Free Love Lost in Time (Victorian Time-Travel) by Marie Higgins Page A

had other important things to do. How she loathed men like him.
    She walked to the dining area to see if her friends were there, but they weren’t. There was no reason to sit at one of the fancy round tables by herself, so she turned to leave. But an idea struck her, making her pause. No matter where a person worked in this place, or what his job duty, he would have to eat. In that case, one of the cooks would surely remember Will Chapman.
    Quickly, she left the dining area and headed down the hall toward the kitchen. A few signs were posted stating: Buckland Manor staff only , but Halle ignored them, sneaking peeks over her shoulder to make sure none of the staff noticed or tried to stop her.
    She reached the kitchen and peered through the small glass window on the door. Three women wearing matching white aprons and hairnets stood by the counter, busily washing dishes and cleaning up the breakfast mess as they chatted with each other. Halle thought they appeared friendly, so she prayed they really were.
    Taking a deep breath, she pushed open the door and stepped just far enough into the room to be noticed. All three of the older women stared at her with wide eyes.
    “Excuse me for interrupting,” Halle began, “but I need to ask all of you a question.”
    “But Miss,” one of the ladies said, “you’re not supposed to be in here.”
    “I know, and I’m sorry for trespassing, but it’s an urgent matter.”
    The lady with the rounder body stepped away from the sink, drying her hands with a small towel. “Is something wrong with the food?”
    “Oh, nothing like that.” Halle smiled politely. “I just need to know if you have worked with my father. He worked at the manor for about a year, and suddenly up and left a month ago. Nobody knows where he is.”
    “What’s his name?” The shorter woman asked.
    “Will Chapman.”
    The three women exchanged blank glances, and then looked back at Halle before shaking their head s. Despair washed through her once again. This was the same result she’d gotten so far. She heaved a deep breath, ready to give up and leave, then another thought struck her. “If the name doesn’t sound familiar to you, perhaps you have worked with a man who has hair color the same as mine and big green eyes?”
    This time when the women exchanged glances, a spark of recognition lit their expressions. The woman who had yet to speak, moved to stand before Halle, her gaze combing over Halle in an unsettling way.
    “I wouldn’t have thought it, but you do look a lot like Bill Stratford.”
    The larger servant shuffled closer. “Myrtle, she really does, doesn’t she?”
    The third lady joined her friends. They gawked at Halle as if she was on display for auction. She folded her arms. “So how long did this man work here?”
    “Oh, a good year, I’m sure.”
    “At least.” Myrtle nodded. “And he was the nicest man.”
    “Such a charm er, that one.” The short woman blushed. “He flirted a lot with that hoity-toity Miss Fridal.”
    “In fact , Nellie, did you hear that Miss Fridal found herself in the motherly way not long after Bill left?”
    The other women gasped. Halle rolled her eyes. Even if this was her father, it wasn’t like he was still married to her mother. Halle was sure he had his own life by now.
    “But I didn’t know he was married, or had a child for that matter,” Nellie said.
    “My parents split when I was very little,” Halle said. “I have never met him. I thought I’d get to meet him during my stay here, but he’s nowhere to be found now.” If Will Chapman was using a different name while he worked here, that would explain why nobody knew who he was. Yet, why would he use another name?
    Once again, the three ladies passed glances amongst themselves. Myrtle scratched her head and held a faraway expression as if she was deep in thought.
    “Actually,” the shorter woman said. “I recall him saying something about returning home.”
    “Oh, yes. I