The Chateau on the Lake by Charlotte Betts Read Free Book Online

parents,’ says Mrs Jephcott, dabbing her eyes.
    Lydia’s gaze remains downcast, as if she cannot bear to look at me.
    ‘I have no wish to add to your burdens,’ says Mr Jephcott, ‘but we should discuss plans for the Academy.’
    I nod my head. I don’t want to think about that now. ‘Tomorrow at two o’clock? I need to…’
    ‘Of course.’
    Later, Sophie and I close the door behind the last of the guests.
    ‘You’re as frail as a leaf,’ she says with a worried frown. ‘Won’t you come home with me again tonight?’
    ‘Thank you but I must become used to being on my own.’
    Sophie sighs. ‘I must go home to Henry now but if you change your mind, no matter what time of the night, send for me and I’ll come at once.’
    I hug her, grateful for her kindness but too close to tears to speak.
    My feet are heavy as I go upstairs. Hesitating a moment, I open the door to my parents’ room and go inside.
    It’s quiet and the dressing table is still crowded with the paraphernalia of the sick room. Papa’s slippers are tucked under a bedside table and Mama’s nightgown is thrown across the end of the bed, as if they have just left.
    There’s a knot of pain in my chest so tight that it’s hard for me to breathe. I hold Mama’s nightgown to my face. It still smells of her skin and the perfume she used to wear. In my head I hear the last words that she uttered to me.
    ‘I love you, sweetheart. Never forget that.’
 
    Sobbing, I bury my face in the softness of her nightgown.
    At last I am drained of tears and so tired that all I can do is curl up in Mama and Papa’s bed. The last thing I see before I fall asleep is Mama’s note to Mr Thimbleby propped up on the dressing table.
     

     
    Mr and Mrs Jephcott arrive promptly at two o’clock the next day.
    Mr Jephcott comes straight to the point. ‘If your father’s Academy is to retain its good reputation, it must re-open very soon. Would you allow me to assume the position of Director?’
    I’m relieved that he’s made the suggestion that appears to offer the most satisfactory answer. Papa liked Mr Jephcott and stated that he’d be happy for him to be closely involved in the running of the school. The staff will be relieved not to be turned off, but where does this leave me?
    ‘You would, of course, have a home and a position here for as long as you need it,’ says Mrs Jephcott, just as if she’s read my mind.
    It’s a terrible decision to make, to give up the place that my parents worked so hard to build together, but is it possible for me to carry on here alone? More to the point, do I want to?
    Silence stretches out until at last I speak. ‘The Academy will lose more pupils if it remains closed any longer. Perhaps we could work side by side for a few weeks? To give us the opportunity to see if the arrangement suits us all.’
    Mr Jephcott claps his hands. ‘An admirable idea!’

Chapter 5
     
    I gaze listlessly out of the classroom window while my pupils whisper and giggle amongst themselves. I have resumed my teaching duties again over the past weeks but a terrible malaise has settled over me. It’s hard for me to comprehend that my life has changed so dramatically in such a short time.
    I’d made the effort to attend Georgiana’s salon but the political discussions failed to engage me. I’d looked for Mr d’Aubery to thank him for his kindness to me at Mama’s funeral but there was no sign of him. Sophie, her eyes sparkling and her complexion positively glowing, was so entirely taken up by flirting with Mr Fielding that I became quite out of temper and left early, alone.
    One of my pupils drops her book with a thud and I’m startled out of my reverie. I pull my thoughts back to matters in hand and ask Clarissa Gardiner to recite the poem she has supposedly been learning.
    At last the bell rings and I’m thankful that lessons are over for the day.
    I’m crossing the hall after the girls have all gone when Mr Jephcott calls me into