Read Online Midnight's Song by Keely Victoria - Free Book Online

me.
    “What Grandmamma means,”
Wren interjected, “is that we intend to educate you. While you’re
here, we’ll be caring for you and refining you. You’ll also be
educating you in the ways of our etiquette. That way you will have
the adequate experience and training to prepare you for this life,
should you choose it.”
    “ Like a dog…” I could have sworn I
heard Stella whisper.
    To everyone else, the affront fell on
deaf ears. I expelled a breath of air from my chest and looked down
at my plate in an attempt to forget about it. There, I was met with
just as much distress. My stomach ached, but so did my pride. There
was a myriad of different forks and spoons lined up next to my
plate that I was hopelessly clueless with. I almost resolved to use
my hands to eat it, but I quickly caught sight of Stella’s piercing
glare again and feared too much ridicule to proceed.
    “We have high hopes for
you, Elissa. With a bit of work, I know that in a few months you
will be a prime example of what the Devereaux’s are all about!”
Grandmamma suddenly spoke up in complete confidence.
    Of course, I knew what she was truly
implying. I was going to take lady lessons.
    I had been right when I had assumed
that my first meeting with the entire family would be the
equivalent to gawkers at a circus act.
    “ Look at that poor, hungry girl!” I
imagined they would say. “We must change
her at once!” This was what it was all
about. Turning rags to riches. As if that reality wasn’t harsh
enough for an uncultured girl like me; the next words would come as
quite the shock:
    “In fact, Beeti has taken it on as
her personal task to help you become a proper
lady . ”
    Beeti? She feigned a
patronizing smile. Then, I looked over at my sour-faced cousin.
Stella avoided my eyes and kept her nose in the air. That’s when I
realized something borderline terrifying.
    I was going to have
to spend the next three years of my life living with her.
    “We will begin your
preparation right away. After breakfast, you will arrive at the
baths for grooming. Then, the tailor will take your measurements as
to make you something to suit your… stature. ” Beeti’s last word didn’t
seem quite as condescending as I’d expected. “I have also taken it
upon myself to ensure you receive a proper education. I have hired
a very well-regarded academic to be your tutor, Dr. Monica
Blackwood.
    Grandmamma nodded in
intense approval along with all of the others at the very mention
at the name. Obviously, this person was quite respected among the
Devereaux clan. Could it have been some sort of a humiliating ploy?
The aunt looked up at me, eyes flickering.
    “Your lessons begin
tomorrow.”

9 |
Gentlelady

    “You have at least taken
care to remove the hair from your underarms,” Beeti remarked as I
rose my arms above my head. If I hadn’t shaved them, why was that
her business?
    I had been taken to the
bathhouse and undressed by the attendants – wrapped only in a small
towel so that Beeti might come and dissect me. She had to know what
she was working with. I knew that she enjoyed stripping away my
dignity.
    “Your eyebrows need grooming.” She
took a dab of spit and slid it across my brow. “They need to be
more rounded. We’ll take care of that.”
    My eyebrows? What was
wrong with my eyebrows? They’d never bothered me. I clutched the
scrawny towel against my body, blushing. As if it wasn’t
embarrassing enough, Stella insisted on being present. The
sour-faced cousin of mine came in and out of the bathhouse acting
as if it was her right to be there. She walked in and out of the
place at whim, this time to gawp.
    “Have you begun
perfuming her yet?” Stella nettled. “The girl smells of fish! ”
    I tilted my nose toward my
chest. Did I really smell that bad? Beeti looked up at her daughter
in slight annoyance – but not in any type of rebuke.
    “We will perfume her
soon my dear. The baths will take away Celeste’s aroma.” It was