Tag: Oxford Cottage

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Harriet moved from one case of pretty baubles to another and again, peeked over the shoulder of the person ahead of her to see if anything caught her interest. Shopping was not her favourite activity unless it was shopping for clues, which is what she was doing today.  That is not to say she despised the activity. Oh, she tolerated it quite well, but it was a whole lot better than tolerable when the mission was not just to acquire a fan or string of pearls or the like but was instead a covert mission.

“May I be of assistance,” asked a gentleman who was dressed a bit better than the other clerks behind the cases. “We are quite busy today, and I would be very much saddened to see a lady of quality such as yourself leave my shop without being waited upon.”

His shop? Did he mean that he was the proprietor and not just an employee?

“It is a lovely establishment that you have set up for yourself.” She watched his features for how he would respond to this. As she had hoped, he smiled and inclined his head while his chest puffed a bit at the complement.

“I am most pleased to hear you say so. Now, is there anything with which I might assist you? Was there something in particular that you were looking for?”

She opened her reticule and withdrew a hair comb that had been her mothers and was far too lovely to wear as an everyday accessory. As she did so, she made certain that the few pounds she carried were visible. “My father had a pocket watch that matched this in its design. The flowers and leaves that is. It did not sparkle as this does for who needs a watch to shine when it is tucked in one’s pocket?”

The shop owner nodded his head, looking quite attentive, as she spoke.

“My sister’s husband has a birthday in just a month, and she has commissioned me to find him a watch as a surprise. He has always admired my brother’s watch – which as you might have guessed used to be my father’s watch. Would you have anything that would come close to this?” She turned the hair comb this way and that as if admiring it. It truly was a pretty piece of jewelry.

“I have a few watches in a box in the back.” He glanced around the store. “They are not new,” he said softly. “They were accepted on tick, if you understand my meaning.”

“They are not pilfered goods, are they?” She asked the question in a whisper.

“Oh, goodness, no!” The shop owner assured her. “They are simply a means for someone to pay a bill.”

She made a show of blowing out a soft breath in relief. “In that case, I would be happy to examine them.”

“If you will follow me, we can look at them in my office.”

Harriet motioned to Jimmy who was standing near the door, and then, they both followed the man into his office where he proceeded to withdraw a box from inside a small mahogany chiffonier. Inside the box were four watches, all neatly displayed and cleaned. There was not a speck of dust on them.

“Oh,” she said as her eyes fell on the very watch for which she was looking. “They are quite lovely. I am sure that whoever had to part with them was quite sad to do so.” She put out a hand. “May I touch them?”

“To be sure. Pick them up and feel their quality. Inspect their design. We never accept any items, from any source, which are not of the highest workmanship.”  

First, she examined the gold watch next to her brother’s stolen silver one. She put her hair comb next to the engraving on the back and made a small tsking noise when it clearly did not match.

“That is a fine watch. Your sister’s husband would be proud to use it,” the shop owner encouraged. “But the one next to it might be closer to what you are looking for.” He lifted it out of the box and handed it to her.

Harriet ran a finger of the glass and then closed the front protective metal face over it. It clicked closed just as it should.

“Oh, it is covered in vines!” she cried in delight. “It is not just the same as this comb, but my does it not come close?” She looked up at the shopkeeper as she turned it over. “Is this the maker’s mark?” She asked when she saw the small G.P., which stood for Giles Philips – her father’s name, on the back.

“It must be,” the man said. “Although it is not one with which I am familiar.”

“He is very good whoever he is,” Harriet said. “Is it terribly expensive?”

“I am afraid I cannot part with it for less than fifty pounds for I must cover what I purchased it for and make a little to pay for housing it.”

Harriet sighed and turned it over in her hands. “My sister was hoping to spend no more than thirty, but I must say this one is exquisite and I do have a few pounds of my own. Are you certain you cannot take forty-five? I just that much in my reticule. The transaction could be complete this instant.”

That lit a gleam in the man’s eyes. “Forty-five, you say?”

Harriet nodded and held her breath.

“This is a private sale,” the man said with a pointed look. “I am no pawnbroker.”

“Oh, I understand. I will not say a word to anyone about where I found this, except for my sister, of course. She will need to know.”

The man’s head bobbed up and down slowly for a moment before he sat forward in his chair and smiled. “I think we have an agreement. Shall I wrap this for you?”

“Oh, no, there is no need. I have come prepared.” She took her money out of her reticule and then, pulled out a small blue velvet pouch. “My sister gave me this so that it would be easy for me to pass it to her without causing any suspicion since it is the bag she uses when she lends me earbobs and broaches.”

“That is very clever,” the man said as he accepted her money.

“Oh, it is, but then, my sister is far cleverer than I. I am sure I never would have thought of it. The things she came up with for us to do when we were young that had I been in charge of the planning we would have been in trouble for sure, but not with her.” She added a laugh at her own expense here.

“There is always one in any lot of siblings, or so my wife says.”

“Indeed, I fear your wife has the right of it from what I have heard,” she agreed as she placed the watch inside her reticule, and then handed the whole thing to Jimmy. “Thank you so much, sir. You have made both me and my sister very happy.” She dipped a curtsey and took her leave.

Would not Edmund be surprised when he found this on his desk tomorrow? Now, if only she could discover whom it was who had sold it to the owner of this shop.

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Harriet carried her shoes as she tiptoed past her brother’s room on her way to the servant’s staircase. If she was going to prove to him that she could handle danger and be allowed to marry her colonel before she was past her prime, she needed to get an early start on the project.

And early it was.

She yawned as she opened the door to the staircase, startling a maid who was scurrying down the stairs. It had been a late night, or was that better said an early morning, for both her and her brother. Balls, especially ones hosted by Samantha, never ended before the wee hours of the morning. And, on the day after such a soiree, Edmund never rose before ten, which was yet three hours away and that meant that she would be well on her way around town before her brother noticed she was not in the breakfast room.

“Miss Philips!” (Mr. name), the cook cried. “You don’t look like you’re set to scrub my pots.” He teased with a chuckle. “Is this another time when I am not supposed to see you but should offer you a bit of cheese and toast?” 

His eyes sparkled with amusement. Of all the cooks she had ever met, he had to be the most personable and likely, the most carefree, for he seemed not to be even a little bit afraid of being reprimanded for letting her escape. Mr. Barlow, the butler, and (Mrs. Name) the housekeeper were less obliging, which is why she liked to make a quick exit through the kitchen when needed.

“A little lunch to carry would be lovely. Have you seen Jimmy?”

(Mr. name) crossed to the kitchen door in three long strides. “Jimmy,” he shouted. “You are needed.”  He turned back to Harriet who was buttering a couple of slices of bread. “He’ll be right with you, miss. Sally, get the young miss some cheese.” He took cloth from under his work bench. “Wrap it in this and take enough for Jimmy. We can’t have your protector become faint from hunger just so you can avoid your brother.” The last part was said with a pointed look.

“Are you going to tell him?”

(Mr. name) smiled and flicked his eyebrows upward. “Not until I see him. I do like my job well enough.”

“Where did you work before here?” Harriet asked when she noticed, not for the first time, that their new-as-of-last-autumn, cook walked with a slight limp.

“It’s in me papers, miss,” he answered.

She scowled. “And where would I find those papers?”

“I would imagine in the housekeeper’s room or your brother’s study,” he answered.

“Will you not just tell me?” she asked while wrapping the cheese Sally had brought her and the bread she had buttered in the towel (Mr. name) had given her.

“I know how you like a mystery.” He nodded his head smartly in greeting as Jimmy entered the kitchen.

A smile curled her lips and a chuckle escaped her. “What rank were you?” she asked. “Higher or lower than Jimmy?” Jimmy, she knew had been with her brother on the continent. That was why he was the groom she always asked to accompany her when she went out alone.

(Mr. name) laughed. “What makes you think I was in the army?”

“The way you nodded to Jimmy just now. It reminded me a great deal of how my brother greets Colonel Fitzwilliam.” Her brow furrowed. “In fact, now that I am thinking about it, my brother also greets you that way when he is down here pretending to get biscuits but doing something else which I have not yet quite figured out. However…” she tapped her lip. “I’d wager that what he is doing down here involves you, and that is why you do not fear being sacked as much as Barlow does. He was never on the continent with my brother you see, but Jimmy was, and I dare say so were you.”

(Mr. name) laughed again. “I’ve heard tell that you are clever. I thank you for the demonstration. I was a captain.”

“Which makes your rank higher than Jimmy’s.”

“It does,” Jimmy replied.

“Were you instructed to hide your connection to Edmund from me?”

The cook shook his head. “No, but your brother did think it would be a fun game to see how long it would be before you discovered it.” He nodded to Jimmy. “How long have you known Jimmy was in your brother’s unit?”

Harriet smiled as Jimmy groaned. “Just now. I knew he had been on the continent from his scar, but I had yet to confirm he was part of my brother’s unit.” She narrowed her eyes as she looked at Jimmy. “Is that why you would not tell me? Are you also part of this game my brother is playing?”

Jimmy nodded and smiled sheepishly. “He’s right proud of you.”

“That he is,” the cook agreed. “And I have to say, he said you’d have me figured out before a year was through. I was convinced I could get away with keeping my secret longer.” He tipped his head toward the door. “You should go before we’re discovered.” He put a hand on her parcel of food. “Take care to return safely because I do not want to have to face Colonel Philips as the one who let you escape if you do not.”

“That is why I have Jimmy.” She peeked to her left and her right before lowering her voice. “And a small pistol in my reticule.” The pistol had been a gift from Andrew after he conceded that he could not always see to Harriet’s safety, and therefore, thought it was best if she learned to defend herself.

Her brow furrowed. Had that truly been the reason? Or had Andrew known that trouble was outside the door so to speak. It had only been three months before he had died.

“Is there a problem, miss,” Jimmy asked from where he stood next to the door waiting for her to follow him.

Harriet shook her head. “No, I was just thinking about Andrew for a moment because my gun was a gift from him.” She smiled brightly even if she did not feel the expression. She couldn’t have these men worrying about Colonel Philips’s little sister any more than they likely were already tasked with doing. “Make sure dinner is exceptional, for I promise to return famished.” And with that, she stepped into the alley with Jimmy.