Ame said, grumpy. âWant to stay here.â
âWeâve got no choice.â
Kat tried combing out their hairâAmelie had terribleknots and cried out more than once, and Kat finally gave up, saying, âThat will have to do.â
They rushed down the great stairs into the central hallway and turned left, andââNo! Itâs right. Sorry, AmeââMarie calling them along, so Kat followed the sound of her voice until they finally reached the dining hall.
Now fires roared in both fireplaces. Light streamed in from the high windows; the sun had come out from behind the clouds while they napped. The table was spread again for a feast. Everyone stood at their places at the table, including Peter and Rob and three other children, two boys and a girl. It was clear that theyâd all been waiting for Kat and Amelie, and they glared at them as they stumbled in. Rob and Peter wore their uniforms, and Kat tried brushing her messy hair back from her face, feeling the blush of embarrassment.
At the head of the high table, raised above the table where the children waited, stood the Lady Eleanor, and standing next to her was a man. Kat thought he had to be Lord Craig, though he didnât look ill in the least.
Kat dragged Amelie as fast as they could move until they stood before the Lady, and then Kat dropped into a curtsey; Amelie copied her, mumbling annoyance. âSorry, my Lady,â Kat panted.
The Lady Eleanor lifted her chin. Her white-blonde hair was swept into a side chignon, and she was dressed to thenines. She wore the kind of gown that wouldnât keep anyone warm unless they lived in the equatorial regions, where bare arms covered only by black above-elbow gloves would be a relief. Her dress was shimmery, full-length, body-hugging, although she wore an elaborate belt from which hung a Scottish sporran made of leather and a scarf in the Craig tartan. All the male eyes in the room were on the Lady. Kat wouldâve liked to kick Peter in the shins. Robbie was almost drooling.
âYou will dress in uniforms for every occasion,â the Lady said, her voice cold even as she gave them a thin smile. âWe eat before sunset here. You will not be late again.â
âNo, maâam.â She curtseyed again, this time to the man. âGood evening, my Lord.â
At that, the man burst into mocking laughter.
Kat stiffened, first at the sound of that laugh, and then at the looks sheâand the manâreceived from the Lady.
ââMy Lordâ!â the man said, sputtering with laughter. âShe called me âmy Lordâ!â
âYes, well, she is an ignorant girl,â the Lady said, loud enough for Kat to hear.
Katâs hand tightened on Amelieâs.
âYou can call me Sir,â the man said with a narrow-eyed grin, âbut Iâm no proper lord.â
The Lady turned cold eyes on Kat. âThis is not my lord husband,â she said. Her teeth gleamed in a smile that didnâtreach her eyes. âThis is Mr. Storm, one of your instructors. Now that youâve all arrived, and the other teachers arrive tomorrow, lessons shall begin.â
âAbout bloody time for something interesting to begin,â murmured the boy standing a few feet behind Kat. âBeen a bloody bore here so far. That bugger had us locked in study hall all day, he did, while he was off someplace.â
That âbuggerâ Mr. Storm held the Ladyâs chair for her and swept his hand for her to sit, and the Lady gave him a look that would freeze a polar bear, though he either didnât see or didnât care. When he pulled his chair out to sit, Kat heard the scraping of the chairs behind her and she tugged Amelie to the two empty places at the table, while stealing another look at Mr. Storm.
Instructors come in all shapes and sizes, but Mr. Storm didnât fit Katâs idea of an instructor. To be honest, he hadnât fit her idea of a
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