“Now remember, May is one of Billings’s most revered graduates,” her mother said, her tone clipped once again. “You have a lot to live up to, Elizabeth. Don’t disappoint me.”
Then she leaned in and gave Eliza a brief, dry kiss on the forehead.
Eliza rolled her blue eyes as her mother shuffled back down the hall. Then she bent to pluck her book from the box but froze as something caught her eye: May was still hovering in the hallway.
“May?” Eliza said. Usually her sister trailed her mother like the tail of a comet.
May looked furtively down the hall after their mother, then took a step toward Eliza’s open door. There was something about her manner that set the tiny hairs on Eliza’s neck on end.
“May, what is it?” Eliza asked, her pulse beginning to race.
“I just wanted to tell you . . . about Billings . . . about Crenshaw House,” May whispered, leaning into the doorjamb. “Eliza . . . there’s something you need to know.”
“What?” Eliza asked, breathless. “What is it?”
“May Williams! I’m waiting!” their mother called from the foot of the stairs.
May started backward. “Oh, I must go.”
Eliza grabbed her sister’s wrist.
“May, please. I’m your sister. If there’s something you need to tell me—”
May covered Eliza’s hand with her own and looked up into her eyes. “Just promise me you’ll be careful,” she said earnestly, her blue eyes shining. “Promise me, Eliza, that you’ll be safe.”
Eliza blinked. “Of course, May. Of course I’ll be safe. What could possibly harm me at a place like Billings?”
The sound of hurried footsteps on the stairs stopped them both. Renee rushed into view, holding her skirts up, her eyes wide with terror—the sort of terror only Rebecca Williams could inspire in her servants.
“May! Your mother is fit to burst,” she said through her teeth. “Mind your manners and get downstairs now.”
A tortured noise sounded from the back of May’s throat. Then she quickly gave Eliza a kiss on the cheek, squeezing her hands tightly. “I love you, Eliza. Always remember that. No matter what happens.”
Then she released Eliza and was gone.
Sisters
“Elizabeth Williams?”
Eliza’s foot had barely touched the platform at the Easton train station when she heard her name. A broad, straight-backed woman with a wide nose and sharp eyes approached Eliza, her outmoded black feathered cap perched firmly atop her head. Flanking her, but staying a few steps behind, were two girls about Eliza’s age. The first had auburn ringlets, blue eyes, and a bright smile. She was dressed in the latest fashion, though perhaps a bit overdone for daytime, with the elaborate lace trim of her full yellow skirt perfectly matching that of the collar and sleeves of her short jacket. She wore white-andbrown buttoned shoes and a hat with a turned-down brim, just like the one May had purchased last weekend on her trip to New York with their mother. The second girl was far more understated. Her modest blue-and-white striped dress was similar to Eliza’s, with a wide white collar and gathered waist. She wore sensible brown shoes and a plain blue cap over her golden blond hair. Her clear blue eyes met Eliza’s, and she smiled.
Renee alit next to Eliza. “I am Elizabeth’s escort.”
“A pleasure to meet you,” the woman said with a nod. “I am Mrs. Hodge, head maid of the Billings School for Girls. This is Alice Ainsworth, and this is Catherine White.” Stylish Alice twittered her fingers in greeting, while Catherine gave a polite nod.
“Hello.” Eliza lifted her chin, rounded her shoulders, and clasped her traveling bag with both hands.
“Our man has already been sent round to gather your things and bring them back to the school.” Mrs. Hodge reached out a thick arm toward Eliza and flicked her fingers in the direction of a busy thoroughfare.
Eliza’s heart began to pound with anticipation. This was it. She was about to say good-bye to Renee and the life she’d always known. Excited as she was, tears sprang to her eyes when she turned to the maid who had taken care of her every day since her birth.
“Good luck, Eliza,” Renee said, clasping her hands.
Eliza wrested her hands from Renee’s and pulled her into a hug. She inhaled her maid’s familiar, comforting scent of lilac and lemon.
“Thank you, Renee,” she said, her voice shaking.
Renee touched Eliza’s cheek with her palm as she pulled back. “I’ll see you at Thanksgiving.”