- Chapter 1 -

A warm spring breeze fluttered over the grass fields surrounding the village of Compton. It swirled playfully under the branches of a lone oak that regally surveyed the cluster of houses and shops bordering a thin, meandering river.

If one were to look directly ahead, over the roofs of Compton, one would see the towers of Rosforte Castle, home of Lady Mariah Compton, Baroness of Rosforte, peeking above the trees.

Bordering that great estate are the slightly lesser estates of the two other wealthy families in Compton: Rosehill Park on the left, home of the Rightwoods, and Norcastle on the right, home of the formidable widow, Mrs Routley, and her son.

Under flickering shade cast by the proud tree as it rustled in the wind, a young woman sat reading in the tall grass. Strands of her mahogany hair danced in the breeze and brushed across her face. She pulled the playful strands behind an ear and squinted up at the afternoon sun.

With a start, she snapped her book shut and jumped to her feet, lifting her skirts to run. She sped down the grassy path as quick and graceful as a startled hart and into a small patch of dense woods.

Emerging soon after from the narrow, hidden path, she stepped onto a larger, well-trodden one bordering the forest and turned right towards the small town.  After a short way, she quit this path and veered left, to speed over the fallowing fields towards her destination.  The small farm just on the outskirts of the cozy village grew larger, until she flung open the back door of the farmhouse, arriving with a sharp bang.

"Mama!" She called breathlessly, bursting into the living area and pulling off her apron in a flurry "I am nearly late! Have you pressed my best frock? I cannot believe I allowed myself to tarry so long!"

With a knowing smile, her mother looked up from where she was scaling a fish "Yet somehow I can believe it. I do have it pressed and laid on your bed. Have you yet thanked Mrs Hill for securing you this interview?"

"Of course Mama!" She yelled over her shoulder as she rushed into the bedroom she shared with her siblings. "I thanked her immediately, and on several occasions since!"

The girl piled her dark curls high on her head and secured them as best she could in her haste, before throwing on her freshly pressed, lavender Sunday dress. "Katherine! Mr Wheaton has the horses ready!" She heard her mother call from the other room.

Securing her gown's bow at the back, she pecked a kiss on her mother's cheek; then, grabbing her bonnet on the way out, jumped into the small open-top carriage beside her Papa, and they were off.

"Are you nervous Kat?" he grinned at her a few minutes later as they turned into the Rosforte estate.

"A little." she chewed her lip in nervous anticipation "It's all so very grand Papa, I feel so dreadfully out of place!"

"You can only be out of place if you believe yourself to be out of place. You are equal to everything and anyone."

"Certainly not Papa! I cannot presume to be equal to this surely." she gaped as the castle loomed ahead of them and lush gardens surrounded the drive.

"You are equal to it. You are not entitled to it. There is a difference."

Katherine Wheaton gazed up in wonder at the massive Rosforte castle that stood before her, which seemed to return her gaze with powerful intensity. She gulped.

"Go ahead Kat." Her father encouraged gently "Head up, smile for me."

She obliged him with a shaky smile, struggling for confidence, then hopped from the carriage and waved him off as she stepped up the stairs to the front doors.  Katherine was led into an expansive parlor, draped in red velvet, marble, and gold. Huge portraits were hung in gold frames, bright against the deep red wallpaper. If she had been struck with amazement pulling into the courtyard of the estate, she was now struck with awe. She hadn't realized her potential employer would be quite so wealthy and extravagant!

Perhaps I should have asked Mrs Hill what to expect she thought with a gulp, feeling positively beggarly in her faded and thinning Sunday dress. The maid instructed her to wait, adding that Lady Compton would be with her in a moment. Katherine's brain took a turn about the garden...Lady Mariah Compton?...The Baroness of Rosforte herself?! Her head spun.

Of course, of course a lady would be interviewing her ladies maid herself! she thought, mentally kicking herself But what a daunting prospect! I really should have asked for more details regarding my potential employer... instead of clucking about in frenzied gratitude and immediately running off to tell Mama. Katherine's stomach suddenly roiled with nerves.

Quick footsteps could be heard growing louder as they approached, and her heart skipped in fear as a beautifully-aged, elderly woman strode proudly into the room, hair piled high and stuck with thick blue plumes. Lady Compton settled into a high-backed chair opposite Kathrine, in a swirl of sapphire skirts. But for the silver strands running through her blond hair, Kathrine would have thought her not a day over five-and-forty. She curtsied as best she knew, heart pounding.

Lady Compton leaned casually on the arm of her chair and gave Kathrine a bright smile. "Do sit child, no need to stand on occasion! I assume by the pallor of your face you've never been in a castle with a baroness before. It's really not as exciting as people make it out to be, really, just a big house and a title. Let's start with your name shall we?"

"Yes, thank you Madam. My name is Katherine Wheaton, Madam." She stuttered nervously, taking a seat opposite Lady Compton. The plush, velvet, high-backed chair practically swallowed her bottom; she would have sighed in blissful comfort had it not been for the current state of her nerves.

"Do please refrain from calling me Madam!" The Baroness snickered good-naturedly "Good gracious it makes me feel a hundred years old! Miss Compton  sounds much younger."

"As you wish, Miss Compton." Katherine's smiled a bit, beginning to relax. The older woman's lively manner and quick, casual way of speaking, rather alarmed her, yet also put her at ease. She began to believe, with rising excitement, that she would really enjoy the position...if she secured it. She desperately hoped she would.

"My Coachman, Mr. Hill, tells me your mother used to be a lady's maid; I assume she passed her knowledge on to you. If there is anything you are unfamiliar with, I will have Helga intstruct you. Mr. Hill also assured me he is friends with your family and holds you in high regard. That tells me enough about you as he has sound morals and is a pleasant fellow, so you needn't give me details on experience and connections." Lady Compton tapped her lips with a finger "I'm not really sure what other questions there are to ask you. I'm not very good with this 'interviewing' business it appears."

"Actually, you haven't yet asked me anything Miss Compton." A small laugh escaped Katherine.

"Right you are, so I haven't!" Mariah Compton laughed with her.

"But could I be so bold as to ask." Katherine continued quickly. "Am I to live on the estate? Or may I commute? I noticed on the ride here I could easily walk through the back fields. I do love my own bed and a morning walk, and Mama could use my help in the mornings before I leave."

Lady Compton briefly pursed her lips in thought, then grinned, "I suppose you could commute if you like. You would have less sleep guaranteed, for the hours the members of high society keep are far different from the hours of country folk. However, if you are content with that, and are able to arrive in good time, have the hearth warmed, and my apparel laid out before I wake; I have no qualms."

"When do you wake, customarily, if I may pry?"

"Of course you may! That isn't prying, that's a good question my dear, pertains to the job. I usually wake between ten and eleven; I'm an early riser."

Katherine blinked, trying to digest how eleven could be considered an early hour, but then brightened "Then I thank you Miss Compton, that is well within my capability!"

"Superlative!" She clapped her hands together "Do you have any other questions Miss Wheaton?"

"No Miss Compton."

"You aren't going to ask after your potential salary?"

"Oh...was I meant to?"

Lady Compton grinned "No one has ever not asked, but as you feel no great need to know, I shan't tell you; but do tell dear, what is your expectation?"

This question made Katherine squirm. "I haven't the slightest Miss Compton, my mother used to receive 18 pounds a year."

"18 pounds?? How very interesting. What fun it shall be to see your face when you receive your first pay!"

Katherine's brow scrunched in thought, my pay?...."Have I secured the position then?"

"Of course! I quite like you. You're a pretty little thing, and you remind me of myself, though I know you little. What day is it?"

"Saturday Miss." She replied, voice tinged with a mix between bewilderment and awe.

"Right then, let's have you start Monday morning. You won't need to start your duties officially until Tuesday, but I imagine you'd like a grande tournée to familiarize yourself and meet the staff."

"Thank you Miss Compton! You may expect me!" Kathrine's joy began to bubble over. She was itching to run and tell her mother, and Papa, and her sisters! Lady Mariah Compton stood and gestured for the maid to escort her new employee to the door. As Katherine expressed her gratitude and was about to curtsy a goodbye, Lady Compton held out a hand to her. It took her a second to realize, with immense surprise, that she was meant to shake it. She did so hesitantly, almost expecting Miss Compton to wipe her hand after, which she did not. Katherine had never before met a more agreeable and unprejudiced woman of the Beau Monde in all her eighteen years! Not that she had extensive experience in that area, she had only met one other lady of high rank; but she would not let memory of that encounter darken her day! What a thrill it would be to return to Rosforte Monday! Her excited nerves jittered all the way home. Speeding down the short lane to her family's humble farmhouse, she recognized a delicate feminine figure walking in the same direction.

"Eliza!" She called, waving her arms about "Lily! You'll never guess!!"

Eliza Ritewood, or 'Lily' as was her pet name, had turned and braced herself as her dearest friend nearly collided with her, wrapping her in an exuberant embrace. "I shall! You secured the position as lady's maid have you not?" She grinned widely as her friend clutched her hands and swept her into an impromptu waltz. "Gracious! You're going to have me regret teaching you to dance, with this wild behavior."

"Hush, I can't help it! Can you believe it?? And for Lady Compton Baroness of Rosforte no less!! I am so lucky to be under her employ, I have never met a less prejudiced, more comfortable individual in my life! Oh, besides you of course Lily dear, if it had not been for your family..." Her cheerful demeanor faded slightly at the memories that came to her then, but she shook them away, grinning and pulling the quiet and gentle Lily down the lane after her.

"I can believe it love!" Lily smiled, trotting along as she was all but dragged toward the Wheatons small farmhouse. "I had a feeling your interview was with Miss Compton; she mentioned at her last house party she was looking for a replacement. I believe her last one went off and got married to a wealthy merchant, much to Miss Compton's delight."

Katherine paused "You mean to say she supported the match??"

"I dare say she probably had a great deal to do with them getting together in the first place! Much of her staff ends up getting married, and often to those above their station. She often brags about a successful match between one of her scullery maids and her vicar."

"Gracious, it seems I will have to watch myself!" Katherine laughed, pulling Eliza the last few feet to the house and through the open door. "Although it would be quite an asset to have an ally in the battle for love one day. Mama! You'll never guess!"

Bright, feminine laughter rang through the house. "I'm sure I shan't but here's a try, you secured the position as lady's maid?"