“I’m not fit to marry a man like him,” Mercy continued rapidly. “I’d embarrass him and cause him all kinds of problems, to be sure.” Not to mention the shame she’d cause the Columbia Mission Society, as well as the trouble she’d bring to Mr. Scott.

Mrs. Moresby started to rapidly fan herself again. “My, my, my, it’s no wonder Lord Colville is ready to tear to pieces any man who looks your way.”

Mercy shook her head in denial, though a part of her wanted it to be true. Joseph hadn’t been pleased with all the attention the men were giving the women yesterday after disembarking. Was he a little jealous?

The other women were beginning to stroll back to the Marine Barracks. Mrs. Moresby stuffed her fan back into her reticule, then tucked her hand into the crook of Mercy’s arm. “Come. Walk with me, Mercy.”

Even if Mercy could have pulled herself free from the woman’s strong grip, she was too intimidated by Mrs. Moresby’s forcefulness and frankness to do anything but try to keep up with the woman’s long strides.

“When I arrived to Vancouver Island fifteen years ago, I came as a servant to Mrs. Archibald, wife to one of the commanders of Fort Victoria when it was still under the control of Hudson’s Bay Company.”

At Mrs. Moresby’s admission, Mercy nearly tripped.

From beneath the array of flowing ribbons, the matron smiled at Mercy’s reaction, as if she enjoyed shocking people with her story. “I never was a lady and still make no claim of being one.”

“But you look and sound just like one.”

Mrs. Moresby chuckled and patted Mercy’s arm. “I married a very wealthy man, Mercy. Mr. Moresby made his fortune in the fur trade. He was, and still is, one of the richest men in Victoria.”

Mercy allowed the woman to pull her along and attempted to digest the revelation.

“I understand you better than you think I do,” Mrs. Moresby said with another pat. “Of course, Mr. Moresby isn’t a nobleman like Lord Colville. Nevertheless, he’s a very important man in the colony.”

Mercy tried to picture Mrs. Moresby as a servant, but she couldn’t imagine the woman without her colorful gowns and flamboyant hats. While they walked, Mrs. Moresby relayed the story of how she met her husband at a party the Archibalds hosted. They’d developed a friendship that eventually blossomed into love.

“So you see, Mercy,” she said as they reached the door of the Marine Barracks, “we don’t have to settle for a certain way of life just because that was what we were born into.”