Mary Jo Putney by Veils of Silk

Author:Veils of Silk [Silk, Veils of]
Format: epub
Published: 2010-07-28T18:49:12.979000+00:00

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Chapter 19

After their encounter with the mob, they followed the road to the northwest, not stopping until well after sunset. As Laura slid stiffly from her saddle, she noted that Ian had chosen a campsite that was protected on three sides.

Zafir helped the Indian girl from his mount, then set about collecting fuel and building a fire. With Ian tending the horses, Laura could deal with the young widow in relative privacy. After introducing herself and the men, Laura said, "Do you have any burns or other injuries, Meera?"

The girl examined the scorched silk of her sari, then said in an admirably even voice, "My leg is a little blistered, memsahib, but nothing more."

Laura went to her medical kit for a jar of salve. "This will help ease the pain." After handing over the salve, she began unpacking the food and utensils needed for dinner. "Though it's against the custom of your people to eat with those of other faiths, you are welcome to share what we have."

Meera raised her small chin. "Now I am out-caste, memsahib. I will eat whatever you grant me and be grateful for it."

When Laura set the griddle over the fire to heat for baking bread, Meera said, "Let me do that, memsahib. I told your husband I would be his slave, so it is right that I serve you."

Laura sat back on her heels and said doubtfully, "You should be resting after such a ghastly experience."

The girl gave a wry smile. "I am no frail lotus blossom, memsahib. Though my husband was wealthy and of high caste, my own birth was lower. I know how to cook and clean as well as any woman." As proof, she knelt and began mixing water with flour to make bread, her jewelry swaying incongruously in the firelight when she began expertly kneading the dough.

"It's good of you to help," Laura said, "but you won't want to be a servant forever. Can you return to your own family?"

Meera shook her head. "No. My eldest brother would be willing to accept me, I think, but Mohan's sons might make trouble for him if he did." She looked earnestly at Laura. "An English lady should not travel without a maid, mem-sahib. Allow me to serve you—I swear I will work very hard."

Laura bit her lip as she considered what to do with this resourceful young woman. "My husband and I will not be in India much longer. After a short visit to Dharjistan, we will go to Bombay. If you wish, you can work for me until we leave. With a reference, it won't be hard for you to find another position." She shook her head as she studied the slim, expensively dressed young woman. "But it will be a great comedown for you."

"Compared to death, memsahib," Meera observed, "being a lady's maid is not so bad."

Laura couldn't argue with that.

With Meera baking chapatis on the griddle and Laura cooking the pot of pilaf, dinner was ready by the time the men had finished their chores.

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