Chapters (41)
- Cover
- Books by Jody Hedlund
- Title Page
- Epigraph
- one
- two
- three
- four
- five
- six
- seven
- eight
- nine
- ten
- eleven
- twelve
- thirteen
- fourteen
- fifteen
- sixteen
- seventeen
- eighteen
- nineteen
- twenty
- twenty-one
- twenty-two
- twenty-three
- twenty-four
- twenty-five
- twenty-six
- twenty-seven
- twenty-eight
- twenty-nine
- thirty
- thirty-one
- thirty-two
- thirty-three
- Author’s Note
- About the Author
- Back Ad
- Back Cover
“No, ma’am.”
“Are you sick or diseased?”
“No, ma’am.”
“You’ve been given a great opportunity to start a new life. Don’t squander it.”
“No, ma’am,” Mercy replied quickly as she bobbed another curtsy. “I won’t.”
“There you are, Mrs. Dotta. She’s had her interview.” Miss Rye disappeared into the adjoining room and closed the door.
For long seconds, Mercy could only stare at the door. What had she gotten herself into? Was it too late to back out? All she had to do was leave the office and never return. She could simply pretend this interaction had never happened.
After all, these two women didn’t seem thrilled to have her join the list. They likely wouldn’t notice if she disappeared.
But by disappearing would she throw away her last chance at the great opportunity to start a new life? If she built a new life, then she could eventually rescue Patience from her miserable existence. However, if she stayed, she wouldn’t be able to do much good for Patience except join in her misery.
“Sit down,” Mrs. Dotta said as she lowered herself to her chair. “We have a good deal to accomplish if you’re to be ready in three days’ time.”
“Three days?”
“Yes. Your train departs in three days.”
“I thought I’d be a-going on a ship, ma’am.”
Mrs. Dotta released an exasperated sigh. “Of course you’re sailing by ship.”
The full weight of her ignorance and inferiority slapped Mercy in the face. She lowered her head. What was she doing here? She was just a poor girl from the poorest part of London.
“As you’ll be representing the Columbia Mission Society, we’ll require you to wear clean apparel. You do have a clean skirt and blouse, do you not?”
Mercy was tempted to hang her head in further shame, but she forced her chin back up so she could meet Mrs. Dotta’s gaze directly. “If I’m not good enough, ma’am, then just say so now and we can stop wasting each other’s time.”
Mrs. Dotta’s brows rose, and something akin to remorse flitted through her eyes before she dropped her attention back to the list. “Before you leave, we’ll provide you with an outfit. We’ve had donations from those wishing to support our program, and I’m certain we can find something your size.”