History of the Vampire (The Vanderlind Castle Series Book 4) (16 page)

The Vanderlind family must have recently moved in because there was already a guard in purple livery attending the area where I assumed they would eventually erect the gate. “Yes?” he asked. He had a heavy accent that I couldn’t identify, so the word came out more like, “Ves?”

My mother stared at him for a moment, not sure what to say and then eventually found her tongue. “My daughters were asked to come by today to apply for positions as maids,” she said. I could tell by the tone of her voice that she was feeling a little intimidated.

“Mrs. Denkler,” I called from the back seat. “We were invited here by a Mrs. Denkler.”

The guard’s face registered immediate recognition of the name. “Drive through,” he told Mama in a somber voice. “Go to the right. Knock on the door for deliveries.”

Once Mama had parked the car, Lilly and I climbed out and straightened our skirts. “Just remember to be polite,” Mama instructed us. “And be honest about your work experience. I’m sure they would appreciate honesty above anything else.” We both assured her that we would.

As we approached the door with the deliveries sign posted on it, Lilly suddenly turned around and took a few quick steps back toward the car. “Mama, aren’t you going in with us?” Her voice had gone up an octave and she suddenly sounded about ten years old.

“No,” our mother said, shaking her head a little. “You’re both old enough to apply for a job without me standing over you like a mother hen.” But then she looked at Lilly’s anxious face and added. “It’ll be okay, Lilly. I’m sure everything is going to be fine.”

“Why did I let you talk me into this?” Lilly said in a low voice as we both stood in front of the door.

“Aren’t you excited?” I asked, confused by her behavior. I was practically jumping up and down.

“No,” she said, emphasizing the word by shaking her head rather adamantly. “I was a little excited, when we told Mama and Papa, but I don’t know…” she said, her words trailing off. “It’s just… I just have this horrible feeling of dread. Like we’re going to go into this ugly old building and never come out again.”

“Oh, come on, Lilly.” I silently thanked my lucky stars that I hadn’t mention the dogs or I would have never gotten her out of the car. “Mama’s waiting for us right outside the door. I think she’d call the police if we didn’t show up after a couple of hours.”

“I know,” Lilly said. “But…”

“But what?” I asked, extending my hand to ring the bell.

“Wait,” she said, grabbing my arm. “I’m sorry, Colette, but I really don’t want to do this.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” I told her. “Of course we’re going to do this. We need the work. And I hear the castle pay is better than we could get anywhere else. I’m sure it’s much better than what you were getting at Zucker’s.”

“I know, but…” I had never known my sister to be a shrinking violet, but there was a tremble in her voice. For whatever reason, she was extremely reluctant to go inside.

“Come on, Lilly,” I said, putting my arms around her and giving her a squeeze. “I’m sure it’ll be fine. And if it’s weird, or creepy, or scary at all, we’ll turn right around and leave. I promise.”

Lilly didn’t say anything. It was almost as if her feet where frozen to the ground.

“Tell you what,” I said, desperate to get her moving. “If you do this for me, then I’ll agree to go to the dance with Lev next month.”

My promise caught her attention. “Really?” she said, shifting her eyes in my direction. “Promise?”

“Yes,” I assured her. “If you go inside with me and apply for the job, I promise I will chaperone you and Walter under the guise of being Lev’s date.”

Some color came back to Lilly’s cheeks. “Okay,” she said. “I’ll go inside. But I don’t promise I’ll take the job.”

I reached over and rang the bell.

A few moments later the door was opened by a young woman with a friendly face and fair hair that was pulled back into a bun. She was wearing a black dress and a frilly white apron. “Yes?” she asked with a smile.

“Hello,” I said. “Mrs. Denkler is expecting us.”

“Oh.” She smiled some more. “Are you here about the housemaid positions?”

“Yes?” I returned her smile and nodded my head several times.

She opened the door wider. “Come on in,” she told us. “I’m Millie. I just started working here, so if you have any questions, don’t ask me,” she said with a laugh.

I felt a shiver run through me as I stepped over the threshold and into the castle. I don’t know why, we were simply entering a dark hallway which led to a mudroom, but something about just being inside the building, filled me with a tingling anticipation.

As we followed the young maid through the mudroom and down another hall. I tried to keep a little ahead of Lilly, in case we were set upon by a pack of unruly dogs. But we were not assaulted. We simply entered a modest room that contained a small couch, a desk and a few chairs. “Wait here,” the young woman told us. “I’ll go and find Mrs. Denkler.”

Neither of us felt comfortable enough to sit down. So we stood there, feeling awkward. “She seems nice,” Lilly eventually said, probably only to break the silence.

“Very,” I said, just to say something in reply.

“Sorry about being so silly outside. I just felt such a wave of dread. It was like nothing I’d ever experienced before,” my sister told me.

“It’s okay.” I reached over and squeezed her arm. “Maybe your lunch didn’t agree with you.”

This made her giggle, which made me giggle. We tried to suppress our mirth, but then we’d look at each other and start snickering again. I knew it wouldn’t be a good idea for us to titter our way through a job interview, but I was just so nervous that I couldn’t help myself.

Just then the door opened and Mrs. Denkler entered the room. We both stopped giggling immediately. In my excitement to see the inside of the castle, I’d forgotten how intimidating the housekeep actually was.

“I was expecting you earlier,” was the first thing Mrs. Denkler said.

“We were at school,” I told her. “But classes end after next week.”

“And will both of you be returning to school in the fall?” she wanted to know.

“My sister, Lillian, is graduating,” I said, gesturing to her by way of introduction, “but I have one year left.”

“I suppose if you had a job that paid you well enough, you wouldn’t feel the need to return,” Mrs. Denkler said. It was more of a statement than a question, so I said nothing, even though I had every intention of returning to school in the fall for my senior year.

The housekeeper looked me over from head to toe. “It’s so very important when running a great house like the Vanderlind household to hire the right kind of staff,” she said. “Some housekeepers advise to only hire plain girls. Especially when the family has sons to consider.” I couldn’t tell if she was trying to insult me or pay me a compliment. “And yet still I am tempted,” she said, putting a finger to her lips and staring at me intently. “I can’t help but noticed the resemblance” she murmured, half to herself. “It’s quite striking. Especially the hair.” She made a gesture as if she was about to reach over and touch my head, but then she thought better of it and retracted her hand.

Lilly glanced over at me and I tried not to return her look. I so very desperately wanted to see the entire interior of the castle and working there seemed like the very best way to accomplish that dream.

“I wonder if anyone will notice but me,” Mrs. Denkler said, biting the side of her lower lip and then immediately releasing it. “If the master was still alive, I am sure he would see it in an instant. But we were of that age.” She looked very sad for a moment and I thought I saw tears brimming in hers eyes. But then she cleared her throat and said, “I doubt anyone else will notice.” And then she asked me, “I don’t suppose you have any Hungarian blood?”

I wanted the job so desperately that I almost blurted, “Yes, we have,” but then I remembered how our mother had instructed us to be honest, so instead I said, “Not that I know of.”

“It’s a pity,” Mrs. Denkler said with another sniff. “That would have at least explained it.” I still had no idea what she was talking about so I just smiled and gave her a nod. And then the housekeeper thought of something. She looked deeply into my eyes. “Do you ever have dreams that are not your own?” she asked. “Do you have glimpsed memories that don’t seem to belong to you?”

“Uh… No,” I replied, truthfully. Her line of questioning was starting to make me feel unsettled.

Turning her sharp eyes on my sister, the housekeeper said, “Your name is Lillian Gibson, I presume. The resemblance is not as strong in you.”

“I’m Lilly Gibson,” my sister managed to say. “How do you do?”

“I’m Mrs. Denkler,” was the housekeeper’s response. “You will be issued two uniforms and four aprons each. You are expected to take care of your own uniforms and your appearance should always be flawless,” she informed us. “Now, if you don’t have any questions, “I’ll summon Millicent to show you your duties.”

My stomach did a flip. “You mean you’re hiring us?” I stammered.

“You can start the Monday after your school ends next week,” the housekeeper said.

“But don’t you want to ask us any questions?” Lilly wanted to know. “About our past work experience or… anything?” That’s what we had been expecting, at least.

“I’m sure your duties will not be too much for you,” Mrs. Denkler said, her lips drawn into a tight, flat line. “If they are, you’ll be discharged without a reference.” She pulled a small watch on a chain out of her dress pocket and glanced at it. “I really don’t have time for any more questions. Wait here and Millicent will look after you,” she said, before abruptly turning to leave the room.

“Will any of our duties involve caring for the dogs?” I asked, before Mrs. Denkler had a chance to disappear. I desperately wanted the job, but I wasn’t a fool. All of the workers had been so adamant about some type of dangerous animal. I couldn’t expose my sister and myself to the risk of being mauled.

The housekeeper gave me a sharp look over her shoulder. “What dogs?” she asked. “I hope you are not the kind of girl who is always asking ridiculous questions.” And then she left before I could assure her that I wasn’t.

Lilly and I stared at the door for several seconds after she left and then turned to exchange looks. “I guess we’re hired,” my sister said, appearing as mystified as I felt.

“I guess.” It seemed a very odd way to hire someone. “Do you think Millicent is the same Millie that answered the door?”

Lilly shrugged. “We’re about to find out.”

A few moments later and Millie rushed into the room. “Congratulations,” she exclaimed. “I knew Mrs. Denkler was going to hire you, just as soon as I saw you. I just knew it.”

“Thank you,” we said in unison.

“Oh, I’m so happy.” She really was beaming. “It will be so nice to have other servants around here who can actually speak English.”

Chapter 22

Jessie

The room itself was small, but not miniscule. There was a fringed shawl hanging over the window and another across the bed in an attempt to make the place look a little less down-at-the-heels. Another red scarf festooned the globe shade of a lamp which sat on the bedside table. The lamp was electric, but had obviously been converted from oil at some point in the last few decades.

Bernadette took the shawl from the bed and draped it over the back of a chair with great care. I could tell at a glance that it had been hand embroidered. Then she eased herself onto the bed. “Is there anything you’d like in particular?” she asked, patting the open spot next to her on the mattress. “Any fantasy you have for your first time?”

“Actually,” I said, taking a seat on the room’s only chair, but being careful not to disturb the shawl, “I won’t be joining you. Although I greatly appreciate the offer.”

“Oh.” A look crossed Bernadette’s face that I couldn’t interpret. It was either surprise or relief. Possibly both.

“Do you like to watch?” she asked, leaning back on the bed slightly and letting one of her hands drift over to her thigh. “Is that what you want?”

“Actually, what I really wanted was someone to talk with while I wait for my brother,” I told her. “But please don’t be concerned; I’ll pay you for your time.”

“Oh,” she said, sitting up a little. “You’re one of those.”

“One of what?” I asked, trying to keep my voice neutral, although feeling slightly offended.

“You want my life story, I suppose,” she said, her eyes growing a little angry. “You want to know how I managed to become such a downtrodden whore.”

“Not particularly,” I told her. “We don’t have to talk at all, if you don’t want to. We could always play cards for awhile, if you have a pack.”

Bernadette gave me half a smile and turned her head to view me out of the corner of her eye. “Cards?” she said. “You want to play cards? That’s a new one.”

“We don’t have to play cards,” I told her. “But you said you’d rather not talk and I was trying to think of a way to fill the time.”

“You’re too good looking to be in a place like this,” she told me. “I’m sure plenty of girls would give you a tumble for free.”