Summerset Abbey by T. J. Brown Read Free Book Online Page A

her arms. “I am so sorry about Uncle Philip. You both must be so desperately sad.”
    Victoria let herself be hugged, then stood back and eyed her cousin in shock. “Elaine! Look at you, all stylish and pretty.”
    Elaine laughed. “I can’t believe it’s been over a year since we’ve seen each other!”
    Victoria couldn’t stop looking at her cousin. Elaine had always been an appealing dumpling of a girl, with pretty blue eyes and a sweet smile, but her shyness had rendered her practically invisible. This freshly polished Elaine, with her hair piled in pretty curls around her face and her newly slender figure encased in a striped, slim-skirted afternoon dress, hardly seemed like the girl she’d played hide-and-seek with two summers ago.
    Elaine linked her arms with Victoria’s. “Come, you must be exhausted. Why Papa didn’t just take the motorcar, I have no idea. He’s so old-fashioned.”
    Rowena hung back. “I’ll stay here and make sure our things are unloaded properly. I’ll be up in a bit.”
    Victoria’s throat tightened. She knew Rowena was going to separate out Prudence’s trunks to be sent to the servants’ quarters. Bewildered and heartsick, Victoria let her cousin lead her into the house.
    As always, Victoria was struck dumb by the domed rotunda shape of the Great Hall’s entrance. It ran down the center of the house, a reminder of a feudal society where the lords and ladies greeted their visitors at the very end—the longer and more ornate the hall, the more important the occupants. At the end of the hall one could see into the grand salon. High above rose the coffered dome ceiling, the crown jewel of the hall, which was decorated with gilded rosettes and was the highest section of the entire building. There was a circular skylight at its zenith letting in light that danced and sparkled off the marble columns lining the room. Giant frescoes covered the upper walls, depicting angels floating above acts of violence and warfare.
    “Mother is resting now, but said she will see you at dinner. You’re staying in the Rose Room again? I moved to the Princess Room, right near yours.”
    Victoria let her prattle on. The long trip, her attack, and her worry over Prudence had exhausted her. She barely listened until she heard Prudence’s name spoken.
    “Pardon?”
    “I was saying that you could have your maid draw you a bath before dinner. It’s that girl, Prudence, right? The one you lived with? I didn’t know she was your lady’s maid.”
    Victoria stiffened at the curiosity in Elaine’s voice. She didn’t want to talk about it, but Elaine clearly expected an answer. “She isn’t. She is just helping us for the time being.”
    “Well, if she’s not your maid, who is she?”
    Victoria didn’t want to tell her anything more.
    “Oh, look. You’ve got electricity!” Victoria pointed to a row of lights along the main staircase at the end of the hall.
    “Well, yes.” Elaine seemed momentarily taken aback by the change of subject. “Papa had it installed last summer on the lower levels. We don’t have it in the upper rooms yet.”
    They climbed the stairs, turning left, away from the guest rooms that overlooked the Great Hall, and went back toward the south wing, where the family rooms were. A giant portrait of the Eighth Duke of Summerset, their grandfather, dominated the end of the hallway, casting an ominous pall over the long corridor. Victoria stopped short when she saw it, and a shudder ran through her body. Elaine paused and noted what she was staring at.
    “Ah yes. Father moved it from the dining room. He said it gave him indigestion just looking at it.”
    Victoria’s eyes widened and Elaine nodded. “Whenever I complained to my mother about my father, she said I should be grateful. He’s a thousand times better than the old duke was.”
    “Frightening,” Victoria murmured, prompting Elaine’s laughter. Victoria hadn’t meant it as a commentary on her uncle’s skills as