a plan. Each Senior has a partner, who is responsible for seeing that her partner is dressed and ready for breakfast. The head girl oversees two partners.”
“And the age of these girls?” Mr. Douglas asked.
“Adela is the youngest Senior at ten,” Miss Miller said, and quickly explained how Mrs. Thurston thought she might be a bad influence on children her own age. Lucy shook her head in disgust, but Miss Miller continued with, “The rest are age thirteen and older. Many of the girls will stay with us until they make their debut at age sixteen. Selina was the eldest, just sixteen. The idea of partners has worked rather well.”
“What happens if the partner proves incorrigible? A sluggard?” Lucy asked.
“Then they both are punished.” Miss Miller spoke softly. The rest of us shook our heads in disgust. We could well imagine the difficulty for a child with a recalcitrant partner.
Could that have been a motive for murder? I wondered, but I discounted the idea. How could one schoolgirl kill another? The very thought sent a shiver up my spine.
“I admit that the problem lay chiefly with Selina,” Miss Miller hurried to explain. “She is—was—difficult and did not take well to instruction. The girl was a beauty, had always been, and I believe her father especially was so captivated by her looks that he could not bring himself to discipline her.”
“Would an intruder have had access to the Senior dormitory?” Mr. Douglas wondered. “That scenario—while unlikely—cannot be completely discounted.”
“Yes.” Miss Miller nodded. “It is possible an intruder climbed in through the window. There is a large horse chestnut tree with a branch that abuts the dormitory window.”
“Did Waverly see any signs of forced entry?” Mr. Douglas asked.
“He did not, but he did recommend that, besides adding the chaperone, Mrs. Thurston ought to cut down the offending horse chestnut branch immediately.”
“And her response?” asked Mr. Douglas.
I thought I knew what it would be. I could not imagine Mrs. Thurston accepting direction from anyone, even a Runner from Bow Street.
“She said she would take up the matter with Lady Kingsley. Such decisions about the grounds are beyond Mrs. Thurston’s purview, to be honest.”
Miss Miller colored and looked away. “I must also tell you that Selina liked to sneak out at night. I caught her at it once. I know Miss Jones did, too. Selina was like that. Challenging. Strong willed. Her parents live in Brighton. They are not well-to-do, so they sent her here while they saved up for her debut this spring. Selina was unhappy about the situation, as she expected finer lodgings and a grand staff and told us so at every opportunity. As a consequence, she liked to misbehave. We were quite unsuccessful in taming her.”
“Let us get back to your review of the morning’s schedule,” said Mr. Douglas.
“The girls wash and dress to come downstairs. Prayers are at six thirty. Breakfast is served around seven. But at six twenty, Selina had not moved. Her partner railed at her, rewarding her with a few small shoves to the shoulder. The other girls ignored this. The morning seemed unexceptional, as Selina often refused to get up in a timely manner. Finally, Selina’s partner grew angry. The two had gotten into a brief scuffle a few days ago. There was even some hair pulling. Despite the tussle they had, Selina had succeeded in making her partner late, and both girls were charged with memorizing extra Scripture verses. This morning, Selina’s partner lost all patience. She decided to drag Selina out of bed. Of course, that is when she discovered Selina was dead.”
I could only imagine the scene and how shocked the girls were. Especially the girl who grabbed Selina only to discover she was cold and stiff.
Mr. Douglas’s face was thoughtful when he asked, “What is the name of Selina’s partner?”
Miss Miller cut her eyes at me. “Adela. It was Adela Varens who found Selina dead.”