Free A Heart Revealed by Josi S. Kilpack Page B

fear as Nelson ordered a tub of warm water and, in turn, soap for Amber’s head and hair.
    Suzanne could do naught but run back and forth from the room in search of the items Nelson ordered. Amber felt as though Nelson were peeling the very skin from her skull as the maid attempted to remove the ointment, and bit her lip to keep from crying out in pain.

    “Now, dip your ’ead in ’ere, Miss,” Nelson said after having washed Amber’s hair three times and then procuring a bin of cooled water. The washings had left Amber as wet as if her entire person had been put in the bath; the goal had been speed not comfort. “The cold will do good for the blisterin’, methinks. I need to see about the salve Mrs. Yarrow was preparin’, then I’ll return to attend to ya.”
    Blistering, Amber repeated in her mind as Nelson helped her lean over the tub and dip her head in the cold water. Even though Amber was finally alone and able to release the emotion she had withheld thus far, she couldn’t cry with her head inverted like it was. She focused on taking long draws of air and attempting to take comfort in the fact that her head did feel better, despite her shivering and the continued throbbing of her scalp.
    When Nelson returned, she helped Amber stand; her legs were shaky from having knelt over the basin for so long, and she had to be assisted to the dressing room stool. Nelson carefully used a soft towel to pat Amber’s head and remaining hair.
    “Has my mother been told of what’s happened?” Amber asked once Nelson wrapped the towel around her head.
    The maid did not meet Amber’s eyes as she turned back to the basin and used another towel to mop up the floor around it. “I informed Lady Marchent afore she left, Miss. She said she would look in on ya when she returned.”
    Amber pinched her lips together and looked into her lap, noticing the dark strands of hair that stood out from the pink and white of her dress, the entire front of which was soaked through. She worked to control her emotion before standing and stepping around Nelson to look into the tub. Even more auburn strands stood out against the porcelain bottom. How much could be left with this much gone?
    “I should like to cut my hair, Nelson,” she said, hating the tremor in her voice. She continued to stare into the basin as though it would somehow give her strength.
    Nelson looked up at Amber in surprise, her gray eyebrows high on her forehead. “Miss? But a girl’s ’air is ’er crowning glory.”
    The term made Amber’s chest tighten. How many times had she heard that very idea shared when people admired her hair? How many times had Amber taken such compliments as further proof that she was above those people who were not as graced as she?
    “I can’t bear to see it coming out a bit at a time, and there’s too much gone for new hair to ever become equal to what remains. I should think that arranging what’s left in a shorter crop will make it easier for me to cope.”
    “Shall you wait and speak to yer mother first?” Nelson asked.
    Amber lifted her chin. “If that is what I wanted, I would have asked for that from the start. Fetch some shears from the kitchen. I want it cut before you apply the remedy.”

    Half an hour passed before Suzanne laid a thin plait of still-wet hair, tied off at both ends, on the dressing table. Though her hand was bandaged and surely as painful as Amber’s head, Suzanne had offered to do the job herself, which Amber appreciated though she hadn’t said so out loud.
    Amber stared at the braid for several seconds, stunned to see the proof of what had been done. Without a word, Suzanne went about trimming up the remaining hair on Amber’s head.
    Amber dared not admit, even to herself, the depth of feeling she experienced with each snip of the shears. It still felt as though she were trapped in a nightmare.
    “Is there anything else I can do for you, Miss?” Suzanne asked when she finished, stepping back and