Persuasion in the Pantry [Maid for More #1]

Chapter 39: A Penny for Your Thoughts

Edward Oxford lay down his paper, feeling for the cold brush of steel in his pockets. Today was the day that he would finally make his move. It was the same day that his father had died several years earlier when he was only seven. He was often told how much like his father he was, however considering his parents early separation it was not an easy comparison for him to determine for himself. The scant recollections that he did have were not pleasant. George Oxford was a drunk and deranged lunatic. He had beaten Edward's mother into submission throughout their courtship and marriage, fueling fire to the endless hatred of all who knew him. By all reports his father was not just a violent man but an insane one too, and Edward often wondered if similar tendencies lingered in him. It was difficult to tell, seeing as over the last few years his sole goal was to blend lies seamlessly with the truth.

Madness was often a useful claim to control and coerce the people around him. Looking at his own parent's relationship, Edward knew that his mother would never have married his father had the man not placed a flat razor to his neck citing suicide lest she deny him. George Oxford was truthfully unhinged, but it was not a trait that he had passed onto his son. It was however a lesson that Edward had learnt nonetheless. During childhood he had found that maniacal laughter interspersed with crying would earn him fearful glances and concessions for his mistakes. His mother had attempted to beat the madness from his bones, but in time even she learnt that such a method was futile. Edward would not relent, for he had learnt that when one was too poor to garner respect, fear was a powerful substitute.

He slid his palms off the duelling pistols concealed in the pockets of his pants, and reached out for another sip of stale coffee. It was bitter despite the heaped spoons of sugar he had ladled in, but he did not complain. 'Lovett's had become his regular morning stop and it would not do to cause a fuss on a day as particular as the one that had just begun. It was important to retain all outward appearances as per normal. Regularity was a perfect disguise for the nefarious. When people look for someone who is out to cause trouble their eyes are far too often drawn to the inconsistencies in their daily life. What they forget, is that sometimes the expected ennui of repetition lulls them into a false sense of security. Hadfield had taught him that the best place to hide was in plain sight.

Edward took another sip and winced. He pushed the beverage away with a grimace. He did not come in for the coffee anyway, he came for the paper. With diligent awareness he studied the article in the Court Circular once more. Reading it over several times and he committed its contents to memory, and then just to be certain ripped out the page of interest and folded it, placing it inside the inner pocket of his vest. Satisfied, he rose and paid for his drink with a smile before walking leisurely on to his local shooting gallery for a midday session after his morning meeting with his mentor. Today he would load his new guns with his freshly bought gunpowder and percussion caps for the final time before aiming it at the Queen.

***

Verushka stared at the black cat curled up at the foot of her bed for several long moments. Shadow had clearly spent a portion of the night traipsing through the soot in the kitchens before climbing up the once pristine duvet to find her new sleeping abode. The kitten breathed rhythmically, lost in the world of dreams while its owner was left procrastinating the course of her day. What had seemed so easy last night, was now rising in her estimations with each fractional ascension of the dawn.

When Shadow's whiskers twitched a final time before he rolled over stretching in the morning sun and fell unceremoniously on the floor. Verushka lurched up out of bed and peered over the edge to ensure the little one was unharmed. Shadow blinked up with wide eyes then tottered out of the room, no doubt in search of breakfast.

Verushka's stomach grumbled at the thought of food, but there was no time for a leisurely start to the day. She ran to her cupboard and pulled out the maid's uniform that she swiped the night before and put it on with haste. She almost wished it had been Mina's she had stolen because there would most assuredly be food in the pockets. Unfortunately the clothes were freshly laundered and Verushka quickly stuffed her old boots onto her feet resolving to grab a bite on her way across the river to Bedlam.