Chapter 49
<47th Episode> The Fallen Veil (2)
"That's it. You can go to the Ball like this."
Miss Jenson hurried to the dressing room and looked in the mirror. She saw a Lady she had never seen before. She was not only dignified but also a very beautiful Lady. Miss Jenson clapped her hands so hard that the dressing room echoed.
"It's solved! The dress problem is solved. Miss Pendleton, thank you. Thank you so much."
Miss Pendleton felt proud and sat on the sofa. Mrs. Naisley, who was beside her, looked at Miss Pendleton with eyes as if she were seeing a goddess. To handle everything so wonderfully. As expected, the Lady of the Count's family was different.
Mrs. Naisley sat next to Miss Pendleton. And she clasped her hands tightly and asked.
"Miss Pendleton, if you don't mind, please have dinner with us tonight."
Miss Pendleton politely declined. She was worried about running into Mr. Price. Fortunately, he was out on business now, but she could run into him at any time during dinner.
Miss Jenson, who heard their conversation, ran out of the dressing room.
"Why, Miss Pendleton! Please have dinner with us. Please?"
"No. I have to ask after my grandmother, and I have to prepare for the Ball tomorrow..."
"Oh, please don't. You've worked so hard for me, you should give me a chance to repay you."
"Yes, Miss Pendleton. Please stay for dinner. Our family's Formal dinner may be a little lacking, but it still features high-class dishes that people in this neighborhood recognize. Please don't worry about it being too low-class."
"Mrs. Naisley, I don't think that at all. But..."
Miss Pendleton closed her mouth at the poor excuse. Then the two Ladies started grabbing her arms and pulling on them. Eat and go. Eat and go. The two women chirped like birds on either side.
Miss Pendleton refused several times, but the two women were adamant. In the end, as always, she had no choice but to choose the latter between reluctance and etiquette.
"...Yes, I'll have dinner and go."
Miss Jenson exclaimed, "Wow," and shook Miss Pendleton's hand. Mrs. Naisley immediately ran to the kitchen. It was to badger the cook to make a dish that Miss Pendleton would not find fault with.
A little later, Miss Pendleton had a Formal dinner with them.
Miss Pendleton received the most extreme treatment she had received in recent years. It was just three Ladies having dinner, but there was a generous goose dish, turtle soup, and even high-class wine. In addition, Mrs. Naisley asked Miss Pendleton every five minutes if she needed anything more, and Miss Jenson kept an eye on Miss Pendleton and paid attention to her.
Miss Pendleton ate in their consideration. She was burdened by the pouring reception, but the meal was delicious and Miss Jenson's jokes were pleasant. She had been so focused on her role as the mistress of the house for a while that this kind of hospitality was quite rare for her.
After dinner, Miss Jenson dragged Miss Pendleton to the drawing room. And she said that she was treating Miss Pendleton today, so she sat her on the sofa and sat on the piano chair herself. And she asked Miss Pendleton to tell her her favorite song.
Miss Pendleton asked for a sonata by Franz Liszt, which she usually liked. Miss Jenson gracefully moved her fingers and began to play the song.
Miss Pendleton enjoyed Miss Jenson's piano performance and drank the tea that Mrs. Naisley handed her.
Miss Pendleton liked Miss Jenson in particular, as well as Mrs. Naisley.
Miss Jenson became rapidly close to Miss Lance's group after the rowing competition. She often showed her face at her Tea party, and she became a welcome Lady at Miss Lance's Tea party.
That meant that she was no longer a very necessary person to Miss Jenson. It would be more beneficial for her to hang out with young Ladies who were young and had high stock prices than a has-been like herself who would soon leave society.
But Miss Jenson occasionally visited the Townhouse and spent time with Miss Pendleton. She would unpack boxes of candy she brought from America, and she would suggest going for a walk in Hyde Park together. In any way, it was a gesture to purely share friendship.
The presence of the cheerful Miss Jenson was a comfort to Miss Pendleton, who had been under a lot of stress lately.
Her grandmother's condition was getting worse every day, and her uncle harassed her with silent contempt every time they bumped into each other in the house. Charles, who was busy rummaging around London every day, was also eyeing the maids in the house.
With everyone in the house giving her extreme fatigue, today's treatment was a welcome break for her.
Miss Pendleton sat on the drawing room sofa, enjoying Miss Jenson's elegant piano performance and receiving cookies and silly compliments from Mrs. Naisley from time to time, and felt that this situation was very comfortable.
Until Mrs. Naisley said this.
"By the way, Miss Pendleton."
Mrs. Naisley glanced at Miss Jenson and tilted her head slightly and called Miss Pendleton.
"Yes, Mrs. Naisley?"
"When are you going to accept my brother's proposal?"
Miss Pendleton couldn't believe her ears.
"Pardon?"
"I'm asking when you're going to accept my brother's proposal."
Mrs. Naisley asked again, clearly. Miss Pendleton froze.
"I heard it from my brother. He said he's been courting you for a long time. And Miss Pendleton, you don't seem to be completely uninterested, do you?"
Miss Pendleton felt dizzy at the sudden question. She quickly put down the teacup she was holding.
"Excuse me, Mrs. Naisley, I don't quite understand what you're saying..."
"Oh, shouldn't I be talking about this? But Miss Pendleton. My brother is almost in his mid-fifties now. He's at an age where he could die at any time. If you drag it out too long..."
"Auntie!"
At the sudden sound, the two looked towards the piano. Miss Jenson had stopped playing the piano and was looking at Mrs. Naisley with a flustered expression.
"I told you to be careful what you say in front of Miss Pendleton, didn't I? She's such a dignified person!"
Mrs. Naisley belatedly realized her mistake.
"I, I'm sorry, Joan."
"Oh, I can't live like this. How embarrassed must Miss Pendleton be? How can you be so careless?"
Mrs. Naisley's face flushed with embarrassment as she was scolded by a girl who was the same age as her daughter.
"But Joan, you're young so you don't know. Miss Pendleton is still a virgin so she won't know either. Who here has been married as long as I have? I just wanted to let her know that if you're going to get married anyway, it's better to get it over with quickly than to delay."
"Um, just a moment."
Miss Pendleton interjected. The eyes of the two people gathered on Miss Pendleton.
"I think you two are misunderstanding, so let me tell you. It's true that I received a proposal from Mr. Price. But I refused. I don't know how Mr. Price conveyed it to you, but my heart is clear."
Mrs. Naisley smiled awkwardly.
"Miss Pendleton. I know. Me too. I know that it can be embarrassing to marry a man who is old enough to be your father. But we are all grateful to Miss Pendleton. Isn't that right, Joan?"
Miss Jenson erased her troubled expression and looked at Miss Pendleton softly.
"Of course. Miss Pendleton may be embarrassed and not show it, but everyone in this house has a great liking for Miss Pendleton. You're saving our aging godfather's final years. How noble and warm-hearted you are. It's very grateful that someone like Miss Pendleton is becoming our godfather's wife."
Miss Pendleton listened quietly to the words that the two people took turns saying. They firmly believed that she would marry Mr. Price. From her point of view, it was an absurd thing. It wouldn't be strange if she got angry and raged.
But as always, when she encountered absurd and ridiculous situations, her heart turned cold.
"Mrs. Naisley, Miss Jenson. I'm sorry to say this despite the generous treatment you've given me today. I've never thought of Mr. Price as a man. And, I have no feelings other than embarrassment about Mr. Price proposing to me. I..."
"Miss Pendleton, so..."
"Mrs. Naisley. Please listen to my story first. If he had offered me a caregiver, or a tutor for his children, I might have accepted. But I will never be his wife. The marriage that I have avoided all my life is exactly this kind of marriage. Marrying Mr. Price is an act that completely abandons my nature and beliefs. If you mention his marriage to me any more than this, I will feel insulted."
Silence fell in the drawing room. Mrs. Naisley and Miss Jenson quietly looked at Miss Pendleton. Miss Pendleton closed her mouth firmly and received their gaze. They soon read her sincerity from Miss Pendleton's face.
A rather long silence followed. Soon, Mrs. Naisley called a servant to clear the tea table in the drawing room. And she drooped her shoulders and left the drawing room without a word.
Meanwhile, Miss Jenson was sitting in front of the piano, looking down at the keyboard. She seemed to be lost in deep thought.
Miss Pendleton could guess the favor that Miss Jenson had shown her so far from what had just happened. It was a favor for the woman who would become the new wife of her beloved godfather.
Miss Pendleton began to resent Mr. Price. Why did he arbitrarily distort her clearly stated intention of refusal and instill false expectations in the women around him?
Anyway, she couldn't stay in this mansion any longer. Miss Pendleton got up from her seat.
"I should go home now. Please forgive me for leaving. And... please tell Mrs. Naisley that I'm sorry I couldn't say goodbye. Then."
"Wait a minute, Miss Pendleton!"
Miss Jenson jumped up and stopped Miss Pendleton, who was leaving the drawing room.
"Go in our carriage. I'll take you."
"Don't bother. I can go alone."
"No. I want to talk to you on the way. It seems that you won't be comfortable doing it at home. Please wait a moment. I'll put on my coat and come out."
Miss Jenson ordered a servant to have the carriage ready and hurriedly went upstairs, put on a light cape, and came out.
The two got into the carriage together. As the two Ladies settled into their seats, the inside of the carriage shook greatly once and then slowly began to move.
