Free Netherby Halls by Claudy Conn Page A

seethed at the impertinence in the
chit’s tone.
    “Good night, Miss Winthrop. Do take our talk
seriously. You would be the better for it.”
    She watched the set of the girl’s shoulders and made
up her mind. One way or another, Miss Winthrop was going to have to
be eliminated!
     

 
     
    ~
Nine ~
     
    WHEN SASSY’S CLASSES were over, she went looking for
Miss Graves. She found her having a cup of tea in the library and
approached her tentatively, unsure of the reception she would
receive. To date, none of the other teachers had been friendly.
    “Sit, Miss Winthrop, and tell me—what is it?” Miss
Graves motioned to a chair.
    Sassy took up a chair. “I would like to skip lunch
and head into town to fetch some fabric to make curtains for my
bare window,” she explained.
    “Your window …? My goodness, of course, dear.”
She frowned and put a finger to her thin lips. “Puts me in mind of
something odd. I seem to remember that Miss Saunders, your
predecessor, had purchased a length of fabric for that very
purpose.” As she sighed heavily and touched her lace-covered gray
hair, a sad look came into her faded eyes. “I suppose she took it
with her when she left us. Shocking thing … and so very
difficult to believe. You see, Miss Saunders was such a nice young
woman—oh, not in her first blush but younger than the Tyler sisters
and I—and we had become friends, you see. She left without saying
good-bye, and that was certainly not like her at all. She was not
the sort to run off with a man, and I find it difficult to believe
that she would just up and leave like that.”
    “Well, perhaps, she didn’t have a choice,” Sassy
offered, “and perhaps, just perhaps, she did meet someone?”
    “No! I refuse to believe that. She just wasn’t that
sort, and also, though not quite unattractive, she was not the girl
a man would try and sweep off her feet, if you get my meaning. Not
the sort to turn men’s heads—and no dowry.” Miss Graves sighed. “A
sad mystery to me.”
    “Did she leave a note for the headmistress?”
    “Note? No—and that is the other thing. You see, she
was terrified of the headmistress, and although she might have
found another position, she would have left me a note, if
only to set my mind at ease.” Again Miss Graves shrugged and
frowned over the situation.
    Once again, Sassy had been left to speculate about
her predecessor. Every magic nerve in her witch’s body was on edge.
Something was off at Netherby—something sinister hung in the air
and in the walls. She excused herself and headed for her room to
fetch her cloak and purse.
    * * *
    Gray was the color of the day, but Sassy didn’t think
it would rain as she made her way to the school’s carriage
house.
    During the week, teachers were asked not to leave
school. Being under constant constraints was trying for Sassy, as
it was all so new. She had never been so hampered in her life, and
it was taking all her patience to deal with all the rules. In
addition to the loneliness she was experiencing, she felt a bit of
a prisoner. If it weren’t for the deep affection she now felt for
most of her students, she would count her days as dreary.
    She arrived at the large wood and stone barn and
peered inside to find the face of a tall, thin man wearing a dark
wool coat and cap. He nodded at her with something of a grin. “I
was wondering when ye would be looking for a ride into town.”
    “Hallo,” she said with a smile. “I am Miss Winthrop,
and you must be Mr. Wilkes, Molly’s father?”
    “Aye, though you can call me Gunther, and I know who
ye be.” He tipped the peak of his cap to her and gave her an
apologetic smile. “I can take ye into town, but I won’t be able to
wait on ye to take ye back, Miss Winthrop.”
    “Oh, I quite understand and do not mind the walk
back. I am told it is only three miles from the center of town,
yes?”
    “Aye, three miles, maybe a pinch less, and sorry I am
that I can’t wait for