Behind the veil

Chapter One

A warm light smiled on me through my window, its loving kiss set my eyes fluttering open to greet the day, it was a wonderful summer day in the middle of June. Birds were singing their grace and my younger siblings played merrily on the freshly cut grass in the front courtyard, laughing as my mother warned them to not harm her flower beds. A perfect start to a perfect day.

My maid walked in with my breakfast on a tray. Two eggs, a rasher of bacon, two hash browns and a cup of Earl Grey tea. My mouth watered as I ate my fill while talking to Greta, she was a wonderful, kind and caring maid whom my mother did not care much for. She claimed that a young child daydreams too much and would distract me from my studies yet Greta was almost my age, she was a pretty 15 year old girl with golden hair and crystal blue eyes that shone with love and patience. Oh how i loved her eyes, they reminded me of the shimmering water at Brighton seafront where we spent our summer last year.

"Pardon?" I completely missed what Greta was telling me.

"I was only telling ya that you 'ave dancin' lessons today alongside tea with a few family friends. General studies are afterwards, followed by horse riding, my lady" Repeated Greta.

"Oh, thank you Greta, but please, call me Addy, Adelia if you must. You do not have to be as formal with me as you are with my mother." I returned. I was not concerned with formalities like my mother. People were people and the only thing that separated us from one another was our money, which was not fair yet nobody seemed to be too troubled by that fact. "Where is my mother anyway? Normally she requests my attendance in the Drawing room at this early hour." I questioned.

"Your mother is 'avin tea with a Lady and her Husband in the courtyard now, I believe your mother was expecting them. The Williams, I believe they were, Miss Adelia." replied Greta as she picked out my outfit for the day, alongside an outfit for my horse riding lessons later on. But the Williams, I had heard mother mention them once at a dinner party 3 years ago, if my memory serves me right, they were a wealthy, middle class family with two sons, the oldest who was training directly under their father to manage their family business and a young boy who was studying to become a doctor. Their mother seemed to pressure both of her sons to marry only high middle class women or a lady of the upper class, placing great importance on the chance of their family merging business to expand their own Law firm for greater profit and deals.

The only reason they allowed their youngest, Dominic, to study medicine was because of the high wages he would be given. Albert follows in his fathers footsteps I presume, especially as he shall be the one inheriting the family business when old Robert retires as head. Why would mother wish to have tea with them? Father was a nobleman and worked closely with Queen Victoria herself. He demanded a bloodline of high ranking, respectable citizens and would only accept suitors of that kind, he would never approve of this.

"Miss Adelia?" canvassed Greta, worry prominent on her face. "Are you alright, miss? You seem very distracted today."

"I'm doing well Greta, I'm just thinking about my mother and the Williams family, father would most certainly not approve of them being here while he is away in America so why is she having tea with them?" I pondered aloud.

"I don't know miss, maybe she's plannin' fer ya future. Ya never know, especially as you 'ave two younger sisters, ain't ya?" Greta had a point, but I didn't want a future with a Williams boy. Educated or not, they were rough and messy in the wrong way; they'd never listen to me or go on walks by the river. They were too immersed in money and books and pleasing their father for my liking. I wanted someone who I could relate to on some level. I wanted someone who could talk with me, laugh with me, cheer me up on a gloomy day and make my heart soar upon an evening when the moon is high and the flowers were in bloom: a scene so beautiful angels would descend from the heavens above and sing hallelujah as we rejoiced in pure delight from each others company-

"What on earth is going on here?!" My mother's cry shook me from my romanticising tendency as she swept into the room, her cream skirts settled upon my teak floorboards, never minding the way the silks and satins, the ribbons and bows, pirouetted into place as she stood still, her cream heels resting with a final clack as she stood stock still with a look of intent anger dancing across her features.

"Why are you talking to my daughter and distracting her? She has enough distractions as it is and you have no authority and are in no position to jeopardise my daughter's future just because you're used to being fated to nothing but a lowly servant until the day you die." My mother, Elizabeth, snarled. She didn't even attempt to hide the disdain on her face. She was the type of person that strongly believed that the only reason upper class citizens such as ourselves should mix with the lower classes was because of work, regardless of how much she limited her time around our maids and butlers.

"I was jus, tellin 'er the schedule for today missus, please don' be mad a' me" Greta begged

"Get out of this room before i fire you for insubordination you lowly wretch, remember that you only work here because i took pity on your dying mother after she serviced this family for so many years; you should feel ashamed at the disgrace you have become, now get out before it's too late you insolent child!" Mother howled at Greta's scurrying form, any ounce of guilt or pity she may have previously held was completely tarnished in this short moment, eradicated by her magisterial pride created by her wealth and entitled upbringing.

Rage swirled within my being, taking over my mind like a tsunami in the south of the world "Mother she did nothing wrong, why did you scream at he-"

"ENOUGH!" She cried vehemently "I WILL NOT TAKE ATTITUDE FROM A NAIVE CHILD SUCH AS YOURSELF, AM I UNDERSTOOD?"

My body froze as my mother turned her attention to me. "But mother-"

"I SAID ENOUGH!", her eyes screamed her emotions just as loud as her voice, if not louder. The look of rage sent a chill down my spine that would force the most stubborn, heartless admiral to submit to her will and orders.

"Yes mother" I whispered as I turned my face towards the tray of unfinished food on my lap as another maid took it away without a sound, obviously off-put by my mothers latest outburst.

"Now hurry and get ready, we have guests downstairs I would like you to meet and hopefully become well acquainted with" my mother ordered with a sly smile on her face.

This would most definitely not end well.