Chapter 6
CHAPTER SIX
Eliza pressed a fist to her belly where knots of nerves had formed.
It couldn’t be.
The man who was being arrested was called Mungo, just like the one who saved her that Thursday in Dobbins Lane. He’d also been huge and spoken with that same deep husky Scottish accent.
Was he being arrested for saving her? Was this all her fault?
Had she stumbled into the one household in London where the man who had saved her lived? Would she have to tell them the truth? Would she be dismissed? Mrs. Holton already seemed displeased with her for some reason, this would surely add to that.
Thoughts whirled round and round inside her head.
The wealthy could be fickle with their staff and dismissed them with ease.
“Get a carriage now!”
The bellow came from Bramstone Nightingale, who had run out the front door after the woman named Mavis had run through it when they’d reached 11 Crabbett Close. With him was a younger dark-haired man.
Looking up at the red brick facade, she wondered what her next move should be, as around her, the house seemed to have tumbled into chaos over the arrest of the man named Mungo.
Should I leave and return later? she wondered.
“Hello, I presume you are Miss Downing?”
Eliza stood to the right of the doorstep, and the man before her in the middle.
He wasn’t as big as the two who were standing at the gate, watching the carriage roll away with the large Scotsman inside, but there was no doubting that he was related.
She’d only caught glimpses, but there was the dark hair and similar facial features.
“I am, yes.”
“Forgive us for this greeting, but it seems a member of our household has been arrested. I am Mr. Alexander Nightingale and the best of all the Nightingales, which you will come to realize in a short time, but right now we have a situation that needs handling, so I’m afraid welcoming you properly will have to wait. ”
“Of course. Should I return later?”
“Uncle Bram, Leo, this is Miss Downing,” Alexander Nightingale said instead of answering her.
“Miss Downing, you’ll forgive us for this welcome. My wife will look after you until we return, but I must go to my friend,” Bramstone Nightingale said, coming to stand before her with the other man. His face was an angry mask and nothing like the polite man she’d met previously.
Dare she speak out? Say that maybe the man had been arrested because of her? It was too much of a coincidence, surely? She owed him for his intervention that night, did she not?
“Everyone inside at once,” Bramstone said.
She followed the men into a large entryway and let her eyes take in the place that Eliza hoped would be her new home for a while.
Coats and hats hung on a rack, and boots were stacked beneath it in a haphazard manner. Stairs with a wooden banister rose on the right, and a patterned rug muffled footsteps. The warm, yeasty scent of fresh bread hung in the air, making her stomach tighten with hunger.
Homely, she thought. A place people could laugh and love. A home, unlike many of the pristine, perfect places she’d worked.
“Tell me exactly what happened, Mavis,” Bramstone Nightingale said, moving to stand beside his wife, who was looking worried, as everyone was. “It will be all right, my love,” he said, taking her hand in his.
“We were having a dram in Mr. Greedy’s garden,” Mavis began, “when the carriage with the constables arrived. One of them then said he was here to arrest Mungo for assaulting a nobleman. Constable Clutterbuck said that it was two weeks ago on a Thursday in Dobbins Lane. He was simply walking home when Mungo grabbed him and then attempted to rob him.”
“He would never do such a thing,” Bramstone snapped.
“I-I must tell you all something,” Eliza said before she lost the courage.
Everyone looked at her, but she swallowed down the nerves and continued.
“It is my fault Mr. Mungo was arrested,” Eliza confessed before she lost her courage.
“I don’t understand,” Bramstone Nightingale said, his brows drawn together in a hard line.
She’d known of many servants who’d been mistreated and then blamed for the actions of another by well-to-do families who were not willing to see the fault in their own. Would these people be the same? She hoped not.
“I had work with the Ellington family, briefly, while their usual governess was away. Their son, Mr. Parson—well, he tried to take advantage of me.” She shot Ivy and Bramstone a look, hoping they wouldn’t see her as forward and dismiss her.
“Ellington!” Lord Seddon snarled.
“We are familiar with Lord Ellington, Miss Downing, and I have no doubt his son’s character is similar to his. They are men with no morals. Continue with your story, please,” Bramstone said.
“The afternoon was foggy, and it was my last day. I had left, and he followed me out the door and grabbed me.
“What’s afoot?” another man demanded as he ran through the door. “Clemmie just told me Mungo has been arrested.”
“We are endeavoring to uncover just that, Ram. Quiet now, while our new governess, Miss Downing, explains,” Bramstone said.
They would let her stay. The realization made her knees go weak.
“I screamed but had little hope anyone would come,” Eliza continued, remembering the attack.
“I’m Mr. Ramsey Hellion,” the man interjected, bowing.
“Ram, now is not the time for introductions, so shut up!” Alexander Nightingale said. “Continue, Miss Downing.”
“I fought, but he was stronger than me, and then, suddenly, Mr. Mungo appeared.”
“He always appears when he’s needed. I’ve often wondered how he does it,” Lord Seddon said.
“I wonder where he was going?” Mr. Alexander Nightingale mused.
“What happened next?” Bramstone Nightingale asked, scowling at the others to keep them quiet.
“He and Mr. Parson—”
“Who is Mr. Parson?” Mr. Hellion asked.
“The man attacking Miss Downing, and Ellington’s son,” Bramstone Nightingale gritted out. “Shut up!”
“Ellington,” Mr. Hellion echoed, baring his teeth.
Clearly she was not the only person who did not like that man or his son.
“There was a struggle, and Mr. Mungo hit Mr. Parson, which he deserved.” Eliza added the last quickly so they understood the situation had been dire.
“And how is it Ellington knew it was Mungo who hit his son, I wonder,” Bramstone said.
“He gave Mr. Parson his name,” Eliza said.
“Idiot.” Lord Seddon looked disgusted.
“We have to get Mungo back home now. He loathes being locked in anywhere.”
Everyone but Bramstone Nightingale looked confused now.
“He dislikes small spaces,” he added, “but can cope if there is an exit. They will lock him in a cell, and it will not be easy for him.”
“Since when has he not liked being in small spaces and especially those with locks?” Alexander Nightingale demanded.
“He hid that well,” Lord Seddon added.
“It’s not my story to tell. I only know that we need to get him out as soon as we can.”
“Right, then, let’s go. I am Ramsey Hellion, Miss Downing, but now is not the time to become further acquainted. We shall leave that for later over lashings of tea and cake.”
“You stay, my love, the children will return shortly from their visit to the bakery and wonder what is happening,” Bramstone Nightingale said to his wife.
“I hear the carriage, so the rest of you make haste back out the door. You also, Miss Downing,” he added.
“Just drop your bags there. Bud will see to them.”
Eliza thought about the rule book Mrs. Holton gave her girls. She was breaking several of them, and she’d only just set foot into the household.
Never speak unless spoken to by a senior family member.
Always remember your place is far below those you work for, so never spend time in their company without your charges.
They walked outside, and Eliza headed for the carriage, where a young man sat on the driver’s seat.
“If you’ll move over, sir, I’ll climb up next to you.”
He did as she asked. Eliza grabbed the seat and started to climb. A hand held her on the ground.
“You are not traveling to the watchhouse up there, Miss Downing. It’s far too cold. You’ll travel with us,” Bramstone Nightingale said.
“It would not be right to do so with the occupants all being men, sir.”
“And yet, as your employer I insist upon it.”
If a senior member of the household gives you a direct order, you must always obey it at once.
“Of course, if you insist, Mr. Nightingale.”
Soon she was seated next to Lord Seddon and Mr. Hellion. Across from her were Mr. Alexander Nightingale and Mr. Bramstone Nightingale. It was lucky she was good with names, or Eliza would be hopelessly confused by now, especially considering the turmoil going on inside her head.
“I understand that being in here alone with us is not done, Miss Downing, but we will ensure no one sees you here,” Lord Seddon said.
“That is of no concern. I am not important enough for anyone to care, but I would rather Mrs. Holton did not learn of this.”
She felt all their eyes on her as she kept hers trained on the window.
“Everyone is important, and birth or wealth does not make that less or more, Miss Downing,” Bramstone Nightingale said solemnly. “Mrs. Holton will not find out, I assure you.”
“Thank you.” Did they really believe that? If so, they were the minority with those of elevated birth.
“I’m glad Mungo was able to save you from Mr. Parson’s unwelcome advances, Miss Downing.”
“Thank you, Mr. Hellion.”
“We will teach you a few ways to defend yourself when we have time,” Alexander Nightingale added.
“Ah—thank you,” she said when nothing else came to mind.
“I will do the talking,” Bramstone Nightingale said.
“Ellington must be in the magistrate’s pocket, Uncle Bram,” Mr. Alexander Nightingale said. “He likely also knows Mungo belongs to us, as he does not exactly blend in and has drawn Ellington’s attention before.”
“Agreed. That man is a rodent with no morals. If there is wrong to be done, you can rest assured he’ll do it,” Ram said.
“Plus, there is that hatred he has of us,” Lord Seddon said. “You’re learning a great deal about the family you have come to work for, Miss Downing. I hope it doesn’t put you off us.”
“I am looking forward to taking up my employment,” she said stiffly, unsure what else to say, as this was all very odd and nothing she’d ever come close to dealing with before.
“It is likely you will need to tell your story, Miss Downing, and I’m sorry for that,” Bramstone Nightingale added.
“I knew that I would have to do so when I told you what had taken place that day, Mr. Nightingale. I am not afraid.” In fact, she was terrified, but for the man who had rescued her from a terrible fate, she would be strong.
“We will be in your debt.”
She looked at Bramstone Nightingale and saw he genuinely meant what he said. He did not appear angry with her, just the circumstances he was faced with.
The group traveled in heavy silence for the rest of the journey until the carriage arrived outside the watchhouse.
Eliza had woken this morning with a small flicker of hope for what her immediate future held—namely, earning money to survive. Now here she was, with men she didn’t know, about to enter the watchhouse and hopefully save a man from being jailed for a crime he did not commit.
It was her fervent wish that Mrs. Holton never heard this story, or she’d struggle to find work again.