Sheffield

CHAPTER NINE

Miss Burke was in a rare fine mood. She hummed joyfully to herself as her maid prepared her hair, skipped down the hall to breakfast and, for once, took great joy in practicing the pianoforte. Everything was playing out to her designs.

Mrs. Cavinet had come to her immediately after parting from Mr. Donal and Mr. Grant at St. Leger, and though, at first, she had been disheartened by Mrs. Cavinet's recount of her interview with the gentlemen, she recovered quickly and put into place a new scheme, she had swooned. Mrs. Cavinet was promptly by her side, fanning her and calling, in a most unpleasantly high voice, for smelling salts.

Miss Burke allowed the woman to administer the fan, the salts, tea and cake before recovering enough to impart a righteous amount of destitution. Letting her eyes glass over and her hand tremble delicately, she implored Mrs. Cavinet, "Oh! What shall I do? I am ruined. There is no hope for me now." Mrs. Cavinet gasped, "Child you must not say such things. You are a proper lady of impeccable standing and to think you so ill-used. Why, the blackguard, and I thought so highly of him too." Miss Burke smiled to herself and let her lip tremble delicately, "Oh! I cannot have you think of him in such a way. I cannot think of him in such a way. I know there must be an explanation, a reason, some treachery not of his design." She paused to let the older women mull a few moments before continuing, "For you know as well as I, his good character. Has he ever given the impression of ill treatment?" Mrs. Cavinet puzzled for a moment then shook her head. "No, of course, and can you say the feelings for which I confided in you last night were not true?" "Oh! Miss Burke I know you to be incapable of nothing less than expected in polite society."

Miss Burke was not overly pleased with this imperfect characterization but endeavored onward. "It is too shocking, to beside his character to play a fancy on my feelings, and those of all our acquaintance." She reached out and laid her hand atop Mrs. Cavinet's, "For it would be a slight against you, as well as I." She had hit her mark. Mrs. Cavinet straightened further and patted Miss Burke's hand, "This certainly will not do. I will not stand for it. The behavior is unsupportable and must be corrected." She softened her tone towards Miss Burke to a delicate purr, "We must remember to forgive him his birth. Ireland is no London. The ways are different, even in polite society. I am sure there has been a grave misunderstanding which we will soon rectify." Miss Burke smiled sweetly at the daftness of the gossip. "Yes, but until we can put to rights the unfortunate issue, we must only speak of this in confidence to our closest acquaintance, for should it become known, I dare say Mr. Donal's Uncle will insist upon the engagement under pain of disinheritance." Mrs. Cavinet looked blankly at Miss Burke for several moments before hazarding to speak, "But Miss Burke is not engagement the issue?" The corner of Miss Burke's mouth twitched indelicately and she quickly stilled it, "It is, but such circumstances could cause Mr. Donal disadvantage in standing and, of course, what would tarnish his reputation would also do for his wife." Mrs. Cavinet clucked and shook her head, "That simply will not do."

~

It had been but a week since her conversation with Mrs. Cavinet, and she was pleased to find that all of her acquaintances, as well as one important Uncle, knew of the ill treatment she had received at the hands of Mr. Donal.

She had only plucked the final notes of an immensely boring concerto when the parlor door opened and Miss Grant was announced. "Miss Grant I am so pleased you have come." The women bowed and Janet took Miss Burke's hand in concern, "I have the most grave news," said Miss Grant sympathetically. Slightly alarmed Miss Burke removed her hand gently and offered them to sit. "I am not sure I should even trouble you with the report in your current state," continued Miss Grant. The door opened and a maid delivered a tray of tea and cakes.