Free Secrets in Mourning by Janelle Daniels

breath, Victoria automatically straightened her shoulders, lifted her chin a notch and glided over to the group.
    “Lady Tawly, Lady Kenton, may I introduce Her Grace the Dowager Duchess of Norwich? She is the dear sister-in-law that I’ve been telling you of.”
    “I see.” Lady Tawly looked at Victoria as if she were a specimen. She wasn’t young by any means; in fact, both of the women seemed as old as the Dowager Countess herself. “Well, I can tell you were exactly right about her, Evelyn.”
    “I beg your pardon?” Victoria looked between the women, trying to figure out what Lady Tawly had been speaking of.
    Lady Kenton stepped forward slightly, the pink feather in her hair sat saucily in her lightly graying blond hair. “Oh, nothing to worry of, my dear. The Countess has been telling us of your many virtues.” Or lack thereof, if her tone was any indication.
    “How kind.”
    “Yes, it isn’t every day that one meets with a lady as talented as yourself in so many menial household tasks.”
    The snickers that ensued had Victoria raising her brow. “Indeed? I would think that the tasks that I have been performing were quite common.”
    “Common, indeed.” More snickers.
    Victoria could see where they were heading, but she didn’t want to let them upset her. While she may not be used to involving herself in the actual tasks required to make a household run smoothly, it had been necessary to make sure they were done properly.
    “Ah, I think I hear more arrivals. I think I shall greet them.” Rising, Victoria didn’t bother to look at the other women. She knew they wouldn’t give her any attention anyway.
    If Victoria was hoping to find a kindred spirit amongst the guests that afternoon, she had been severely mistaken. It was obvious from the moment she greeted each guest that the Countess had informed them of her already. Each seemed set against her, ready to mock her at a moment’s notice.
    In fact, as the afternoon progressed, it seemed as if Victoria herself was the entertainment, a target for the other women to bait.
    “So tell me, Your Grace, are all the ladies in London wearing such forward fashions as yourself?”
    Victoria didn’t need to look down at her simple black dress to figure out if it was stylish or not. Not having had much time in London to have the proper dresses made, she had had to purchase what was already made. With the lack of diversity of dressmakers in the village, it wasn’t possible to have the latest fashions here.
    Glancing up at the woman, Victoria tried to smile. Another one of the Countess’s lifelong friends no doubt. In fact, most of the women in the room seemed about the old woman’s age. “The fashion is London at this moment is quite exquisite. The full skirts and the heavily decorated material is eye-catching, especially when paired with a gentleman’s stark evening clothes.” Taking a sip of water, Victoria gathered what poise she had left. “Unfortunately, with the death of the Duke, and my quick departure for Scotland, I was unable to have gowns made in time.”
    The woman nodded and smiled, but it was more condescending than understanding.
    “And I must ask about your hair, Your Grace, if I might be so bold,” Lady Tawly spoke up. It wasn’t hard to miss the laughter hidden behind someone’s cough. “Such simplicity is so becoming on you. Is it the style in London as well? I can only imagine what a relief it is to not have to have a maid curl your hair every day with a hot iron.”
    Knowing the Countess’s situation, they would surely know that she didn’t have her own lady’s maid. No true lady should ever be without one. The smile that Victoria forced to her lips was brittle. She didn’t need the constant reminder from these women about how far she had fallen in fashion. She knew she was going without. Knew that she struggled on a daily basis.
    “I must admit, that it is quite nice not to have to sit in front of the dressing vanity for