"There," she said and sat back, satisfied. "Now, we must meet your father."
I rose - and almost fell. Lightheaded from the corset, headachy from unexpected brain surgery, I braced myself against the table.
"Nell, I can't breathe!" I gasped. "You gotta loosen that thing."
"You must be attired in the proper style," Nell said. "You will adjust."
This is the craziest thing I've ever heard of.
I struggled to catch my breath then straightened. It took a moment for me to find balance. "All right. I'm ready."
Nell was smiling, her eyes filled with tears. "Welcome back, Miss Josie. I've missed you dearly," she said.
Guilt stirred once more. I bit my tongue and forced a smile. I had to play along. If I hurt these people, it wasn't on purpose. I was here for a very good cause: to save a million lives.
Except I had no idea where to start or even if I landed in the right place to make a difference.
I trailed my governess out of my room. Nell was speaking quietly about the people who lived in the house, as if to remind me. I tried to listen but wasn't able to concentrate, instead taking in my surroundings with curiosity. I was in my own wing of a two-story house that appeared to be quite large.
A sweeping stairwell led to the first floor and the front door, which was flanked by two massive rooms with expensive, period furniture, including a piano and a harp.
At least my fake-daddy is rich, I thought. Portraits of stern men lined the wide corridor on the main floor, which was edged by closed doors. Judging by the paintings, my father was going to be a grave, bearded man who looked ready to order my beheading.
"Oh!" Nell exclaimed suddenly, stopping. "You cannot see your father for the first time if you aren't wearing the necklace he bought you on your last birthday." She pulled a small box from the depths of her apron and opened it.
"Wow," I breathed.
The black choker contained an emerald the size of my thumb.
Nell put it on with steady fingers, and I touched it. That would definitely pay off my student debt.
I'm going to hell for that thought. My goal had to be to leave as small of an indent on these people and this time period as possible. I definitely wasn't going to steal from them.
We stopped in a doorway to a masculine study that smelled of pipe smoke.
"He must be with the savages still," Nell said, a note of disapproval in her voice.