wanted a governess who could teach English, French, who could read with the children and who could also give them lessons in arithmetic.”
“Did they make any promises regarding her future employment?”
“They said that she would be looked after, that she would be with the family until the youngest child had finished her education—then she would have her passage paid to return home. The boy was destined for a boarding school, but I believe it was intended for the young ladies to learn at home and then attend a school in London before being sent to Switzerland. That is the way with these people.”
Maisie looked up. Billy caught her eye and raised an eyebrow, while Sandra held her gaze for a second longer than a glance.
“Mr. Pramal, may I ask—it seems quite common for families to bring an ayah with them from India, but not a governess. Am I right?”
Pramal sighed. “Yes, you are correct, but my sister was a highly regarded young woman, who matriculated from her college with top marks and first-class references. She was well versed in the English language and literature—she was tested many times. And she had learned French as well—not a common language to learn in my country.”
“From my notes here, it seems that she was given notice to leave her employment with no financial assistance, apart from that which was owed her. Can you account for this?”
“Usha did not tell me about what had happened. In her letters she seemed as happy and content as she had ever been.”
“If I may risk overstepping the mark, Mr. Pramal, I would like to return to a point we discussed yesterday—would Usha not have been betrothed to be married at some point?”
Pramal shook his head. “I wish she had, but as I explained, my father indulged her following the death of my mother. My aunts tried to advise him in the most very strong way, but he allowed her to turn up her nose at every suitor. And if I am to be perfectly honest, there were not many suitors—a family soon learns when a girl is too headstrong for their son. It is not desirable, and it comes with a reputation. I believe that if my mother were alive, Usha would have been a different person—but . . .”
“But perhaps not.”
Pramal shrugged. “Perhaps not.”
Sandra held up her pencil, as if she were a student in class.
“Have you thought of something, Sandra?” asked Maisie.
Sandra blushed, and at once Maisie wondered if she felt less than confident in her classes when called upon to speak or to answer a question.
“Well, yes.” She cleared her throat. “Mr. Pramal, I just wondered if any of Miss Pramal’s suitors might have gone away feeling, well, slighted in some way. If they and their family tried to bring about a, um, a betrothal—is that how it is?—well, a boy might have had a bit of a chip on his shoulder when she turned down a proposal.”
Maisie nodded her agreement. “Mr. Pramal?”
Pramal sighed. “My friend, Mr. Singh, he was in love with Usha once. She made it clear to my father that she would not accept any approach from his family. And there was another man who called upon her, though most unsuitable. An Englishman. He came to the house one day. Usha was very furious with him and asked an aunt to send him away. I—”
Maisie looked up from a note she was making. Pramal had stopped speaking, and was now shaking his head.
“Mr. Pramal?” Maisie leaned forward, to catch his eye.
“I—I had a suspicion at the time—though I never proved it, of course. But I wondered if Usha had already been seen out with the Englishman, without a chaperone. He was a young man, not long in India, and I would say he was a very naive boy—a civil servant, working in the shipping office, or perhaps he was some sort of diplomatic person—I can’t remember now. It was soon after he came to our home that she decided to accept the position of governess. She worked for the family for a while before they sailed to England. I never saw the man again, and doubt he ever saw Usha.”
“Do you know his name?” Maisie held her pen ready above the index card.
“I really don’t remember—in fact, I am not sure that I ever knew. You see, I was not at home then, and did not visit often, because I was new in my position and working very hard to establish