Secrets at Wallisford Hall (Dory Sparks Mysteries Book 1) by C.G. Oster

Author:C.G. Oster
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Published: 2017-07-14T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 17

"A word," Mrs. Parsons said when Dory walked downstairs carrying the dirty plates after the family supper. The woman walked off to her small office and Dory rushed to the scullery to put down her burden.

She followed Mrs. Parsons to her office, who stood by the door as Dory walked in and closed it behind her. That was an ominous sign, Dory thought.

"Mr. Holmes spoke to me earlier," Mrs. Parsons said, smoothing her skirt as she sat down. "It seems you were in the study with Lord Wallisford earlier."

"Yes, he asked me to help him with some spilled tea."

"Mr. Holmes was under the impression you were questioning him."

Dory's mouth opened, but nothing came out, so she closed it again. Mrs. Parsons was still looking expectantly at her. "Well, I did inform him that Michael Jones had been released," Dory said quietly, knowing she was trying to make her actions sound more innocent than they were. She had been questioning him, or trying to.

"I understand that you perhaps hold some strange fascination with Miss Sands’ demise, but it really isn't your place to indulge that fascination with Lord Wallisford—with any member of the family."

Dory was looking down on her lap, feeling her cheeks color. She was being admonished for her behavior. Although she wished to defend herself, she couldn't really. The accusation was true, and yes, it wasn't what she had been brought here for. "I'm sorry," she said.

Mrs. Parsons exhaled. "You don't seem to understand your place in the scheme of things."

There was no point mentioning that DI Ridley had asked her to keep an eye on things. Dory knew that would only upset Mrs. Parsons, who believed that for members of staff, their standards in providing service far outweighed in importance, any investigation the police were doing.

"I will be more mindful," Dory said after a moment of painful silence.

"See that you are. This is not an amusement park for you, Miss Sparks. This is your place of employment and there are standards of conduct you must uphold."

"I understand." Heat still flared up her cheeks. There was nothing Dory hated more than being told off, but there was no way to say her motives were honorable, because it wasn't her place to have honorable motives. She was here to clean and serve, and anything beyond that was not appreciated. And what policeman in their right mind would engage her to help, they would say.

"This is a warning to you," Mrs. Parsons said. "Any more transgressions on your part, then we will have to think long and hard if you belong in a place like this—in domestic service at all. It does not suit everyone, you know. You are only here because of Gladys, and she will be most dishonored if you can't figure out how to behave yourself."

Dory sat in silence until Mrs. Parsons dismissed her. Her cheeks still glowed by the time she walked out of the woman's office to take her seat for lunch. Gladys already sat at the table and by the look of it, none of this had been mentioned to her yet.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.